《Rise of The Demon General》


 1 Chapter 1

    In arge hall within an ancient castle, a man was sitting on a stone throne. Beside him were two women with minimum clothing, one young, one middle-aged, and both beauties. The two women had one of their hands chained to the stone throne. The two women''s faces showed both terror and intense hate for the man on the throne.


    The man was sitting leisurely. He was wearing a military uniform with camouge stripes. The uniform wrapped tightly around his body due to his unusuallyrge frame and muscr build.


    His head was bare of hair, even his eyebrow was devoid. His eyes had a cold gaze despite the apparent smile on his face, a face that disyed hardened features tempered by the vicissitudes of life. There was a long scar on the left side of his cheek, a relic of a wound that had failed to heal with time.


    In his hand was a ss of wine. He sipped the wine as he listened to the orchestra outside, a cacophony of explosions and gunfires. The hall would sometimes shake following the explosions. He wondered how many of his underlings were remaining outside?


    The sound of the battle soon became less. He knew that one side was already winning. Which side was it? Was it the group of righteous warriors who banded together to avenge the evil deeds he hadmitted? Or his battle-hardened and equally immoral soldiers? He could not wait to find out.


    He heard footsteps. Showtime! Would it be another big disappointment? Or, finally, a worthy attempt on his life?


    Therge double doors of the hall were pushed open. They were very heavy doors, thus they opened slowly. The body of the man on the throne tilted forward with anticipation.


    Several men and women mostly in civilian attire rushed in, each of them holding a firearm.


    "Hahaha!" The man on the throneughed heartily at the sight.


    "Amoonnnn¡­!! Today will be the day of retribution! Your evil acts end today!" A young man in the lead yelled when heid eyes on the man on the throne.


    The men and women who had entered the hall simultaneously aimed their weapons at the man on the throne. The man who was called Amon made a quick count on the invading troops. There were eighteen of them, fifteen men and three women. Only two of them he needed to be concerned about. Seven others showed decent experience. The rest were just amateurs. He could identify these sheep from their movements and postures in a single nce.


    He grabbed the young girl beside him and positioned her in front of him. He unlocked the chain on her hand, as he rose and walked forward, the girl was ced at his front. The mob could not find a clear shot.


    "That should be General Amon to you," Amon said. "Didn''t I teach you that already, Simon? When I burned your vige to the ground. Killed your father and brother in front of you, and took your mother and sister away. I have many a pleasant night with them, your mother, and your sister who stood before me here."


    The leader of the group, eyes red with fury, gritted his teeth and said, "you should have killed me then."


    "Ahahaha! Many of my men asked me why I did not do just that. Why do I always leave someone alive? Wouldn''t that just leave seed for a rebellion? And my answer to them is always the same. Where is the fun if you don''t have an adversary? Hahaha."


    "You sick bastard!" A woman beside Simon spat.


    "Probably, but it was due to me that the world is no longer boring."


    "Boring? It was called peace, you sick fuck!" Another man yelled. He was a grizzled old man in an army uniform. "You have plunged the world into never-ending wars. Creating misery everywhere. You could have conquered the world long ago. But instead, you intentionally prolonged all the fights. For what? For your entertainment?"


    "Aren''t we all live for entertainment?" Amon replied with a smiling face. "I''ve been waiting for you, Simon. I hope you don''t disappoint me like the rest. If you do, all of you will die here today and I will have to find another ything elsewhere."


    As he finished his sentence, he took out the handgun on his waist and shot the head of the woman he was holding. Her head opened up like a watermelon getting squashed.


    "Nooo!!! Jessica¡­!!" Simon yelled.


    The middle-aged woman who was still chained to the throne screamed hysterically at the sight.


    The invading men and women were stunned by Amon''s disy of ruthlessness. Amon took that opportunity to fire two quick shots, both scored headshots on two of the men. He dashed to the row of huge pirs that lined both sides of the hall. He jumped and rolled to the back of one of these pirs as the mob started firing.


    The pir took the brunt of the firepower. Its surface shattered in many parts, but the pir continued to stand otherwise. It wasrge enough to sustain numerous gunshots.


    Amon wore a wide smile as he hid behind the pir. He waited until the gunshots paused. He then utilized the reflective surfaces on the wall skirting to detect one person approaching his pir. His hand came out of the pir and made two quick shots without looking. The shots hit the person''s body.


    As that person fell, another round of gunshots was fired at his pir. He utched one of the grenades on his belt and threw it out.


    Simon immediately identified the thrown grenade. He shouted warning to the others as he closed his eyes and turned away, "shbang! Look away!!"<sub> </sub>


    The stun grenade exploded into a blinding light, apanied by a deafening loud bang. Half of the mob was affected by it, while the other half managed to turn away thanks to Simon''s warning. Still, their ears rang and hurt like hell.


    Simon opened his eyes and turned back ready to open fire. In the air in front of him was another identical stun grenade.


    ''Fuck!'' He cursed in his mind before the second shbang exploded.


    None were spared from the blinding light this time.


    Cries of pain and flesh-tearing were heard soon. Several gunshots were fired not long after. The cries didn''t stop.


    Simon took a few steps back while in a blind condition. He refrained from firing, he might hit his own team if he opened fire carelessly. He could hear, however, that a lot on his team were in a panic, as the sounds of gunfire increased in intensity as time passed. The cries never stopped.


    Simon decided to drop to the floor on his stomach, trying to avoid bing a victim of friendly fire.


    The blinding effect of the stun grenadested only five seconds, but to Simon, it felt like an eternity.


    When his eyes finally could see something, he saw something or someone wriggling in front of him. The gunfire had stopped. He quickly rose to his feet as his vision returned. He could now see. It was Amon at the front, holding argebat knife that was stabbing into a man''s throat. The man gasped as blood poured out of his mouth. Amon pulled the knife and blood gushed out from the open wound.


    Amon looked at Simon. His face was smiling, but his cold eyes caused Simon to shiver. The memory of the time when this demon came into his vige and his house, ughtering everyone and ruining his lives, came back.


    Simon yelled to summon his courage as he lifted his automatic rifle. But he never had the chance to open fire. Amon made a swift shot at his arm. His arm exploded into a gory mess as his rifle fell from his grip.


    Amon approached as he lifted hisbat knife, ready to attack. A gunshot was heard. It hit thebat knife and caused Amon to lose grasp of it. It flew far away to the back.


    Simon turned around and saw it was the grizzled old man, half-kneeling with a gunshot wound on his stomach. He was about to thank him when a hole suddenly appeared on his brow. Amon had given him a headshot.


    Simon looked around and found out all the men and women he brought had died. He turned back to find Amon''s smiling face in front of him. He instinctively backed away but Amon''s hand shot out and grabbed his neck. He tried to struggle free but the hand felt like it was made of iron, not flesh.


    Amon lifted his pistol and showed Simon the muzzle of his gun.


    Was this how it ended? Simon thought in his mind. He was unwilling. How could heaven let this demon keep on winning?


    Then Amon threw away his gun. Simon was puzzled at first but then Amon''s other hand tightened at his neck.


    "I like to squeeze the life of my target out," Amon said to him. "In the end, you are also a disappointment."


    Amon saw Simon''s gaze go to his back, his ears also picked up faint rapid footsteps as his sense of danger escted. He immediately realized someone was approaching from behind. He was about to turn back but Simon grabbed him with all his strength at the moment.


    Amon soon felt something sharp prate his neck. His hands which tightened around Simon''s neck mped up and broke the neck. The sharp thing stabbed at his neck again. He nced back and saw that the sharp thing was hisbat knife, the one holding it was Simon''s mother. One of her hands was missing. She had used thebat knife which fell nearby her to cut off her own hand which was chained.


    Thebat knife stabbed for the third time. Amon finally sumbed. He fell on his back as the hysterical woman kept on stabbing his neck. Amon maintained his smile upon death.


    ''So this is how it ends. Righteousness finally prevails. Hehe, it has been fun. Will there be hell? I certainly hope so. It would be too boring otherwise.''


    Darkness took over his consciousness.


    He did not know how long he was in darkness, but light soon engulfed his whole being. He heard noises and he found out that he could open his eyes. It was blurry at first but soon things became clearer. He was outdoor, he saw the leaves of trees above. Several gigantic men and women were around him, looking down at him with curiosity.


    He tried to get up but his body was not able to. He looked at his own hands, they were so small. He then realized that he was in the body of a baby.


    ''I have been reborn?'' Amon thought with astonishment.

 2 Chapter 2

    The second thought that came to Amon was that this was actually hell. His soul had been put inside a helpless baby body and these people around him would start to administer different kinds of torture upon him as punishments for his sins.


    He did not feel scared though. He had gone through numerous kinds of torture during the course of his life, both administered to him or by him. He instead sort of looked forward to what kind of creative method these torturers would do to him.


    Yet, the tortures never came. He was instead taken care of with utmost attention. In a way, this was a kind of torture for him. A mighty general who had caused fear and terror upon the entire Earth, nowid here as a helpless baby, being nursed and fed. He even needed the help of these people to clean his piss and shit. The devil was indeed creative in devising his torturing method.


    Days passed. He slowly epted the fact that this was not hell. He could feel his body growing. The people around him were also shown to have other activities other than tending to him. It felt real enough.


    However, he was sure that this ce was not Earth, or even if it was the same universe from where he was from. The first reason was because of theirnguage. It was not anynguage he knew of. He could speak manynguages of Earth. Although he could not say that he knew all thenguages of the Earth, he had heard a great deal of them and could identify them even if he did not understand them. Thenguage that was spoken by these people though, waspletely foreign.


    The second reason was because of the devices they used. Lamps, books, and writing instruments, were unlike anything he had seen before. Themps were not powered by electricity. The books, when opened, would have runes floating around them. Some could even produce moving images.


    A third reason was because of his caretaker, that''s what he called the person who took care of him. Amon did not see any individuals he could identify as his parents. There were no couples that showed him affection when he was born. Only a group of men and women who showed curiosity and interest in his being.


    This group of people took turns to take care of him, but at the end of the day, there was always this aged man that watched over him. This aged man looked more like his grandfather than his father. He did not see anyone there that he could identify as his mother or father. It didn''t matter though. Even if there were, he would not consider them his parents. That aged man that watched over him, was the one he came to call his caretaker.


    The reason that his caretaker contributed to the idea that this was not the Earth where he was from, was because every night after making sure that Amon was asleep, the aged man would sit cross-legged upon his bed and started to meditate. Amon was of course not asleep, he just pretended to. He would then observe his caretaker''s meditation and saw numerous fancy lights gathered and swirling around him. It was almost like magic.


    Thispletely piqued Amon''s interest. He realized then that this world did not revolve around the same rules as his old one.


    The people who took care of him started to teach him how to speak. They taught him the strange localnguage. Even before these people started to teach him, he had already started to learn from them through their daily conversations. He could not yet say that he had mastered them, but he started to understand bits and pieces.


    When the people taught him though, he pretended to not understand most of them. He did not yet know about the nature of this world, it was better to pretend a normal baby as he continued to observe the situation.


    When these people were not looking, Amon also tried to learn to stand and walked. It was a difficult task, due to his weak little baby legs. Around four months after he came into this world, he managed to walk sessfully. Of course, when any others were present, he continued to lie helplessly in his crib.


    Once he could move around the room, he started to look at the magical books that he could get to. When he opened the books, the letters within them started to dance around as they formed some sort of formation. He did not understand any of the letters, as none of the people taking care of him had taught him how to read this world''s writings. Nevertheless, it did not stop him from trying to learn or made sense of it.


    Little by little, he started to be able to connect some of the runes to the words that he had learned. When his caretaker started to teach him about the writings, his understanding skyrocketed. Yet, he did not show any of it. He continued to pretend as if he was like any other normal baby.


    At eight months of age, he could roughly read a book already. Although many meanings still escaped his grasp, he could understand most of the writings.<sub> </sub>


    From the books and the conversations he heard from the people that took care of him. He learned some basic structures of this world. This world was called Aetheria, it was not based on the logic and science that dominated his old world. This one revolved around some sort of mystical energy the locals termed Aether. The name of this world was given due to this mystical energy.


    This aether existed everywhere, and it could be harnessed to create many things or to be used to do great things. One of the books he read depicts that aether could be used to control the elements, such as fire and lightning. People who knew how to utilize the aether could perform what his old-world depicted as magic.


    Learning about this miraculous thing, Amon could not help but felt excited. A new ything for him, he thought with anticipation.


    He also learned that what his caretaker did every night with that light show, was called cultivating. It was an act to absorb the aether around and used it to nourish the energy core that existed within one''s body. The book depicted that this energy core would start forming once someone came to five years of age, and would grow stronger if the right cultivation method was used. This energy core could evolve to a higher stage when it reached the limit of its current stage.


    It''s all very fascinating, but to wait till he reached five years of age was rather boring. Yet there was nothing he could do. He could only continue to learn through the books as he waited for his energy core to form.


    When he was one year of age, he did not bother to hide anymore when he read. He would just take a book and sat in a corner and read it silently as the others were doing their businesses. Most just thought of him as a silent child who liked to read and left him to his own device.


    The house, or rather, the mansion he grew up in, consisted of several interconnected buildings. It was consideredrge for his old-world standard. But the upants were not that many, he counted only fourteen, nine men and five women.


    From their casual conversations which Amon eavesdropped on from time to time, he deduced that they used to be part of arge n. They were somehow involved with a cult that held forbidden knowledge and ended up being punished by the city lord. They had been in decline ever since.


    Their main ie came from chores that they performed for other ns and the medicines that the eldest women in this mansion concocted.


    At two years of age, Amon had been actively roaming around the mansion. Most of the upants only saw him as an overcurious child and left him be. He spent lots of time watching the elderly woman concoct medicine. He also realized that some of the medicine that she made was in reality, poison. In fact, through his observations, he could see that she sold more poisons inparison to medicine.


    He paid attention to where the old woman stored her ingredients and recipes. She also kept a notebook that she left inside her workroom. When she was not around, Amon took the notebook and studied them. He was not a master alchemist, but he knew a bit about them. He had dealt with toxins in his past life.


    The contents of the notebook were very much confusing at first, as all the terms and ingredients noted inside werepletely alien to him. But he studied them patiently,paring them with the ingredients and recipes inside the workroom. Eventually, he gained an understanding of them.


    He did not attempt any experimentation though. Such an action would easily be discovered. He just kept all the knowledge to himself for the time being.


    In his third year of age, he felt something unusual with his body.

 3 Chapter 3

    Amon felt a wave of strange feeling from below his navel. It was warm, but also somewhat painful. The feeling reminded him of a text he read in a book. It was regarding the forming of one''s energy core. He was bewildered, wasn''t one''s energy core supposed to form when one reached five years of age?


    But since it was happening, he did not question too much about it. He had read the instruction in the book that when the Energy Core was formed, several steps needed to be taken. Otherwise, it might leave repercussions onter progression in his cultivation.


    From the information he had read,rge ns usually had instructors to educate their young ones about how to deal with this situation when it urred. Amon believed the upants of this mansion also nned the same thing for him, but none of them might have expected his energy core to form this early.


    It''s a good thing there are many books regarding this energy core forming. Every human in this world went through this development, so there were many records regarding it.


    It would be easier if an experienced instructor was guiding him in the process, but there was no time to look for one. The one he thought to be most qualified would be his caretaker, but he was not in the mansion at the moment. All the books indicated that this initial process couldn''t be dyed. The core would form by itself if it was ignored, and the quality would be sub-par at best.


    Hence, Amon decided to experiment by himself. He sat cross-legged on the bed. From the various information he had read, it was advised that one should immerse his or her consciousness into the newly formed energy core and the essence was to guide the aether to form a strong wall around the core.


    It was vague guidance. The notion of immersing consciousness into oneself would beughable in his old world. But he had learned to stop thinking using the old world logic in this new one, so he allowed his imagination to take hold.


    He closed his eyes and concentrated on the strange feeling below his navel. He shut down all his senses and just focused on the feeling. There was nothing at first, but he suddenly felt a pull from underneath him. He experienced some sort of vertigo within the darkness. The feeling of being sucked was getting stronger. He did not fight the feeling, some books had described a simr experience.


    He soon felt himself floating in a vast expense of space. He remembered the book described this space as Energy Space. There was nothing all around. No, there was something there. He was still closing his eyes, but at the same time, he could see everything within this space. He floated to where he had sensed an existence within this infinite space.


    He arrived and saw scattered grains of dust floating there. This must be the base essence that formed his core. Now the next step was to bring the surrounding aether to the inside of this space.


    Absorbing Aether and refining it was a cultivation method. And there were many cultivation methods in this world. Such methods were not avable to the public. However, if to simply absorb a small amount of aether, there was a book that taught him the basic way of doing it. It was through respiration.


    He sent part of his consciousness to his outer body and controlled it to perform the breathing technique described in the book. He could sense some sort of substance entering him via his respiration. This substance materialized in his Energy Space. It appeared as a thin white fog.


    Amon approached this fog and tried to grab it. The fog swirled away as if alive. It was as described in the books, the aether was like a living entity. It had a will of its own. The information was to guide the aether to the core, the books did not inform any specific way of doing it. The books, however, described that the Energy Space was its owner''s private space. Every foreign element that entered the space could be bent to the owner''s will, provided that the owner''s will was stronger than the foreign element''s will.


    Amon then stopped trying to chase after the aether fog. He steadied himself into a tranquil state, expunged all unnecessary thoughts, and focused his attention on the aether fog. He imagined an invisible hand grabbing the fog. The aether fog sensed his invisible approach and adeptly flee to another ce.


    Amon sent his hand of will chasing after it, but it produced no better result than when he was chasing after it directly. Seeing that this method bore no result, he changed his approach. Capturing gas using a tangible hand was never the right way, so he copied the method from his old world. He imagined arge vacuum cleaner that sucked the fog over.


    The aether fog tried to flee again, but this time, it stuck in its position as it resisted the pull. It was working! Now it''s only a matter of will. He concentrated harder as he imagined a stronger pulling force. The aether fog slowly lost ground.<sub> </sub>


    Not long after, it gave up and the fog was pulled rapidly to his side. Amon looked at the floating fog in front of him. He could sense it was still trying to move away, but his will was holding it still. He moved the fog around under his imaginary grasp as he got used to all this illusory mechanism.


    When he felt he was adept enough, he brought the fog to the grains of dust that were theponents of his Energy Core. He moved the fog over to the dust. As the two touched, the dust started to bond together. The fog seemed to act as some sort of adhesive material for the dust.


    Amon applied the fog over all the dust and brought them together. The books indicated that the core needed to be formed into a ball. The morepact it was, the better.


    Amon then started to apply pressure to the collected dust. He imagined it being squeezed. The collective dust was getting smaller as it continued gettingpressed. Amon did not let up the pressure as he continued to press. He exerted all his will on the task.


    Finally, the dust turned into a tiny ball the size of a small marble and did not seem to be able topress any further. Amon let go of the pressure and observed the tiny ball. It was silver in color and seemed to be reflective.


    Such a tiny thing was his Energy Core? Could this thing truly produce miracles as depicted in the books?


    The next step was strengthening the Energy Core, but since he did not possess any cultivation method, the process would be very slow. The basic respiration technique could only draw in so little aether. It would not be enough for proper cultivation.


    However, he still did it just to experiment with it. He drew another round of aether into his Energy Space. Another small mass of fog entered. He used the same method to control the fog and brought it to his newly formed Energy Core.


    He directed the fog to enter the core. As the white fog touched the tiny silvery ball, it vibrated, and the fog slowly dissolved into it. Amon could feel the aether fog nourishing his Energy Core as it entered. He could sense the thirst of the core, it was as if a person in the desert who had not drunk for days, and was offered a ss of water. It drank the aether greedily.


    Although it was not visible, Amon could feel its Energy Core growing. Once thest strand of aether fog was absorbed into the core. Amon felt an intense thirst as the core demanded more aether.


    Amon chuckled. The entire experience was fascinating. He had arrived in a truly stimting world. He could not wait to conquer it.


    The next step would be to look for a cultivation method. He knew that his caretaker had one, as the old man cultivated every night. He would need to find a way to acquire it.


    He did not intend to let any other people know about his already formed energy core first. Although the people of this mansion took care of him, the way they treated him was more like a tool, not a family. He did not understand how he was rted to them, nor how they came to possess him when he was a baby. He would look for this informationter.


    As he was about to leave this Energy Space, he felt something. He looked at his Energy Core. There was something about it. Amon did not understand, so he cleared his mind and focused his attention on it. He felt it. It was as if the core was¡­municating.

 4 Chapter 4

    He immersed himself into the core further. No, it was resonating. Something. Somewhere¡­ He let the feeling guide him as he traveled through his Energy Space. He arrived at something that seemed like a membrane. He touched the membrane. It was thin but sturdy. Yet, he knew that he could pass through it easily if he willed it, which he did.


    As he passed through, he came to another space. He was surprised, this Energy Space was simr to the one before, and yet¡­ different. It was like a mirror world between each other. He sensed a simr existence here, he went over and as he had expected, he found simr grains of dust.


    Another Energy Core? He was baffled. All the books that he read only described that each person possessed one Energy Core, there was never any that mentioned a person to have two. Despite the inconsistency in the information he learned from the books, he still proceeded to repeat the same process he did just before.


    He absorbed the little amount of Aether from the environment and used it to form this other core. Everything went smoothly since he had done it before, this second Energy Core soon formed into another tiny ball. However, there was one distinct difference. It was pitch ck, another feature that puzzled Amon.


    All the books describe the starting Energy Core to have a color between light grey to white. Light grey symbolized low-quality core, while dazzling white was the highest grade. Amon''s first energy core which was silvery in color could be considered a bit just below the perfect grade. While for this second ck energy core, he did not know what to make of it.


    He experimented by feeding it a few rounds of the Aether he could absorb. The response was the same as his silver core. Since he had no idea and did not know where to find out more information about this second energy core, he could only leave it for the time.


    One thing he did note though, he could feel the two cores influencing one another. As if they were pulling and pushing at the same time.


    When he came out of his energy space and opened his eyes, he could feel a clear change in his body. He felt it getting much stronger, his muscle was denser, and his skin harder. His senses also getting sharper, he could see with much more rity, his sense of smell was sharper and he could hear whispers from outside his room.


    These changes were also described in the books, but reading them and experiencing them were twopletely different things. So this was what it meant of being a cultivator? He felt that even with his current three-year-old body, he could probably rival the peak condition of his past life. This discovery caused him to truly be excited. His pursuit of power in his past life was nothingpared to his pursuit of power here. Here, he could reach a heightpletely unimaginable in the past.


    Despite the ecstasy, he quickly calmed himself down. Getting emotional would just ruin things most of the time, he needed to plot his best course of action in this pursuit of power. The first order of business was to search for a cultivation method.


    In the following days, he kept his routine of reading books and loitering around the mansion. He was also getting more chatty with the other upants, trying to coax some information from them. When nobody was around, he performed the meditation and breathing method to absorb the aether into his two cores, but the result was too scant. It was as if they didn''t grow at all.


    Although there were no mother or father figures from the upants here, there was however one who treated him as if family. It was a young girl who had just be an adult. She was the one that spent the most time taking care of him, she also often talked to him when he was still pretending that he could yet speak.


    He was regrly being given medicine baths. They said the medicine bath was meant to improve his physique and foundation for his future cultivation road. This young woman was the one who helped her with this bath when he was unable to do it himself. Even when Amon showed that he could take the bath by himself now, she still made sure to look after him to make sure nothing bad happened.


    Although Amon was skeptical of the bath, he did feel his body feeling refreshed after each bath. Heter studied the ingredients that were used in this bath from the old woman''s notebook, since she was the one who concocted the medicinal bath. The ingredients used were genuine to promote his health.<sub> </sub>


    The young woman who took good care of him was named Hei Xilia. She had a pretty face and an attractive body. Amon could see the eyes of the other men in this mansion asionally lingered on her. Amon had no such interest however, he allowed her to get close to him so that he could get more information.


    Most of the time, it was Hei Xilia who was talking and Amon was just listening. From the talks, Amon knew that something was bothering this woman. She said that the family was nning to marry her off to be a concubine of a young master of a n. She was afraid of the day that this will happen, which was one year from now.


    She told him that the young master often treated women badly, he was even known to physically hurt them if he was dissatisfied. But she knew she had no choice. This family had no status and needed to do this to survive. The young master had expressed interest in Hei Xilia when he saw her unintentionally on the street and hence expressed his desire to take her as a concubine. The family dared not reject. They could only stall until next year and had been receiving sufficient gifts from the young master''s n.


    "Tell me, Hei Mo. What should I do?" Hei Xilia asked Amon.


    Hei Mo was the name that this family had given him. While Amon had no interest in this young woman''s story and fate, he acted as if a child pretending to care for his sister.


    "Do not worry, sister Xilia. I will be a powerful cultivator and will not let anyone take you away," Amon replied.


    Hei Xilia giggled. She was amused by Amon''s response. "Thank you," she said affectionately. "But even grandpa Hei Gong who has reached the Martial realm cannot do anything against their n."


    Martial realm, that was the second realm in the path of cultivation. The books Amon had read described the beginning realm for every practitioner was called the Human realm. The Human realm was divided into three stages. Mortal stage, Strength stage, and Transformation stage. The books he read only had details on the Human realm and a few mentions of the Martial realm. There were supposed to be more realms above but none of the books he read had information on them.


    It was said that the difference in each stage was huge. For a Mortal stage cultivator to go up against a Strength stage cultivator would be akin to a newborn baby against a fully grown adult. The difference in realm was even vaster, it would be as if the difference between heaven and earth.


    So the caretaker had such a high cultivation level? Amon thought. Hei Gong was the name of the old man who he saw as his caretaker.


    Amon continued to pry, to which Hei Xilia happily answered. She was always happy to chat with him. Even more now after he could talk. From their chats, Amon found out that out of the fourteen upants of the mansion, only two were cultivators. Hei Gong and Hei Pho. Hei Pho was the old woman who made the medicine for selling. Hei Xilia told him that Hei Pho was still at the Human realm Strength stage. She focused her expertise more on the art of medicine, or poison.


    In other words, if there was a cultivation method in this mansion, it was in the hands of these two individuals. Amon was contemting if he shoulde clean about him being able to cultivate. The upants in this mansion seemed to care a great deal about his well-being and his development, so if they knew he could cultivate, perhaps Hei Gong might give him a cultivation method.


    However, he first tried to look by himself. Since he was staying in the same bedroom as the caretaker Hei Gong, he had been searching around the room, but he did not find anything that described a cultivation method. For Hei Pho''s medicine room, he had also been searching around but found none as well. The two might have noticed Amon searching around their belongings, but they probably only credited him for being a curious little kid.

 5 Chapter 5

    Since he found no clue and the upants showed signs of helping his development, he finally decided to talk directly to Hei Gong. However, he still chose to keep his already formed energy core a secret. He picked a time when both Hei Gong and Hei Pho were together when he brought up the subject.


    He tried to use his cutest act of a small child, "Grandpa Gong, I have read about cultivation. It is written that if we learn a cultivation method, we can be a cultivator. Can you teach me?"


    Hei Gong only nced at him and harrumphed, "hmph, you are only three years old. Your energy core is not even formed. What good is it to learn a cultivation method?"


    "If I learn early, I will be more prepared for it when the timees," Amon argued.


    "You are such a kid. What do you know about cultivation? It is not something that you can learn and prepare for. You either cultivate, or you don''t."


    "Do not underestimate Hei Mo," Hei Pho interjected. "This kid is not simple. When have you ever seen a kid who can talk and reason so well at his age? He had even read and understood many books. His speed at learning my medicinal art is also extremely astounding."


    Since Amon revealed an interest in studying the medicine she practiced, Hei Pho had taken the initiative to teach him directly. She had been amazed by how fast Amon had learned during her tutge. She had grown to care more about him as they spend time together.


    "Of course I know he is not simple. After all, he is not¡­"


    "Hei Gong! Watch what you said!" Hei Pho cut Hei Gong''s words crudely.


    ''I''m not what?'' Amon was intrigued. As he had expected, there was something unusual about his being.


    "Hmph, fine. If you want to teach him, then you teach him. It is a waste of time if you ask me," Hei Gong said as he strode off.


    "Do not mind him," Hei Pho said. "He was just stressed out by our family''s situation. It is not easy for our declining family to maintain our existence in this country. Come, I will show you what you are interested in."


    Hei Pho waved her hand and a book magically materialized in her hand. Amon was astonished by it. Seeing Amon''s surprised expression, Hei Pho chuckled. She said, "This book is taken out from my Space Ring."


    She showed Amon the ring on the middle finger of her left hand. "It is an engraved item which possessed thew of space. Inside this ring is a space asrge as this room. I can put my various belongings inside and take them out at a whim."


    "Hei Gong also has one?" Amon asked.


    "Most cultivators have one, it is a necessary tool that can be bought." Hei Pho exined with a nod. "Though the grades might be different for others. Some only have one with space the size of a clothes cab. A wealthy noble might have one that contains a space the size of a mansion."


    No wonder he could not find anything after searching around, Amon thought. It was because they stored all their valuable belongings on their person. It was a perfect tool to prevent theft. You would have to confront the owner if you want to get his or her things. He would need to get his hands on one of these rings.<sub> </sub>


    Hei Pho offered the book to him, "this book contains the method of a cultivation art. It is a basic art that is suitable for the Human Realm."


    Amon received the book and observed it. On its cover were written words in their nativenguage. The words were Energy Funneling Art. He opened the book and started reading it without dy.


    Hei Pho was amused by his enthusiasm, "though you are unable to learn it yet, you can memorize the method and apply it once you form your energy core. At that time, I will give you pointers. For now, you will have many things you don''t understand, but don''t put too much thought into it. You will only be able to understand it when you put the art into practice."


    Amon did not respond. Seeing the kid so focused on reading the art, Hei Pho did not say anything more. She left him alone and went to take care of her own matters.


    Amon continued reading the book without stopping. She was right, there were many things he did not understand. He had to put the theory inside this book into actual practice in order to get a bearing.


    He stood up and walked out, although the room he was in was unupied, it was amon room where anyone could walk in. He went to one of the more deserted parts of the mansions. He had taken a tour and observed which parts were less inhabited. It was arge mansion after all. With only so few upants, there were bound to be ces that were neglected.


    The ce he chose to go to was a warehouse that had not been used for some years, maybe even centuries. Cobwebs and dust filled the ce. He could even see insects and rats crawling away when they saw him entering. He did not mind the dirtiness. He needed a ce of privacy, and this ce suited him just fine.


    He closed the door, locked the room, and put another unused table to block the door just for precaution. He then sat in one corner of the room and ced the book on the floor. He opened its page to where it illustrated the breathing technique.


    The breathing technique was different from the standard one he had used to absorb Aether when he formed his Energy Core. The technique described here was far moreplex and lengthy. He followed the instruction described on the pages and practice them a few times. He then turned to the pages that described the maniption of the aether into the body.


    After memorizing them, he closed his eyes and performed the breathing technique. Combined with the Aether maniption method he could feel the energy around him start to gather. The basic idea of this cultivation art was forming a sort of suction force that absorbed the aether around his body. He believed this art was the most basic kind there was, but it didn''t matter, any art was fine as long as he could strengthen his Energy Core.


    Amon spent the entire day familiarizing the art. He could only take in bits of Aether at first. But even these little bits were much better than the standard breathing technique he had used. As he got used to the art, the amount of Aether entering his body increased. His Energy Core continued to drink the energy without reserve as if a thirsty man in the desert who finally found the oasis. The difference between having a cultivation art and not having one was like the difference between heaven and earth.


    When the day was getting dark. He decided to stop training. The others would start looking for him if he was absent for too long. They let him do as he liked within the mansion, but he knew that they were always attentive to make sure that he was within. He had tried several times to go out of the mansion to see what it was like outside, but there was always someone stopping him. He had also once tried hiding tillte at night, and themotion that urred when they searched for him was rather intense.


    In the following days, he still spent a short time roaming around the mansion to disy childish behavior, and maintained his medicine tutge under Hei Pho. It would be suspicious to just disappear for the whole day after receiving a cultivation art. The rest of the day he spent training using Energy Funneling Art. The good thing was Hei Gong was out for some matters for one or two weeks, which meant his room would be all for himself for the duration when Hei Gong was absent, hence he could continue to cultivate at night.


    The rate by which he funneled the Aether into his body was getting faster as each day passed. It was apparent that his mastery of the art was getting better. He could also feel his body and Energy Core getting stronger. Yet, he also knew the improvement was very slow. After training using cultivation art, he could roughly gauge the emptiness of his Energy Core.


    In the book he had read, every cultivation stage could further be divided into beginning, intermediate, and peak. As he had just started his cultivation road, he was currently in the Human Realm and at the beginning of the Mortal stage. From the emptiness of his core, it would take him roughly two to three years to reach the intermediate Mortal stage, even if he trained every day.

 6 Chapter 6

    Information in the book described that the average practitioner took the same amount of time, while for wealthy cultivators or those from the noble family, it usually took them one to two years to reach the intermediate Mortal stage. He knew for sure now that the cultivation art he practiced was of the average quality.


    However, there was nothing he could do. He had also read that advancement could be made with the help of special medicine or pill, but this was usually only avable to those noble families orrge ns.


    After he had cultivated for one week, he realized that the Energy Core that got nourished from his cultivation art was only the silvery color one. When he went inside the Energy Space, he could see the aether funneled into his body only go to the space upied by the silvery core.


    He tried to guide the absorbed aether to the space where the ck core resided, but the membrane that separated the two spaces prevented the aether from entering.


    That was weird, he thought. When he used the standard breathing method to absorb the aether, no such thing happened. He tried several times again to direct the aether into the ck core''s space but only resulted in failures. He contemted this issue.


    He could not discuss this with Hei Gong or Hei Pho, the fact that he had formed his core before his natural time was already abnormal, having an extra Energy Core must be even unnatural. None of the books he had read had ever mentioned such a thing. Until he could determine the intention of the family in this mansion, he could not divulge to them his every secret. Since there was nothing he could do, he just left the issue for the time being.


    *


    On the second week since he started cultivating, Hei Gong had not yet returned. Instead, the mansion was visited by a prominent person. This person was ady named Lin Xi, but most called her Madam Lin. She had visited the mansion several times in the past. She was a regr customer of Hei Pho''s medicine. She came from arge n, one of thergest in the city.


    Hei Pho had often brought Amon out to meet her during her past visits. Amon had no idea why, probably a cute kid served as a good advertisement to her customers. But it''s weird that Hei Pho only did it when it was Madam Lin. She had also especially tried to get Amon to interact with the madam. From the way she did it, it was more like she was advertising Amon instead of her medicine. Amon just yed along and acted as any kid would. As the visits continued, Madam Lin indeed seemed to be getting fond of Amon.


    On today''s visit, instead of spending their time inside the mansion, Madam Lin had invited Hei Pho and Amon to go out with her. She said she was originally on a hunting trip with her retinue. The ce where the hunting was done was nearby so she had thought of stopping by and inviting the two.


    Amon could see that Hei Pho was slightly hesitant to let him go outside, so he immediately acted like a curious child and said to Madam Lin how eager he was to join. Pleased by Amon''s words, Madam Lin did not allow Hei Pho to reject her invitation and simply took Amon out. Hei Pho quickly followed after them.


    It was the first time Amon came out of the mansion. When they were out, seven people were standing beside a carriage outside. They must be Madam Lin''s retinue. All of them looked like cultivators.


    The outside was slightly barren and remote. Amon had expected to see rows of houses and such outside, but it turned out, that the mansion was not exactly in the city. He found outter after asking around that this ce was the outskirt of the city. It was close to the wild where spirit beasts roamed.


    He had read from books that this world was filled with spirit beasts which were like animals with magical properties. In fact, only a small part of this world was upied by humans, most were the wilds where only cultivators could afford to travel safely. Some parts even had spirit beast so powerful that it was ssified as restricted zones.


    Madam Lin left behind her carriage in front of the Hei n''s mansion. There was no road to the hunting ground and the terrain was irregr, thus they had to walk.


    On their way, Madam Lin exined to them that she had received a rumor about the appearance of a rare spirit beast, a five-tailed fox. This hunt was to capture this creature, apart from the ten of them here, she had sent another three to scout the area and looked for the location of this elusive beast.


    Madam Lin exined that the beast was very rare and had been thought to be extinct because many would try to hunt them. They were known to have many beneficial properties. Their spirit essence was an especially good ingredient for producing cultivation pills. Even their other body parts could be used for various purposes, but they were known more for their blood which was rumored to be able to magically bestow fertility. Amon caught a slight expression change on Hei Pho''s face upon the mention.


    After a long walk, they came to a groove with lush shrubberies.<sub> </sub>


    "This is our rendezvous point, we will wait here. If the three manage to find the whereabouts of this five-tailed fox, we will move in with the others to capture it," Madam Lin said.


    "Does it need so many people to capture it?" Amon asked.


    The seven who came with the madam sneered at him hearing his question, Madam Lin smiled as she gave him an answer, "a five-tailed fox was ssified as a superior beast, hence it was not a creature that a cultivator of the Human realm can deal with. Although the fox is only considered as a lower superior spirit beast, we still need at least one Martial realm expert supported by several Human realm experts to sessfully capture it. One of the three that I had sent ahead is a Martial realm expert."


    A Superior Beast. Amon had read from books that like cultivators, spirit beasts were also divided into several rankings. The books he read did not provideplete information on the subject, but he knew that the mostmon and weakest spirit beasts were ssified as Inferior Beast. A superior beast should be one rank higher.


    As they were chatting while waiting, they suddenly heard a growl. Actually, it was several growls. Out of the thickets, came threerge cats. Their fur was red, their eyes were fully yellow and without pupils. They had very long whiskers that swayed around. Amon thought that they were like strange-looking tigers.


    "Crimson Grimalkin," Madam Lin said when she saw those three cats.


    Hei Pho put herself in front of Amon in a protective stance. Madam Lin chuckled seeing her action. "There is no need for worry, these are just mid inferior spirit beast." Then to her seven followers, she said, "you three, deal with them."


    The three that were called out went to face the cats one on one.


    "The three of them are at Strength Stage Human Realm, so they should be just right to deal with those three Grimalkins," Madam Lin exined. "Let''s treat this as a show to get rid of our boredom while waiting."


    Strength Stage Human Realm? The same as Hei Pho, Amon thought. Now he could gauge exactly how powerful Hei Pho was.


    The Grimalkins were showing a hostile stance but they didn''t attack, they probably realized that their preys were not weak and were now adopting a wary approach.


    Madam Lin''s underlings didn''t adopt the same approach though. They had heard that the madam wanted a show, so if they just stood there with the Grimalkins staring at each other, it would not be a show. The three of them took action at the same time.


    Amon''s eyes lit up when they saw their actions. One had his fistpletely engulfed in fire as he punched out. Another pulled up arge boulder from the ground and tossed it at the Grimalkin. Thest one created three golden needles out of thin air and thenunched them at the Grimalkin.


    Magic. All of them could use magic!


    Amon''s heart stirred as he watched the magical disy in front of him. He had read from the books that cultivators could perform many wonderful feats by manipting aether, but nothing could paint him a better picture than looking at the actual deeds himself.


    Despite the amazing spectacles the three cultivators disyed, the Grimalkins were not helpless. Before the attacks of the three cultivators arrived, they had disappeared from their original spots. Their speed was so fast that Amon had a problem following their movements.


    The three cultivators, though, were not. When the Grimalkins came to strike them, the one that was using the fire fist dodged with an almost equal speed. While the other two took defensive actions. One had his body covered with rocks, while the other had a round metal shield materialized on his hand.

 7 Chapter 7

    The one with the fire fist rolled on the ground after his dodge, when he stood up, both his fists lit up in fire again. The Grimalkin chased him after its attack failed. The cultivator mmed both his fists together when the Grimalkin was almost upon him, the colliding fire fists resulted in a deafening explosion. The Grimalkin was shocked by the force of the explosion and was sent reeling.


    The cultivator then quickly sent rapid punches engulfed in fire. Three fiery fists mmed onto the Grimalkin''s body. It screeched in pain as blood poured from its mouth. Its fur that was hit by the fiery first was singed to a crisp.


    The cultivator with the stone armor was also faring pretty well against the Grimalkin. None of the Grimalkin''s ws could cut through his protective armor. While he was free to hit the beast with his stone punches and kicks. He often missed though as his rock armor also inhibited his movements.


    The one with the metal shield was less lucky. The small shield could only protect a small part of his body, while he was not as agile as the fire cultivator. His back was shed by the Grimalkin''s w when he was slightly off-guard.


    "Useless," Amon heard Madam Lin''s remark when she saw the metal cultivator got hurt.


    The metal cultivator seemed to have heard Madam Lin''s disapproval. He gritted his teeth to endure the pain and swung his hand with the metal shield. The Grimalkin had already retreated with speed. The round shield on the cultivator''s hand suddenly flew out, chasing after the Grimalkin. The Grimalkin which thought itself already safe was caught off-guard. The round metal shield had very sharp edges, it easily sliced through the creature''s body and split it into two. The cultivator that got hurt had instead be the first to kill the Grimalkin.


    While they were absorbed by the battle in front of them. A growl was suddenly heard from the side. A burst of shadow shot out from the bushes, going straight for Amon.


    Everyone was taken by surprise, especially Amon. When he turned to look in the direction of the growl. Arge Grimalkin was already very close to him, its ws were just a few feet from him.


    Amon had no time to dodge, although his awareness and instinct allowed him to notice the ambush at thest minute, his body was too slow, while the Grimalkin was too fast. But before the Grimalkin reached him, a water geyser sted out of the ground directly below the Grimalkin. It pushed the Grimalkin up into the air.


    "All of you are useless! How can you allow a beast to ambush us!" Madam Lin scolded. There was vapor of water surrounding her hand, it was her that had caused the geyser.


    Hearing the madam''s rebuke, the other four immediately took action. They attacked the Grimalkin in the air at the same time. Multiple elemental energies struck the Grimalkin body and caused it to explode.


    "Thank you for protecting Hei Mo," Hei Pho said to Madam Lin. She had cold sweat running down her forehead. She had also failed to notice the ambush. If Amon had been hurt, she would not be able to exin to Hei Gong. She put herself closer to Amon in case there was another ambush.


    "Don''t think about it, I am the one that invited you, so I should be responsible for your safety. I should be the one that apologizes that Hei Mo almost got hurt," Madam Lin replied. She then looked at Amon and was surprised to see that there was no fearful expression on his face.


    "You are quite brave, aren''t you?" Madam Lin said.


    "It''s because I know big sister is here, so there is no need to worry," Amon replied.


    Madam Linughed at his words. She always like it when she was called big sister by him, it made her sound younger. Most others called her madam, which sounded old. She was indeed not young already, but she had always been taking care of her skin, thus her countenance was still simr to one possessed by a woman at the age of twenties.


    Amon himself was more surprised by how easy the Madam had repelled the Grimalkin''s ambush while the others were unaware. That simply meant that her cultivation level was higher than the others. Perhaps she was at the Transformation stage of the Human realm.


    Amon also noticed that he could not liken the spirit beast to the animals of his past world. To be able to set up a distraction and ambush at an opportune time, such behavior was not simple animal instinct.


    There was no more ambush, the fight of the remaining two Grimalkins was soon ended with the victory on the cultivators'' side. Only the metal cultivator suffered a wound. He was applying medicinal ointment to his wound. Madam Lin showed no concern for his wellbeing. The madam treated Amon better than her underlings, this caused them to have resentment. Amon was aware of it but paid them no mind.


    They started to harvest the Grimalkin''s body. Apart from the one that exploded due to the joint attack by the four cultivators, the three others were still rather intact. Amon saw one of them pull a tiny-sized pebble that was shining with soft light out of the carcass.


    This shiny pebble was then given to Madam Lin. She saw the interest in Amon''s eyes, so she let him see it in detail. The light within the pebble seemed alive. When Amon focused his vision on it, he could see sparks on the inside of the pebble.


    "This is a spirit essence," Madam Lin exined. "It is a concentration of Aether inside a spirit beast''s body. Not every spirit beast possessed it. If you find one, you can sell it for a decent amount of Aer stones."


    Aer stone was the standard exchange medium in this world, simr to money from his past world. From what the books said, Aer stone was the byproducts or a failed natural Aether crystallization. It was used to power up tools produced in this world and also can be used for a slight boost in the cultivation of the Human Realm.<sub> </sub>


    "In the hand of a good pill master, this spirit essence can be made into a powerful pill," Madam Lin added. The spirit essence then disappeared. Amon noticed a ring on one of her fingers. That must be her space ring.


    While her followers were still harvesting the rest of the Grimalkin''s body. They heard movements. Not long after, three figures jumped out andnded near them.


    "Madam Lin," the three saluted.


    Madam Lin nodded at the three. "Lin Guo, do you find any trace of the fox?" She asked.


    "I have, but unfortunately¡­," instead of continuing, he took out something from his space ring. It was the carcass of a small spirit beast. It looked simr to a fox but the fur was pink in color and it had multiple tails. Amon counted it had four tails.


    "Damn it!" Madam Lin cursed. "So the rumor was false."


    "Yes, the one who saw it must have mistaken this four-tailed fox for a five-tailed one," Lin Guo said.


    "Hmph, a four-tailed fox is only an inferior beast. It doesn''t worth my time. We have truly wasted this trip."


    "But it was still considered as a rare spirit beast. Although it was not a five-tailed, it should still help madam somewhat, please ept it."


    Madam Lin did not reject the offering. She took the carcass and stored it inside his Space Ring.


    Lin Guo noticed Hei Pho and Amon. His eyes stopped when he was observing Amon.


    "Forgive my rudeness, madam, but why do you take a five-year-old kid out here?" Lin Guo asked Madam Lin.


    "Five years old?" Madam Lin turned to Amon.


    Hei Pho chuckled, "I think you have made a mistake, sir. He is only¡­"


    "How do you know I am five years old, sir? You are really good at guessing my age!" Amon said loudly, cutting off Hei Pho''s words.


    Hei Pho looked at Amon in bafflement. Amon stared at her and said, "grandma, this uncle is really smart. He knows I am five years old simply with a look."


    "Hmph, of course, I know, brat. Any Martial realm who can sense you will think the same. You are too small to be bigger than five years old," Lin Guo replied.


    Sensed?


    "You are already a cultivator?" Madam Lin looked at Amon in surprise, then she turned to Hei Pho," I thought thest time I visit, you said he had just turned three?"


    Hei Pho was still taken aback by Lin Guo''s words. When Madam Lin threw her a question, she was lost for words, "I¡­ actually¡­ he¡­"


    "Grandma is truly forgetful. How can you forget my age? You must have wanted me to stay at three," Amon quickly helped cover for her.

 8 Chapter 8

    Amon was already suspicious when Lin Guo announced that he was five years old. He suspected the man had a way to detect that he had formed his Energy Core. That''s why he had quickly acknowledged the man''s im. Turned out he was right. But due to this, Hei Pho had known his secret.


    "Yes¡­ yes, I''m truly forgetful. How can I be mistaken? I must have told you wrongly, Madam. Forgive me," Hei Pho seemed to have managed to get ahold of herself. She promptly reinforced Amon''s story.


    "Look at you, a young cultivator," Madam Lin said. "This is something to be celebrated. I should give you something. Hm¡­ here."


    A small dagger materialized in her hand. "Since you are a cultivator already. You can defend yourself. This dagger will help you do it. It is called Swan Dagger, a mid-tiered engraved weapon. It was my first weapon when I was a small girl. It is useless now to me, might as well let you have it."


    An engraved weapon was the lowest grade of weapon, but it was still better than themon weapons as engraved weapons had a tiny infusion of aether within them, giving them a stronger property than themon weapons. The grade was further divided into low-tiered, mid-tiered, and high-tiered.


    "Thank you, big sis," Amon eximed as he received the dagger.


    He did not care about the feminine name of the dagger. Having a weapon was better than none. He had never been without a weapon since he came of age in hisst life. Therefore, thesest three years had been a bit ufortable for him due to the absence of a weapon. He slipped the dagger onto his belt.


    Lin Guo eyed Amon with disdain. Brat was always brat, getting happy over a piece of trash dagger like that.


    "Since there was no five-tailed fox, hanging around here is pointless. Let''s head back," Madam Lin announced. The ones who were dissecting the Grimalkins'' corpses were already done. They gave all the valuable materials for Madam Lin''s safekeeping.


    They then traveled together. Hei Pho was wearing a contemtive face all the way. Madam Lin sent Amon and Hei Pho back to their mansion before going away.


    "Let''s enter, we will talk inside," Hei Pho said.


    Amon followed after her into the mansion. After they passed through the courtyard and entered the entrance hall, they saw Hei Gong who was standing in the middle of the hall. He looked agitated. When he saw Hei Pho and Amon, he dashed to them.


    "How can you let him out! He was still¡­" His voice trailed off and he made an abrupt stop. He was looking at Amon with a disbelief expression.


    "You can sense it?" Hei Pho asked Hei Gong who was still standing there with his mouth wide open.


    So it was true, Amon thought.


    "When one enters the Martial realm, they develop the ability to sense the aura of other cultivators around them," Hei Pho said to Amon. "They could determine if the other person was stronger or weaker than them based on that aura. Therefore, Martial realm experts rarely fight unless they have no choice since they can already determine winners or losers based on the aura. And it will also be difficult to escape when a Martial Realm expert was chasing you since they could lock onto your aura. The higher their cultivation, therger their scope of perception."


    "How can it be¡­? When?" Hei Gong asked Amon.


    "Several days before Hei Pho gave me the cultivation art," Amon decided to be honest.


    "You have already formed your energy core at that time¡­? I did not sense it at that time because it was a fresh core, you have not yet used cultivation art to umte aether into the core¡­," Hei Gong mumbled.


    "That''s why you asked for the cultivation art. Why didn''t you just tell us the truth?" Hei Pho asked.


    Amon pretended to feel guilty about it and said, "I thought I have done something wrong. Everyone said that only at five years old does one form their energy cores. So I was trying to test using the cultivation art to make sure. I have been nning to tell grandma and grandpa, but I''m afraid you will get angry."


    Hei Pho''s expression softened hearing his words. She put a hand on his head, "silly boy. How can we be angry? You being able to form an energy core this early is truly a miracle. With your headstart, you will not lose to those spoiled nobles."<sub> </sub>


    Hei Gong was still standing there in silence staring at Amon with a stern gaze. Amon felt ufortable under his stare, but he continued to pretend like a kid who had just been caught making a mistake.


    "I''m sorry, grandpa, grandma. I promise I will not lie to you again."


    "Hush, it is all right," Hei Pho said with a soothing voice, then he turned to Hei Gong and said, "what are you being sullen for? Isn''t this what we have been waiting for? If he is like any other normal kid, isn''t what we had done be pointless?"


    Hei Gong''s face changed hearing Hei Pho''s words. "You are right. I was never good with unknown factors. I apologize." Then to Amon, he said, "Now that you have started cultivating. Let us give you proper training then."


    "What art do you give him?" Hei Gong asked Hei Pho.


    "Energy Funneling art."


    "Not a bad one, not the best one either."


    "It was the easiest one for him to learn," Hei Pho exined.


    "You are right. Then let him continue practicing that art," Hei Gong said, then asked Amon, "is there anything you want to ask regarding the cultivation art you are practicing?"


    Since they were offering, Amon did not let this opportunity go. "When I practice that art, it seemed that no matter how hard or how strong I siphoned the aether, the amount that was drawn into my body stayed the same. Did I already hit the limit of that art?"


    "That art was made based on the easiest way to gather aether, hence the method used is limited to a small fixed amount. However, you can increase the pace of the funneling. Instead of trying to absorb more aether in a single draw, you should absorb them faster. Creating a more rapid pace of multiple draws which will provide you with more aether as the end result."


    Amon continued to ask about many details that he had doubts about during the training. Hei Pho sometimes weighed in her opinion. Now that he could freely ask away, many of those doubts were solved. He must admit that having someone giving guidance was certainly more beneficial than none.


    Amon pondered about the answers that he had received. He might need to cultivate using the art and put all these newly learned details into practice to get the full benefit. However, instead of letting him go and train, Hei Gong said, "since you have no more questions. Come."


    Amon was eager to go back to his room and cultivate, but he followed Hei Gong. They went to the inner courtyard. Once they were there, Hei Gong said, "cultivation is the art of using the aether to strengthen your inner power and body. However, to utilize that inside energy to perform extraordinary acts, you need either a martial art or an arcane art."


    Two books materialized in his hands. "Arcane art is still tooplex for you. Here are two basic martial arts. Try to utilize the aether in your body and follow the instruction depicted in these books."


    Amon epted the books. On the cover of one was written Bone Shattering Shadow Fist, on the other was Hardened Bronze Body. Looking at these two books, he could not help but feel like he was in those kinds of wuxia movies from his past world. He surmised the one with the fist was an offensive art, while the body one was a defensive art.


    "Try to learn it first by yourself today," Hei Gong said. "You can ask me questions tomorrow if you need."


    He then went away with Hei Pho.


    Amon wasted no time. He read the Bone Shattering Shadow Fist art first. Inside the book was a depiction of how the aether should be manipted from his Energy Core, through his body, and to his fist in order toplete the art. There were also depictions of the movement that needed to be performed.


    After reading the book from start to finish and memorizing everything, he put it down and started to put it into actual practice. He dug deep into his energy core as he summoned the energy inside. The energy went through several channels, simr to blood vessels, it traveled through his body. As he felt the passing energy, he felt some kind of power coursing through.


    He followed the motion depicted in the book, his hand was clenched into a fist and he punched out. An explosive sound was heard as his fist was fully extended. The air around his fist was pushed away violently by a shockwave, creating some sort of vacuum at the spot where he had punched.

 9 Chapter 9

    ''Incredible!'' He thought.


    But it was still far from perfect, the book described that once this martial art was mastered, one would be able to break a fully grown tree from five meters away. And also, he took too long to execute it, any rational enemy would have already moved away by the time he punched out.


    Full of excitement, he repeated the art. Trying to get used to the process. After five attempts, he felt himself drained.


    That''s weird, why did he get tired so fast? He observed his body. When he looked inside his energy core, he found that it was dim. The energy inside was almost depleted. So his energy core was still too weak to perform martial arts too many times.


    He sat down crosslegged and used Energy Funneling Art to cultivate, at the same time having the aether refill the energy inside his energy core.


    After he refilled his energy core, he repeated his training, getting faster and stronger with each repetition. By the time the sun was about to set, he finally decided to take a look at the second martial book, Hardened Bronze Body.


    As the name hinted, this art revolved around having the energy spread around the skin of his entire body. Turning it hard as metal, allowing his body to resist serious impact. But controlling the aether to spread all over the body in a bnced amount was much harderpared to concentrating the energy into his fist.


    Amon decided to train this art only after he was familiar with executing Bone Shattering Shadow Fist fluently. He surmised this would be the fastest way to learn both arts to an eptable degree.


    He continued to train until the sky became dark. When Hei Pho came to call him to rest, his body was full of sweat. His soaked shirt was on the floor as he continued to train barechested.


    When he went back to the bedroom after taking a bath, Hei Gong was cultivating. Amon observed him for a while, studying his way of cultivation. It was apparent that the older man was using a different cultivation art. It seemed much moreplex. But the thing he could learn from just watching was limited. So he stopped wasting time and went to cultivate himself.


    During the martial training on the day, he only cultivated to refill his energy. Now that he could do proper cultivation, he recalled the advice that Hei Gong had given him earlier today. He put them into practice. The efficiency in his cultivation after applying the correct details could be felt. He could not suppress the excitement in his heart as his cultivation pace increased.


    At midnight, the time that Hei Gong usually stopped his cultivation, he saw that Amon was still cultivating. He said to Amon to not cultivate toote, that Amon needed to rest as well before he went to bed.


    Amon only nodded as a response, but he had no intention of heeding the words. He had found out that although he cultivated a whole night without rest, he did not feel tired nor sleepy. Instead, he felt invigorated in the morning, even better than when he slept.


    He had no problem not sleeping for a few nights in his past life. He had done that many times especially on the battlefield, falling asleep behind enemy lines was a luxury. But the fact that he did not feel tired this time was not due to his endurance and willpower, it was simply his body was full of energy.


    At first, he thought that was the effect of the cultivation itself, but then he remembered that Hei Gong always stopped cultivating and then went to sleep. Hence, he knew that this condition was unique to him. In fact, he had not slept at all since he acquired the cultivation art from Hei Pho. Cultivating had be a new way for him to rece sleep.


    The next morning, when Hei Gong woke up and saw that Amon was still cultivating, he simply associated it with Amon waking up earlier.


    When Amon went back to the courtyard to repeat his Bone Shattering Shadow Fist training, Hei Gong followed to see his progress. He watched as Amon made his punch.


    "Hm?" Hei Gong lifted his eyebrows.


    As Amon was about to punch again, Hei Gong instructed, "Punch towards me."


    Amon did not give it much thought. He swiveled his body until he was facing Hei Gong. Hei Gong was standing about five meters from him, exactly the distance where it was said that the punch could deliver a deadly blow. But even if Amon had already mastered this art, he doubted it would cause any damage to Hei Gong who was already in the Martial realm.


    He umted his energy into his fist as he had done hundreds of times, and punched out. Hei Gong felt a slight wind pressure on his clothes and frowned.


    "How do I do?" Amon asked.


    Hei Gong gave him aplicated expression before he said, "to be honest, I am surprised that you have already reached this stage."


    "So, my execution is eptable?"


    "It was still far from saying it can be used in an actual fight."<sub> </sub>


    "So, it was still bad then."


    Hei Gong stared at him intently, before saying, "though it was still far from perfect, your advancement was incredible. A normal kid might still be trying to properly execute this move, yet you are already in the beginner phase of mastery."


    "Beginner mastery?" Amon asked with interest.


    "Mastery on Arts, like the Martial art and arcane art, can be divided into five phases: Beginner, skilled, expert, master, and grandmaster."


    "Then mine is the most basic phase, what''s so great about it?"


    "Normally it would take a kid, or even a young adult for that matter, about one week of trial and error before they could properly perform the art, formally reaching the beginner stage."


    Amon scoffed in his mind. He was not an actual kid, so such an improvement was not actually that impressive. "How long will it take to reach the highest grandmaster mastery?"


    "For most? Never," Hei Gong replied. "Grandmaster mastery of either martial art or arcane art is not something that can be achieved just with hard work and time. It also requiredpatibility of the art with its user, and the innate talent to understand the art. Even someone who had continued to practice the same art for tens of years cannot be certain that they will reach the master level, much less grandmaster."


    Amon contemted Hei Gong''s words. "The book said that when I mastered this art, I will be able to destroy a tree from five meters away. Is that only achievable if I reach grandmaster?"


    "No, that is the effect if you reach expert mastery."


    "That is only expert level?"


    Hei Gong nodded. "At master level, you should be able to perform three rapid punches with the same power within a second."


    "What about grandmaster?"


    "You should be able to execute ten consecutive powerful punches within a second."


    That sounded farfetched, Amon thought. But then again, this world had shown him many miraculous things. Including the battle between Madam Lin''s henchmen with the Grimalkins. How they could manipte the elements to their will. It will not be so strange for him to perform something that would have been considered a superhuman feat in his past life, considering of course, if he kept improving in his cultivation and training.


    Amon asked, "Do you have a martial art that utilized a dagger or a shortsword?"


    Hei Gong''s eyes went to the small dagger on Amon''s waist. He had heard about the madam''s gift from Hei Pho. He waved his hand and a book materialized. He handed the book to Amon.


    "Understand that martial art using a weapon is more difficult to performpared to the one using your body. That''s why I gave you those previous two arts first. Leave this one forter once you have better learned the first two."


    Amon epted the book and nodded. He saw the title on its cover, Silent Swift Stab.


    He then went back to focus on his training. Hei Gong watched him for a few more minutes as his face continued to showplex emotion before he went away and left Amon to his training.


    This training regime soon became Amon''s routine in the mansion. He spent his day mostly training martial arts, while the night he spent cultivating.


    He did not neglect his tutge of medicine under Hei Pho, though. He still spared several hours a day inside Hei Pho''s medicine room. Since he was already directly taught, he could do experimentation. In fact, Hei Pho was greatly helped now that she did not have to personally make all of the medicines.


    Unbeknownst to Hei Pho, however, was that Amon was secretly also learning her poison technique. Amon''s proficiency in poison was far greater than in medicine, due to his experience in his past life. He was also secretly conducting experiments on making poison using the avable ingredient in the medicine room when Hei Pho was not around. The leftover mess could just be credited to him trying to make medicine.

 10 Chapter 10

    After one week of practicing Bone Shattering Shadow Fist, Amon was still in the Beginner phase. But he thought it was time to try practicing Hardened Bronze Body. As he had thought, it was harder to control and bnced the aether in his body when he had to direct them equally all over his body. Even after practicing for a whole day, he was still not yet enter the beginner phase.


    After several days of perseverance, he could finally reach a perfect bnce. His skin turned hard and its color became metallic-like bronze, hence the name he supposed. Yet, he could only maintain that state for a short three seconds. It was hardly practicable for a real fight, not to mention he had to keep his focus and thus cannot move while maintaining this state. He figured this was the beginner mastery. When he reached a higher mastery level, he should be able to move while in this state and also be able to maintain it longer.


    He went back to training the Bone Shattering Shadow Fist. After more than a month of practice, he could finally execute the art as easy as he did a normal punch, allowing it a decent chance to be used inbat. Hei Gong informed him that he had reached the Skilled mastery.


    He finally allowed himself to look at the Silent Swift Stab. After studying the theory in the book, he surmised this art was meant for a sudden strike. An ambush that was meant to kill with one stab, meaning it could only be used once inbat.


    He didn''t mind though, in fact, he preferred this kind of skill. In his past life, rarely did a battle go on for long. One only needed one hit for a kill. This skill should match him nicely.


    The difficulty of performing this art mostly came from how he applied his aether to synchronize with his dagger. Just as Hei Gong had said, it was more difficultpared to executing a martial art using his fist.


    He focused on practicing this art before going back to his first two arts. He had reached skilled mastery on Bone Shattering Shadow Fist and beginner mastery on Hardened Bronze Body. He decided to train the Silent Swift Stab until at least skilled mastery before going back to those previous arts again.


    It took him half a year to reach that stage. This art was part movement art as well since it gave him an explosive push that sent him forward in speed. When he performed the art with skilled mastery, it created a loud bang and his body turned to a blur as a ray of light followed his dagger. He stabbed onto the wall of arge tree in the courtyard. The light continued as it prated the tree and went out the other side.


    Amon looked into the hole and was satisfied to see that his stab had managed to puncture a hole through the thick trunk of the tree. The excitement he felt was exhrating. He was armed with fangs again.


    With him getting more ustomed to his cultivation art, his cultivation also underwent rapid advancement. He estimated his silver Energy Core was around one-third progress. In one year''s time, he should hit the limit to advance to the intermediate Mortal stage.


    As his martial arts and cultivation improved by the day. Hei Gong and Hei Pho''s treatment of him also developed, especially Hei Gong. Amon did not get the feeling that he was treated as a tool anymore, Hei Gong now treated him as a more proper family.


    Due to this increase in trust, Amon decided to ask them about his origin. They were taken aback by his question. They gazed at one another with apprehension and were silent for a long time. Amon waited for them patiently, considering their secrecy, he assumed that the topic of his origin was not simple.


    "So, how did Ie to be?" Amon finally asked again after the continued silence.


    "We should tell him, Gong," Hei Pho said.


    "He is just a kid. He won''t understand," Hei Gong argued.


    "Look at him," Hei Pho said. "Do you see that is the expression of a kid? If he is, he is the smartest and most mature one I know. He understood everything I taught him. He is the fastest learning kid I ever met, or person, ever. His cultivation and martial art training speed are also extremely fast. He has no advantage like the noble kids who are aided by cultivation pills and top-notch cultivation arts, but his improvement is not any less than them."


    Hei Gong took a deep breath. He did not think that Hei Pho would support the kid to this extent. He stared at Amon and found the kid staring back. The gaze was calm, yet expectant. Hei Pho was right, the kid did notck the intelligence to understand whatever he was holding back. However, the real reason was not that he was worried that the kid won''t understand. The reason was that he was afraid that the kid might identally spill this secret to an outsider. If that happened, everyone within this mansion would be doomed.


    He looked at Amon again and knew from his eyes that the kid was not the careless type. So, he took another deep breath and said, "all right."<sub> </sub>


    Good, Amon thought. Now that both of them had agreed, he repeated his previous question, "how did Ie to be?"


    "First of all, you should know. You were not born," Hei Gong informed. "You don''t have a father or a mother, you don''t have any blood rtion to any of the nsman or nswoman in this mansion¡­"


    "But we still care for you like you are one of our own," Hei Pho interjected.


    Hei Gong gave Hei Pho an annoyed look for interrupting him, he then continued, "We also did not adopt you. We didn''t take you from any other ce."


    Not born, Amon had expected as much. He didn''t show any surprise or confusion when he asked his next question, "then how was I made?"


    It was Hei Gong that was taken aback by Amon''s calmness. The kid had even uttered about him being made like it was the most normal thing. To be honest, Hei Gong felt slight fear at the moment, but he soon dismissed it as an irrational thought.


    He answered, "You are right, you were made. You were made using a forbidden art that was passed down in our n."


    "Forbidden art?" Amon asked with furrowed brows.


    "We might need to tell you a short history of our n for you to understand," Hei Pho said.


    Hei Gong gestured for her to proceed. He was not interested to talk about the history lesson, since it had been a depressing one.


    "Our n used to be arge one, spanning multiple branches in the country. Most would not dare offend us and uncounted people would line up to grovel at our feet hoping for our favors. At our peak, we had a cultivator of peak Lord stage Martial realm, just a half-step from bing a Demigod. But that soon change due to a single event."


    Hei Pho paused for a bit, sighing about the past, before continuing, "The half-step Demigod cultivator that I mentioned, had spent centuries trying to cross that gap, but to no avail. Out of desperation, he looked for a way by involving himself with a demon cult."


    Centuries, Amon did not find that statement strange. He had read from the books that cultivators had a very long lifespan. The higher the realm they reach, the longer their life will be. It was estimated that a Mystic stage Martial realm cultivator could live up to three hundred years, something unthinkable in his past life. The Lord stage cultivator that Hei Pho mentioned should have an even longer lifespan. Amon was instead more interested in the demon cult Hei Pho mentioned. "Demon cult?" He asked.


    "There are people of this world that carry demon''s line," it was Hei Gong who exined. "They are abhorred beings and will be hunted down if found out. Demons are a taboo of our world."


    "Demons are real?" Amon asked. In his past world, demon was only a metaphor people used to scare the mass into obedience. If there is any real demon in his past world, he would be the most qualified to assume the title.


    "They are. They are the enemy of Aetheria. They invaded us long ago. An arduous and bloody battle took ce in the past and shook the core of this world. Only with the help of the divines that the cultivators of this world managed to drive the demons back to their world."


    "However, they left many legacies in our world," Hei Pho took over. "And one of these legacies was the one that had doomed our ancestor."

 11 Chapter 11

    "I suspect I am the product of one of these legacies?" Amon asked. They wouldn''t have wasted time telling him about all this history lesson otherwise.


    "Yes," Hei Pho nodded. "our Lord stage ancestor made a deal with the demon cult and learned their practices. But he was found out, this caused almost all the forces in the country to turn on us. Even the kingdom interfered. Our n was ransacked to the ground, many of our nsmen died, and even our Lord stage ancestor was executed. What is left of us now is just a splinter of the shadow of our past glory."


    "Yet, even through the purging, some of the dark secrets bequeathed from the demon cult are still with us," Hei Gong said. "We didn''t want to use them, but with our continual decline, it was only a matter of time till our n vanishes from the face of this world. In desperation, we turned to one of these secrets. The forbidden art to create a Demon body."


    Demon body, one of Amon''s brows lifted. He could see where this was going.


    "The tome and notes containing the information of this demon body depicted that we can create a cultivator that possessed the power of an ancient demon. If we are sessful in creating such a cultivator and raised him, we might gain back our glory."


    "We studied the tome and gathered the materials needed. We can only try the process six times, because out of the materials that are required to create this demon body, one was a particr material not attainable in this world. It was a demon seed. The demon cult had bequeathed our ancestor with six of these seeds. It was said that these seeds were parts of the body of a very powerful demon cultivator from the distant past. Only by using these seedsbined with the other materials and incantations described in the tome, we can create a demon body."


    Sounded a lot like cloning, Amon thought. Except in his past world, it was using science. Here, it was magical cloning. So, this body of him was a copy of an ancient demon cultivator?


    "We failed three times when attempting the process. We followed the instruction to the letters, but the resulting infant bodies we created were unresponsive. Their bodies were breathing and alive, but they were still, as if one that was in a vegetative state. No matter what we do to them, the babies did not give any response. It was as if they had no soul. We did not know what went wrong."


    "Only after the fourth attempt, did we catch a break."


    "That fourth baby, it''s me?" Amon asked.


    "Yes," Hei Gong answered.


    "You can''t imagine our tion when we saw your baby eyes look up at us inquisitively," Hei Pho said. "Even though you didn''t cry, we knew at least you are not empty like the ones before you."


    Without a soul, eh? That was exactly what had gone wrong with the others, they were just empty vessels. While he would also be the same if his soul from his past world didn''t go into this body. He doubted these two old geezers know why his soul hade to upy this fourth body they had made. It must have beenpletely coincidental. Probably he died at the same time as when this body was created? Was the time between his past world and this new world even running at the same pace? It didn''t matter, the result was simply that his newly departed soul had found a new vessel in this new world.


    "At first, we were worried about your cultivation. We nned to survey your progress once you formed your energy core. Imagined my surprise when Madam Lin''s people found out first," Hei Pho said. "It''s a good thing your cultivation still turns out normal. It will be a disaster if otherwise."


    "Why? Are you worried there will be something abnormal with my cultivation?" Amon asked.


    Hei Gong nodded, "Yes. Every demon cultivator projected particr demon energy. We were worried since you have a demon body, your cultivation will also have that demon energy. If it is so, then we are doomed. We nned to put you into secluded cultivation if that is the case, and keep you secluded until you are strong enough to face the world."


    Amon was skeptical. In his opinion, it would most likely he would be disposed of if that happened. It would save them from the trouble if his demon origin was found out. His thought suddenly went to the ck core inside the other energy space in his body. Could that be the demon core? Was the reason he didn''t exhibit any demon energy because he didn''t cultivate that ck core?


    "You have to make a promise," Hei Gong said with a serious tone.


    "A promise?" Amon was puzzled.


    p "Yes. You have to promise that you will never divulge the secret of your demon origin to anyone outside of this n. If someone finds out and reported you to the authority, you will face certain death. And all of us that had helped youe to existence, will be hunted and punished with death. Do you understand the severity of this matter?"</anda>


    Oh, I understand it very much.<sub> </sub>


    "Who knows about this? Do all the ones in this mansion know?" Amon asked.


    "Yes, they also know the gravity and consequence of this issue. Their fates are tied with us and they will keep this secret. I just want to make sure that you do as well."


    "Do not worry, I understand the significance of this secret. No one will find it out from me," Amon said.


    "Good. This secret is very dangerous. We can only live our lives on the run if this gets out. But since you have understood, then I have no worry," Hei Gong said.


    "Is there anyone else outside of this mansion that knows?" Amon asked.


    "No, we have always been careful to keep this secret within the n. It is too dangerous otherwise."


    Amon was silent as he pondered the information he had just learned. After a while, Hei Gong and Hei Pho decided to leave him alone to think about it.


    Amon lifted his gaze at their backs as they left the room.


    ''Well, this changes everything,'' He thought.


    *


    In the following days, Amon continued doing his usual routine. Cultivating in the night and training martial arts during the day as he studied medicine with Hei Pho. His progress was rapid. His energy core was almost half-filled for the mortal stage. While for martial arts, since his Bone Shattering Shadow Fist and Silent Swift Stab had reached skilled mastery, he decided to focus on Hardened Bronze Body which was still in beginner mastery.


    It took him several more months until he managed to reach that mastery. Once he did, he could turn his skin into bronze with a thought, this instant effect allowed for better use duringbat. He could also maintain it for a much longer time of ten seconds and do simple movements while in that state, like walking or running. He could not attack thought, focusing the aether for an offensive strike would instead dispel his Hardened Bronze Body and reverted his defense to normal.


    He had also started taking sparring practice with Hei Gong. Learning to apply his martial arts in practicalbat. Although Hei Gong was limiting himself to defending, he could not help but be impressed by Amon''s instinct in battle. When he fought, Hei Gong did not get the feeling as if he was fighting a three and half year old kid. Instead, he felt like the one in front of him was an experiencedbatant who had gone through numerous bloody battles.


    Of course, he simply dismissed it as a weird illogical feeling in his heart.


    On one asion during his medicine study with Hei Pho, Amon had asked her about Madam Lin. He inquired about her eagerness to get the madam to be close with him. Shemended him for noticing and noted again that his sense of awareness as a young kid was astounding.


    She then exined to him that the reason she was trying to get the madam to be fond of him was due to sooner orter, Amon would need somece else to further his way of cultivation. Their n possessed no means for him if he was to be someone great. If he could join the Lin n, even as a helper, he would have a better chance.


    If somehow Madam Lin treated him as her own child, that would even be better. Although the n won''t provide resources for an outsider like him, there was a chance that they could rmend him to the royal academy.


    "The royal academy?" Amon asked, intrigued.


    "Yes, that is the ce for talented cultivators to learn more about the way of cultivation. It was founded by the kingdom. Any talented cultivator can apply to join, but they will need a rmendation from respectable ns or sects."

 12 Chapter 12

    Amon brought up the topic of Madam Lin''s desire for fertility, evident from her desire to hunt the five-tailed fox. If she seeded in bearing her own child, then she would not have paid Amon any attention. Hei Pho assured him that it would not happen because unbeknownst to her, Hei Pho had secretly drugged her through the scent in her room every time she came to visit.


    The drug caused her body to be unable to bear a child despite taking many medicines. She would always visit regrly, to get medicine from Hei Pho. Amon did not know the reason, but she always came by herself and never sent anyone to pick the medicine up on her behalf. Amon once took a peek at the so-called medicine, from what he could glean, it was more poison than medicine.


    Amon did not ask Hei Pho about what kind of poison she sold to Madam Lin every time she visited. It was enough for him to know that Hei Pho had paved a way for her to use Madam Lin to his benefit. He was not going to turn down a favor. On the contrary, she even asked Hei Pho to teach him how to make this air-borne drug that affected Madam Lin''s fertility. Hei Pho did not see a reason why not, she simply took it as Amon''s eagerness to learn, so she taught him.


    Amon also started to help in cooking meals in the kitchen. Hei Xilia was the one who did most of the cooking. Everyone thought that Amon started helping there as he was rather close with the girl. Amon evenmented that someone had to take over the cooking job after Hei Xilia was sent off to marry the young master of the other n, which was fast approaching.


    She chatted a lot with Amon whenever Amon helped in the kitchen. Mostly it was her talking and Amon listening. It was mostly trivial topics. But on some asions, when she couldn''t keep her feeling in, she spilled her heart out. Amon simply listened withoutmenting. Both of them know that she only needed someone to talk to. In some of those emotional talks, she even expressed her desire to die to escape from all this marriage arrangement. Amon simply listened to her in silence.


    The young master hade to the mansion uninvited on several asions. He brought gifts but his actionspletely showed his disregard for the people in this mansion. Other than Hei Gong who had superior cultivation to him, he showed disdain and treated the others poorly. He had even kicked Amon once when Amon passed by.


    Hei Xilia who was present quickly berated him for his deed, only to have himugh back contemptuously. Amon simply gave him a short nce before standing back up and walking away.


    After that incident, Amon asked Hei Pho about the rtionship between Madam Lin''s n with that young master''s n. Hei Pho exined to him that the Wei n, which was the young master''s n, was a subordinate of the Lin n''s rival. They were not on good terms, but since the Wei n was a smaller n, the Lin n mostly ignored this n.


    Amon asked why then Hei Pho did not use the Lin n''s influence to free Xilia from the young master''s clutch, considering their n''s rtionship with the Lin n was not bad. Hei Pho exined that although Madam Lin looked favorably at them, it was her private matter. The Lin n had never considered their Hei n to be under them. Hence, they had no obligation to protect the Hei n from the Wei n.


    When there were less than two months left from the date promised for the young master, Amon proposed for them to have a gathering dinner. A get-together for all the upants of the mansion to celebrate their time with Hei Xilia before she had to be sent off.


    Hei Xilia thought it was a nice sentiment. Even though it would just remind her of the dreaded day that continued to approach, she didn''t mind having a gathering together with her kins before she had to leave. She agreed to it and let Amon pick the date and organized everything. The kid seemed to truly look forward to it so she was d to just go along with it. Probably because he had never experienced a festivity before, she thought.


    As time continued to move forward, the day of the appointed gathering soon arrived. It was around a week before Hei Xilia was married off. She forced herself to smile even though her heart was gloomy as she worked in the kitchen.


    "Sister Xilia, go take a rest. You looked tired. I can cook the meals by myself just fine," Amon said when he saw Xilia''s depressed expression.


    "I''m okay. We have a big meal, you won''t be able to do it all by yourself," Xilia said.


    Amon gave her a pose that showed his arm''s muscle. "Look how strong I am now," he said as he pushed Xilia out of the kitchen. "Go and take a rest. Don''t worry about me. Most of the cooking is done anyway, there is just a little bit of dressing to be done. You go take a rest first. You will be the main person at tonight''s dinner, it won''t do if you look tired during the time, everyone will be disappointed. You will instead ruin everybody''s mood. This is ourst big dinner together before you go, so you have to show your best self to everyone. Now go, I will finish everything."


    Seeing the kid''s persistence, Hei Xilia shook her head and smiled. "All right, don''t push yourself too hard. Call me if you need anything."


    "Don''t worry. I will," Amon replied.<sub> </sub>


    *


    As the night approached and it was time for dinner. The Hei n''s mansion was rather lively. Everyone gathered in the dining hall. Everyone rarely had the chance to get together these days. Thest time they gathered like this was on the day when Amon came to be.


    Everyone helped bring the food from the kitchen to the dining hall. Hei Xilia came in wearing her best gown. Everyone was mesmerized by her beauty. After the enthrallment passed, everyone instead turned gloomy. To think that this would be thest dinner celebration where everyone could get together while Hei Xilia was still with them. They started to resent their helplessness for not being able to do anything to turn their fate.


    Hei Xilia, who saw their gloomy expressions, immediately put on her widest possible smile to cheer everyone up. She went around greeting and talking to everyone to lift their spirit. She even made them sing a song together. Amon simply watched them in silence.


    When it was time to eat, everyone sat at therge dining table. It was several tables put together and covered with arge cloth. There were fifteen people if Amon was included. Seven people sat on the left and the other seven on the right, while at the head of the table was Hei Gong. Hei Pho and Amon sat on the left and right closest to Hei Gong.


    Hei Gong stood up as he delivered a simple speech to his nspeople. When he was done, he let Hei Xilia say some words as well. This gathering was, after all, for her.


    Hei Xilia stood up, her face was smiling, but everyone can glean the sorrow in her eyes.


    "Everyone, I thank you for all this. Please know that all of you will always be a part of me. You are my only family. No matter where I go, you all will always be my only family¡­ In one week''s time, I will have to leave you all¡­ I will have to¡­"


    Her voice started trailing off. She started sobbing, her body trembled as she tried to hold the emotion that overcame her.


    "I¡­ I want to die¡­ It''s better than to be sent off to that monster¡­ Why aren''t I allowed to die¡­?"


    Everyone''s head was cast down. No one could say anything to console her.


    Hei Gong took a deep breath before saying, "You know why¡­ Xilia, I''m sorry this has to happen to you. But if you take the easy way out, all of us will suffer the consequences. You do know that, right?"


    Hei Pho also said in a soothing voice, "For this family, you must endure. Just like how we all endure. Now sit down and calm yourself, please. We are trying to give you a cheerfulst dinner that you can remember us by."


    Hei Xilia forced herself to calm down after a while and sat. Her tears, however, continued to roll down her cheek.


    She was a strong woman, Amon thought. Unfortunately¡­


    "Now, let us dine," Hei Pho said. "Xilia and Hei Mo had spent much time and effort preparing these meals. We should respect them by eating them all. Now, please, everyone. Do not hesitate and treat yourselves."

 13 Chapter 13

    Everyone started eating. However, the atmosphere was more somber than cheery. It was so quiet. Everyone ate without saying anything. Even when they talked, they whispered, as if afraid someone else would hear.


    But no one was saying or doing anything to change the mood. Everyone simply continued to drink wine and eat their meal silently. It was more like attending a funeral than a feast.


    One of them, a teenage man named Hei Siong, probably feeling ufortable, quickly finished up his meal and wine. When he was done, he stood up and asked to be excused. Hei Gong simply waved him off. Hei Siong didn''t show any expression but anyone can feel his relief after being allowed to leave.


    He stood up. He tidied himself and his utensils. He took his empty bowl and cups to be brought away with him, he was going to put them in the kitchen for someone to washter.


    Not long after he left, sounds of tableware falling to the ground were heard. Everyone looked in the teenager''s direction and found him to be kneeling. His back was facing them. It looked like the tableware he carried had slipped and now he knelt down to pick them up. Everyone went back to finishing their meals.


    After a while, one of the people at the table saw that the teenager was still on his knees. He called out, "Hey, Hei Siong. Why do you take so long to pick up the bowl?"


    Everyone turned again to the teenager after hearing the words. They watched in puzzlement at the kneeling Hei Siong. Suddenly, Hei Siong copsed to the ground. Everyone was taken aback by the scene.


    "Hei Siong! What happened?" His brother Hei Lang called out with concern. He quickly stood up and ran over. But just after two steps, he stopped abruptly. He clutched his stomach and neck, before falling to his knees. He looked back. His face showed an expression of anguish.


    "What''s wrong?!" Someone asked him, but then he heard groaning from the other side, he turned and saw the others showing the same pained expressions as Hei Lang. He then felt it, his stomach felt as if his innards had tied around each other and tightened. His throat then mped up, he was unable to suck in a breath.


    Everyone at the dining table showed the symptoms, even Hei Gong, Hei Pho, and Amon.


    "Wh¡­ What¡­ is¡­ Hap¡­pening¡­?" Hei Gong asked through the pain.


    "P¨CPoi¡­son¡­!" Hei Pho uttered painfully through her forceful breaths.


    Hei Pho and Hei Gong could barely talk as they had stronger bodies due to being cultivators. The others had either fallen to the floors or their face lying on the table, including Amon. Some were still quivering due to the tormenting pain, but they soon sumbed andid breathless in stillness.


    Hei Pho''s hands went to her pouch to search for medicine or antidote that might stop or slow down the poison, but she could not find any of what she was looking for. She had always prepared them in her pouch for an emergency. Howe they were not there when needed?


    Hei Gong utilized his energy to try to control the poison but seeing his n people dying in front of him made it hard for him to concentrate.


    The poison was very deadly. Hei Pho who was much weaker than Hei Gong could finally not resist the poison from taking full effect. Her struggle instead caused her throat to be wounded. She coughed and a spray of blood shot out from her mouth. Her head fell to the table. Her eyes were wide open as she stared at Hei Gong, trying to convey a question as to why had this all happened? And then she was no more.


    "Urgh¡­!" Hei Gong could not bear the pain in both his body and heart, to watch his family die in front of him, without being able to do anything. His pain and rage forced his energy to seethe out. He was using brute force to eliminate the poison.


    I am a Martial realm cultivator! Such poison would not end me! He screamed in his mind as he channeled his energy to the limit.


    As he closed his eyes and gritted his teeth focusing all his energy. He suddenly sensed rising energy just next to him. He then felt a stinging stab at the top of his throat and below his jaw. His palm unthinkingly pped forward, delivering a powerful force. He felt his palm hit something hard. He opened his eyes and saw the one that had been pushed away by his palm strike.


    The color was drained out of his face as he saw the one standing a few meters away from him. It was Amon. There was blood flowing down his nose and mouth. A bloody dagger was clutched in one of his hands.


    "As expected of Martial realm expert," Amonmented. "Even when heavily poisoned, you can still deliver such a powerful strike."<sub> </sub>


    "Yo¡­ You¡­ It''s you¡­? Wh¨CWhy¡­?" Hei Gong asked with difficulty. Blood was flowing fiercely through the hole in his throat.


    "Normal people would already die from that stab. Cultivator''s body truly is impressive," Amon said. He had used Silent Swift Stab to deliver the sneak attack. He had expected the poison to not be able topletely kill Hei Gong who was a Martial realm cultivator. From Hei Pho''s notes which he studied in secret, all the poisons were only meant for Human realm cultivators. He hadbined and experimented on them to boost their potency, but he still doubted that it would be enough. Hence, he nned for the ambush.


    When he felt that his stab could not prate all the way into Hei gong''s brain, he immediately activated Hardened Bronze Body, just before Hei Gong''s palm struck him. He was d to know that his defensive art had managed to save him from the strike. But he also knew that mostly it was because Hei Gong had been greatly weakened by the poison. Otherwise, Hei Gong''s palm strike would easily obliterate his body even with his Hardened Bronze Body in effect.


    He was also the one that removed all of Hei Pho''s antidotes from her pouch, ensuring her demise.


    "W¡­ why¡­?!" Hei Gong asked again, his voice hoarse.


    "To keep a secret," Amon answered.


    Hei Gong stared at him in disbelief.


    "You said it yourself. It would be too dangerous if anyone finds out about the secret of my body. What better way to keep a secret? By making sure the ones that know about it can''t talk anymore."


    "He¡­ Hei¡­ Mo¡­ You¡­ Ungrate¡­full¡­ Bastard¡­!" Hei Gong was gritting his teeth in pain, rage, sadness, and helplessness.


    "¡­ My name is not Hei Mo," Amon said. "My name is Amon."


    Hei gong looked at him. He did not talk anymore as it caused him enormous pain every time he spoke, but his eyes expressed the question in his mind.


    "My name is Amon," Amon repeated. "And if you are wondering how a nearly four-year-old kid could havemitted such a heinous act. It''s because I am not one. I don''t know how it happened, or why it happened. But apparently, during the time you created this body, my newly departed soul had been transferred to this body. That''s why your forbidden art had worked this time. I am a fully grown adult who had passed away from a world very much different from this one, and you are the one who had summoned me into this world."


    Hei Gong coughed a few times, blood flowed from his mouth. He was now having difficulty supporting his body on the table using his hands.


    Amon felt that he owed the old guy an exnation, that''s why he had told him the truth. "Your concern about your n legacy, I will carry it. I will bathe this world with blood and use the name of the Hei n to stand on top of this world. Everyone in this world will know of your surname. That''s the least I can do for you."


    "Heh¡­ heh¡­" Hei gong made a mockingugh.


    He lifted his hand with difficulty, his finger was trembling as he pointed somewhere. Amon saw the direction he was pointing in and saw Hei Xilia''s cold body on the table. She was lying there as if asleep. Her face appeared strangely serene, as if she had not gone through any pain before she died.


    "She¡­ she had¡­ always treated¡­ you¡­ as if¡­ a brother¡­ she¡­ care¡­ deeply¡­ about you¡­ How can¡­ you¡­"


    "It is better this way," Amon interrupted him. He knew what the old man was trying to convey. "She herself wanted death. Better than bing the ything of a ruthless man. I freed her from that awful fate."


    "You¡­ are truly¡­ a demon¡­" Hei Gong''s headid on the table after hisst words. He was not moving any longer.


    ''That I am,'' Amon said in his mind. ''In my past life, or in this one. That will never change.''

 14 Chapter 14

    Once Amon made sure by using his acute sight and hearing that Hei Gong was no longer breathing, he approached. He came to Hei Pho first, then unceremoniously removed the ring on her finger. It was her space ring.


    Hei Pho herself had exined to him that a cultivator''s personal space ring was tied to the person. If the cultivator was still alive, it would be difficult for others to look into or take something from within the ring, unless of course if the one doing it had much higher cultivation than the ring''s owner.


    But if the owner had died, the link would be gone and the seal removed. Hence, allowing another cultivator to ess its content and establish his own link on the ownerless ring. This was what Amon was doing at the moment.


    He sent his consciousness into the space ring. He found himself in a space the size of a room, a slightly smaller one than his bedroom, which was a veryrge storage space if ording to him. If he had this kind of mobile warehouse function in his past life, it would be a very convenient tool. But such a thing was still only a dream in his past world.


    Inside this space, he saw several of Hei Pho''s private things. He sorted out the useless ones and threw them out of the space, leaving only the ones that he could use. There were many exotic nts and ingredients inside here, with more notes on poison. From the looks of the things inside this ring, Hei Pho''s knowledge was more inclined toward poisoning than medicine.


    There was even a tome titled 101 primal poison. Amon took a look at this tome and was surprised to find that he could not understand most of its content. He could only read through the first few pages, but even those he could not understand. While theter pages he couldn''t make heads or tails of them, even the wordings seemed to elude him, as if the tome itself was refusing to show him its secrets.


    This must be one of the legacies from when the Hei n was at its peak. He doubted even Hei Pho understood everything within this tome. If her expertise had reached the level where she could understand even a quarter of this tome, he doubted that his poisoning during the dinner just now would have gone unnoticed. In fact, he had separated the poisoningponents into two parts, one in the meal and one in the wine. Only by consuming both that the poison would take effect. Otherwise, he was afraid that Hei Pho would have found out about the poison before it was consumed. For himself, he didn''t drink any wine as he was still a kid, that''s why he was not affected by the poison.


    There were also a few Aer stones. He counted them, there were 34 Aer stones. He did not know if this was arge sum or a small sum since he had not made any transaction in the outside world. But considering the poor status of the Hei n, he would say that it was more likely thetter.


    After sorting out Hei Pho''s possession, he went to Hei Gong''s body. He also wore a simr ring on his left hand''s finger. Although Hei Gong appeared lifeless already, Amon didn''t take any chances. His skin was bronze color as he activated Hardened Bronze Body upon approaching the corpse. His Swan dagger was also in a ready position in his hand.


    With the other hand, he removed the ring from Hei Gong''s finger. All the while being ready for a sudden movement, but Hei Gong remained still.


    After getting the ring, he backstepped some distance away before turning his attention to the ring. It looked just the same as Hei Pho''s ring.


    When he dived into the ring''s space. He saw the internal space to berger than Hei Pho''s one, by around twice. There was also much more stuff inside Hei Gong''s ring. Belongings from the head of the n were indeed different.


    As he sorted through everything, throwing the unessential things away, he found several art books. He collected all those books first on one side as he organized the other things. There were also several weapons, which he also gathered to one side for reviewter.<sub> </sub>


    Amongst Hei Gong''s clothes, there was one that felt different. It was infused with aether, such an item was called engraved items, the same as his Swan dagger. They had better durability and sometimes possessed extra effects outside of their basic function.


    This engraved suit he had found looked like it was made of interlocking tiny chains, like very thin chainmail, and very light. But the size was too big for his kid''s body. Still, out of curiosity, he slipped the oversized suit onto his body. As he was admiring its fine and yet sturdy material, the suit suddenly tightened around his body. He was rmed by it, afraid that he had triggered some defensive mechanism amongst Hei Gong''s possession, but even after the suit stopped shrinking, he didn''t feel any difort. He looked at himself, the suit had magically adjusted itself to his size.


    After some thought, he decided to test the suit''s defense by stabbing himself in the abdomen, where it was covered by the chainmail suit. The swan dagger produced a ng as if it had hit a solid metal. Amon was surprised, he did not even feel the impact. He made a stronger self-stab. It still didn''t go through. In fact, there was not even a scratch on the chainmail suit.


    I have found myself a good thing here, Amon thought. When he took off the chainmail suit, it reverted to its original size. Such a convenient function, there was no need for a tailor if such a feature could be incorporated into every clothes.


    He took off his clothes before wearing the chainmail suit again. It adjusted nicely with his nude upper body. Amon then put his original clothes back on, covering the chainmail protection underneath.


    He continued to sort through Hei Gong''s stuff. A small thing caught his attention, he took a closer look and saw it to be a ring, one that waspletely ck. He took it up and observed it. This was not a normal decorative ring, this was also a space ring, Amon thought after his observation. He could feel another space inside this ring. Why did Hei Gong keep two space rings?


    Curious, he sent his consciousness into this ck space ring. When he arrived in the space inside, he was shocked to find that he could see into the far distance in all directions. Amazed by this discovery, he sent his consciousness to gauge the entire space. It took him some time due to his low cultivation, but after taking the measurement, he estimated that the size of this space was around the size of a small town.


    He could not cover his astonishment. With this ck ring, he could carry goods the size of a town everywhere he went? This was more than a dream in his past world. The tactical application of such a tool was limitless. He went back out and stared at the ck space ring in his hand.


    Odd, Amon thought. Why is this ck space ring empty? Why did Hei Gong not use this ck space ring instead? It was clearly much superior to the one Hei Gong was wearing. Was it because he didn''t want to attract attention? This ck ring was surely an umon treasure. It should be another of this n''s legacy. Perhaps he was afraid others would have bad intentions if they saw it. Amon kept the ck ring aside first as he continued to organize the goods


    He also found another tome. In this one, it was titled Demon Body creation method. This must have been the forbidden art that had been used to create his body. Apanying this tome was two small pebbles. They glowed an eery ck light. Amon assumed this must be the two remaining demon seeds.


    After he was done cataloging, throwing aside all the unessential stuff, he had seven martial art books, three arcane art books, three cultivation art books, six engraved swords, three engraved axes, four engraved spears, one engraved shield, seventeen engraved throwing knives, several metallic materials which appeared to be valuable, 72 Aer stones, demon body tome, two demon seeds, and thest one which he found to be most extraordinary aside from the ck space ring, was a ck Aetherium stone.


    An Aetherium stone, as he read in books, was a special cultivation tool that could expedite cultivation speed. If the Aer stone was the byproducts of failed natural Aether crystallization, an Aehterium stone was the actual sessful natural aether crystallization. Unlike a cultivation pill which was one-time use. An Aetherium stone could be used indefinitely. They served as a natural catalyst that pulled and enhanced the surrounding aether, allowing much ease for the cultivator to absorb the aether using their cultivation art.

 15 Chapter 15

    The strange thing was, an Aetherium stone was described in the books to have bluish-white color. This one was pitch ck. Another odd thing was he had never seen Hei Gong use this stone when he was cultivating. Perhaps it was broken? Maybe that''s why it was colored ck?


    Curious, he took out the Aetherium stone and set it on the ground. Nothing happened. Perhaps it truly was a broken one, Amon thought. He touched the stone and tried to inject aether into it. He had read in some cases, there were Aetherium stones that had seals that needed an activation to be used.


    When Amon''s aether entered the stone, it suddenly released an eery ck light. The ck light resembled a thick fog that swerved around. As it did, arge amount of aether started to gather around the stone.


    It was working! Amon thought in delight. With this, his cultivation speed should increase. From what he had heard, even noble children didn''t have ess to such a tool. Only important n members of arge n would have the chance to possess an Aetherium stone.


    Odd, he thought again. This ck Aetherium stone did not appear to be broken. Why did Hei Gong not use it?


    After some thought, he put all the essential things into the ck Space Ring. The Aer stones, ck Aetherium stone, 101 primal poison tome, the exotic nts and ingredients, various metallic materials. For weapons, he only took 2 swords, 1 axe, 2 spears, the shield, and 17 throwing knives, while the remaining he left in Hei Gong''s ring.


    As for the art books. He made some selections. He did not intend to study all the martial arts since they seemed to be of a simrly low level to the ones he was already practicing at the moment. If he tried to learn too many arts, he would instead lose focus and be mediocre in all. He thought it would be better to focus on the ones he had learned and practiced them to at least the master level. But out of the seven martial art books, he still took two though, it was the arts for throwing weapons and bow. He had always been best with range weapons, considering his past life experience with firearms. So he put those two martial art books into the ck space ring and left the remaining five in Hei Gong''s ring.


    For the arcane art books, he could not study them yet. Hei Gong once said that one needed to reach the Transformation stage of the Human realm to study Arcane arts, though there were cases where some talented youths managed to learn some at the Strength stage. He put all three arcane art books into the ck Space Ring.


    As for the cultivation art books, he looked at the three. All was a better cultivation art than his Energy Funneling art. Afterparing the three, he decided on one that was called Drown Heart Pulsating Art. The other two he put back into Hei Gong''s ring.


    He also left 10 Aer stones inside Hei Gong''s ring. Afterward, he put Hei Gong''s ring on his finger. He then used a small rope to tie the ck space ring into a ne and wear it over his neck. He slipped the ck space ring into the inside of his clothes, keeping it from being seen by others.


    For Hei Pho''s ring, he put inside it the Demon Body creation method tome and the two demon seeds. He went to the backyard outside of the Hei mansion. He searched for a secluded spot and then started digging. Once he dug a deep enough hole, he tossed Hei Pho''s ring inside, he then covered it with earth. No one other than him would know there was a space ring underneath here.


    He had no foreseeable usage for the demon body tome, so he decided to bury it in secret. If somehow he was to be found with the tome, he would be in big trouble. He was not to go through all the troubles of massacring the Hei n to keep his secret only to be found outter because he carried the forbidden art tome around.


    After sorting out the goods he had plundered, he went back to the dining hall that was still filled with the gruesome scene. He looked around before deciding on the corpse of a teenage girl, she was Hei Xilia''s cousin. He lifted the body. With his Mortal stage cultivation, he could easily lift an adult human body despite his small frame.


    He carried the body to the outside and buried it as well, but far away from where he had buried the Demon Body creation method tome.


    Once hepleted thisst task, all he needed to do was wait. He went back to his bedroom to wait out the night. He took out the Drown Heart Pulsating Art and started reading it. He had chosen this art amongst the other two because this was the only art that could still be used after reaching the Martial realm. While the other two were the same as the Energy Funneling Art, they were only good for the Human realm. They would lose effectiveness once one stepped into the Martial realm.


    The method depicted for this Drown Heart Pulsating Art was moreplexpared to the Energy Funneling Art. But with his wit and tenacity, he slowly figured out the art. He started practicing it and put the art into applications.


    The art caused the absorbed aether to congregate near his chest before they were pushed down to the area below his navel, where his Energy Core was located. This created a feeling where his heart was submerged, thus the art''s name. The converged Aether was pushed into the Energy Space with each beat of the heart. This art separated the process of collecting and transferring to Energy Space, so they could be operated at the same time, allowing a continuous flow of aether into the energy space. The amount of absorbed aether was almost twice the efficiency of Energy Funneling Art, which absorb and transfer in cycles.


    After getting used to the art, he took out the ck Aetherium Stone and set it as he had done before. The air inside his room soon became thick with aether. When he used his cultivation art, the amount and speed of the aether he absorbed were even greater.<sub> </sub>


    He estimated that with this new art and ck Aetherium Stone, it might only take him another half a year to reach the intermediate Mortal stage. He continued his cultivation for the rest of the night.


    *


    There was a particr reason why Amon had chosen that day for thest dinner for Hei Xilia, when in fact she still had another week left in the Hei n''s mansion before she was sent away. The reason was that the next day would be the day that Madam Lin did her regr visit.


    Imagined her surprise when she arrived at the gruesome scene where the entire n had died around a dinner table.


    "What sort of devilry had transpired here?!" She eximed. "Guards!"


    Several people dashed in upon her shout. Lin Guo was amongst them. His eyes went wide when he also witnessed the scene. "Search the perimeter!" He ordered the others, who spread out to different corners of the mansions. He himself went into the dining hall and started examining the corpses.


    "They were poisoned," Lin Guo informed Madam Lin, who hade nearer and was staring at Hei Pho''s corpse.


    "Poisoned?"


    "This one was poisoned and stabbed," Lin Guo said as he scrutinized Hei Gong''s body. "The wound was too messy, it seemed to be caused by several types of sharp weapons."


    Amon had gone and used several of the weapons he had gotten from Hei Gong and inflicted additional post-mortem wounds to cover the actual dagger wound. The Swan dagger was, after all, originally Madam Lin''s weapon. There was a risk that she could recognize the wound made by this dagger.


    As the two were scrutinizing the crime scene, one of the bodyguards who went out to search the mansion came back with a little kid following him.


    "Reporting, madam. I found this kid hiding underneath a bed in a bedroom."


    Madam Lin looked over and recognized the kid as Amon. "Hei Mo!" She called out, "what had happened here?"


    Amon came over with as sad a face he could muster, he said to Madam Lin, "it''s the Wei n. They poisoned our food. Everyone was dying, grandpa tried to force the poison out with his cultivation, but several people appeared with the young master of the Wei n. They attacked grandpa and stabbed him multiple times until he stopped moving."


    "The Wei n? Why did they bother themselves with a backwater n such as yours?" Lin Guo uttered with disdain.


    "Lin Guo, show some respect to the departed," madam Lin reprimanded.


    "I''m sorry, madam," Lin Guo said, bowing his head. Though his cultivation was higher, madam Lin''s position was higher than his.

 16 Chapter 16

    Madam Lin turned back to Amon, "Do you know why the Wei n had done this?"


    "I only hear a little when grandpa and grandma talked. They said that the young master is interested in sister Xilia, but our family refused his request, so he was angry."


    "Refuse? The talk on the street is that the Hei family had agreed on the request," Lin Guo said.


    "It was a rumor spread by the young master. He didn''t want to lose face, so he said that we have epted while in fact, we refused."


    "That Wei Feng is indeed a piece of human failure, but to think he would go this low¡­" Madam Lin muttered. Wei Feng was the name of the young master from the Wei n that had requested Hei Xilia''s hand.


    "But how did he manage to put the poison? He couldn''t juste in here without you people noticing, right?" Madam Lin asked.


    "One of our own had betrayed us, a girl of the family. Her name was Hei Ning. Apparently, she had taken gifts from the young master and gotten close to him. The young master had given the poison to her which she then put into our food. She had gone away with the young master after they were done killing grandpa."


    "How do you escape from all this anyway?" Lin Guo asked suspiciously.


    "I had a stomachache when the dinner started. I went to the toilet. When I came back, I saw what had happened. I hid behind the door as I saw the Wei people showed up and did their evil deed."


    "That Hei Ning girl never thought to mention to them that a kid is missing?"


    "She probably didn''t know. She was also not at the dinner table when the dinner started and I excused myself. When I returned and saw everything, she only came out again after grandpa died. She just stood at the distance and didn''t dare to look at the scene."


    "Hmph, she can still feel guilty after such a terrible betrayal?" Madam Lin uttered with disgust.


    Madam Lin instructed one of her bodyguards to go search Hei Ning''s belonging. Amon brought him to Hei Ning''s room. He then waited as the bodyguard searched inside. Not long after, the bodyguard brought out some expensive goods in gift boxes with Wei insignia on them, most of them were clothes and jewelry.


    These goods were actually Wei Feng''s gifts to Hei Xilia. Hei Xilia had never opened the gift and had left them in pristine condition. Amon had simply brought them and nted them in Hei Ning''s room. The bodyguard brought all of them out and presented them to Madam Lin.


    Madam Lin inspected the goods inside Wei''s gift boxes and snorted, "the Wei n had truly grown bold, eh? They think they can do however they want?"


    "Do you believe all the kid''s words?" Lin Guo asked.


    "Are you telling me he is lying?" Madam Lin asked back. "What possible reason could he do that for? His entire family had been massacred, don''t you think he will be the first person to demand justice? Or do you think a six-year-old kid is involved in these gruesome murders?"


    They were still mistaken about Amon''s age. It was almost one year when Lin Guo caught him having formed his Energy Core and mistook him for being a five-year-old kid.


    "No, of course not," Lin Guo said, realizing how ridiculous his suspicion had been. But he could not shake this feeling about the kid. It was his eyes, they looked so calm and so cold, even though his entire family had just been decimated.


    "But we can''t make any big move on them. The Lei n is sure to interfere if we do," Lin Guo warned.


    "Are our Lin n afraid of the Lei n?" Madam Lin snorted.


    "Of course not. It''s just¡­" Lin Guo shot a nce at Amon before continuing, "Is it worth it to go through the trouble for this Hei n? They are not truly affiliated to us anyway."


    "They are not, but this turf is under the Lin n. Theymitting murder here meant they showed disrespect to our authority! Also, Hei Pho was my friend. A subordinate n of our rival dared to kill a friend of mine, under our turf. If we don''t respond in kind. How do you suppose the people will view us? Won''t they think that we are afraid of the Lei n?"<sub> </sub>


    Lin Guo lowered his head. He knew his words had instead caused Madam Lin''s anger.


    "Bring some men and capture this Wei Feng for me. We will see if the Lei n dares to cause us trouble."


    "Yes, madam!" Lin Guo responded. Though he was reluctant, he dared not defy the madam''s order. He shot another nce at Amon and thought for a second that he saw the kid''s mouth curved up to a smile. He gave Amon a closer look, then shook his head. He must have just imagined it.


    Lin Guo left a few guards to apany Madam Lin back to the Lin n while bringing the rest to look for Wei Feng.


    Madam Lin turned to Amon, who stared back at her. She seemed to be struggling for a bit before she asked, "would you like to return to my ce with me?"


    "Yes," Amon replied with a smile.


    *


    Unlike the Hei mansion which was in the middle of nowhere at the outskirt of the city, the mansion of the Lin n was at the heart of the city. The city was called White Cloud city. It was named after the ruling power of the city, the White Cloud sect. In terms of power, they were above the Lin n.


    The threergest power within White Cloud city were the White Cloud sect, the Lin n, and the Lei n. The White Cloud sect was in charge of all the official workings of the city, they reported to the kingdom and sent tributes annually. The Lin n and the Lei npeted on having the biggest hold on the city''s economy.


    The three of them had maintained bnce and tried to avoid open conflict with one another. White Cloud sect acted more impartially, while the Lin n and Lei n were most of the time at odds with one another. Due to that, small conflicts still arose from time to time between these two ns. If any issue became too big, the White Cloud sect would usually interfere to maintain peace.


    This time, due to Amon''s ploy, the two ns might be getting into a conflict again.


    Madam Lin took Amon into the city with her carriage. Amon could look at the city outside. The building and its upants'' style mostly resembled the ancient oriental style of his past world. There were still some stark differences, but considering it was a different world, aplete simrity would instead be weird.


    The crowd was abundant. Most he noticed weremon folks, not cultivators. Theycked the vitality that was presented in a cultivator. From what he saw, he surmised that cultivators were still the minority of the mass. The soldiers and guards who patrolled the city and watched the city walls, on the other hand, were all cultivators but mostly of the Human realm.


    Everyone was doing their things. Shops, markets, brothels. There were all sorts of facilities. Amon even saw a dueling ground as the carriage passed by, two contestants were fighting each other on the stage. Was it a fight to the death or a betting sport? Amon wondered.


    As the carriage continued to travel, the crowd started to thin. The buildings were gettingrger and more extravagant. Amon assumed they were entering the area for high-ss upants.


    The carriage stopped not long after. Madam Lin stepped down from the carriage followed by Amon. Amon found himself in front of arge estate, muchrger than the Hei n''s one. From the outside, he could see three main buildings of the estate, with several smaller ones around. The center one was thergest and highest, with twelve storeys in height. While the other two main buildings were of eight and nine storeys.


    Amon followed Madam Lin through the entrance. The servants bowed when Madam Lin passed by them. They then nced at Amon who was following behind and gave a frowning look. Amon ignored these lowly servants.


    When they arrived in the main hall of the foyer, a man in an elegant vestment greeted Madam Lin. "Sister! You have returned."


    "Lin Fong, where is father?" Madam Lin asked.


    <o>,m "He just went into cultivation seclusion," the man answered. "Big brother had just procured a spirit core of a rare beast from the ck market. He was hoping that father can use it to break through to the Lord stage. If he seeded, we will be the new overlord of this city. We can maybe even change the name of this city to Lin city then, hahaha."</o>


    As he wasughing, he noticed Amon. "Who is this stinky brat?" He asked.

 17 Chapter 17

    "He is the grandson of a friend who has just passed away," madam Lin replied.


    "Why is he here?"


    "Because I invited him."


    "Sister, you shouldn''t pick up stray dogs like this. Our n is not an orphanage," Lin Fong nced at Amon, expecting the kid to show anger or dissatisfaction. However, what he saw were indifference and coldness.


    As he was about to add another insult, a voice made him turn. "Auntie, I''ve just breakthrough into the Strength stage! All thanks to the Strength pill that you gave me."


    A teenage boy came in with a wide grin. He was slightly plump and looked eager to show off his improvement. He stopped when he noticed Amon, and uttered, "what''s a straggler doing here. Where are our guards? How could they let anyone enter this ce?"


    "Hehe, well said, nephew Zuyi," Lin Fong


    Before Madam Lin could respond, they heard amotion from the entrance. Lin Guo arrived with the other guards while holding someone in their arms. It was Wei Feng, the young master of the Wei n.


    Amon was impressed by Lin Guo''s effectiveness. He and the madam had just arrived in Lin estate and they had already managed to capture the young master this swift. Although of course, they had been traveling at high speed using their cultivations, while the madam and he had been traveling leisurely in the carriage. But to be able to capture Wei Feng with this speed, meaning they had already known where this young master was located.


    Wei Feng was brought to his knees inside the main hall, facing Madam Lin. His face was full of confusion and fear.


    "What is this?" Lin Fong asked.


    Ignoring his brother''s question, Madam Lin asked the bound Wei Feng, "Do you know your sin?"


    "I¡­ I have no idea what this is all about. Madam Lin, if I have offended you in any way, please know that it is unintentional. Allow me to show my sincerity in expressing an apology."


    Although the Wei n was in cahoots with the Lin n''s rival, the Lei n, it didn''t mean that they could offend the Lin n as they like. Their Wei n was only a medium n in the city. Unless the Lei n fully assisted them, they won''t be able to withstand the Lin n''s assault. Hence, Wei Feng acted with deference to Madam Lin.


    Wei Feng knew that he just needed to make sure he survived long enough until his family got news of his capture and came to demand his release. Better even if they involved the Lei n in this. If the Lei n demanded his release, he doubted the Lin n would tantly refuse unless they wanted to go into open conflict. That''s why he was resolved to just say anything to appease the Madam''s ire until his n came, even though he didn''t understand the reason for her ire.


    He was regretful that he was not with his n when the Lin people came for him, he was having his fun in the brothel. Otherwise, the Lin people wouldn''t have so easily taken him away.


    "Apology? How do you n to express your apology over thirteen lives?" Madam Lin asked coldly.


    "Thirteen lives?" Wei Feng asked, baffled.


    "You are still nning to deny?" Lin Guo, who was holding him down, uttered. "The thirteen lives of the Hei family, all butchered just because they denied Hei Xilia from you!"


    "What¡­?" Wei Feng was lost for words. "They died¡­?"


    "Still nning to act dumb?" Lin Guo tightened his grip, which caused pain to course through Wei Feng''s body.


    He cringed but still struggled to speak, "Wa¨Cwait...! I truly do not know about this incident! Hei Xilia was promised to me and she will be mine by next week. They didn''t deny her hands to me¡­!"


    "Do not try to refute, we have a witness here," Madam Lin said.


    "Wi¨Cwitness¡­?"


    Madam Lin pointed at Amon, "you never expect that you miss one person in your nefarious act now, do you? If your aplice, Hei Ning, has had the guts to look at her handiwork, perhaps this kid wouldn''t have escaped your deed as well."


    Wei Feng looked in Amon''s direction. He was confused at first, as if trying to recollect where he had seen the kid before. Then his eyes went wide with realization. "You¡­ You are the brat in the Hei house¡­"


    "That he is," Madam Lin said. "You thought you have got everyone now, did you? You look pretty surprised to see him here."<sub> </sub>


    "N¨Cno! I mean, I did see him before in Hei people''s house. It''s not that I''m surprised to see him alive. I''m simply surprised to have seen him here in the Lin n..."


    "Enough!" Madam Lin yelled, which prompted Lin Guo to send another painful grip on Wei Feng''s body. "If you dare to act, then you should be brave enough to admit it! A coward like you disgust me! Probably that Hei Ning who you used has been disposed of somewhere else, haven''t you?"


    "No¡­ no¡­ That''s not¡­"


    "You should know that Hei Pho of the Hei n is a friend of mine. Not only do you dare to butcher the family of my friend. You even have the atrocity to do it inside the Lin n''s turfs. Your atrocity is unforgivable. If we let you free, people will think our Lin n is afraid of your Wei n."


    "No, madam¡­ please! You have to believe me! I truly am not involved in what happened to the Hei n¡­"


    "Hmph! Enough with your whining. Kill him!" Madam Lin uttered.


    "No, no, no!" Wei Feng cried out when he heard themand.


    "Sister, wait!" Lin Fong called out. He then approached Madam Lin and whispered, "If you kill him, both their n and the Lei n wille looking for trouble¡­"


    "Are you afraid of them?" Madam Lin said to him, not bothering to lower her voice.


    "Of course not," Lin Fong replied. "It''s just why do we need the unnecessary trouble. At least let''s try to investigate the case further¡­"


    "I have a witness and proofs of his gifts to his coborator, what''s more to investigate?" Madam Lin said. "Letting him live will just show people that someone else can trample upon our Lin n''s dignity. Or are you saying the Lei n can freely have their people do whatever they like in our turfs?"


    "Of course not, I just¡­"


    "Speak no more!" Madam Lin cut him off before turning back to Wei Feng. "Kill him!" She gave the order again. Lin Guo was just about to crack the poor guy''s skull when another shout stopped him.


    "Wait!"


    Everyone turned to the source of the voice and was looking puzzlingly at Amon.


    Lin Fong was the first to regain hisposure and scolded, "A brat like you have no right to say anything. Just be quiet and stand aside!"


    Amonpletely ignored him and strode towards Madam Lin. He then said to her, "If his life is to be taken, I demand to do it myself. To appease the souls of those he had murdered, I believe my family will like me to be the one who enacts vengeance upon their murderer."


    Everyone was taken aback, including Madam Lin. Amon looked no more than six years old, but he was already asking to take another human''s life? Even Lin Zuyi, the plump nephew of Madam Lin, who was currently fifteen years of age, had not taken a life. He had taken the lives of spirit beasts before, but not human life. It was still another year before he was allowed to go out with the others to gather real-lifebat experience in a mission against other cultivators. Now this kid who was not half his age talking about killing a man, how could anyone take it seriously?


    "You homeless brat. Do you get off from acting tough?" Lin Zuyi scolded. "Just go back and drink milk. This is an issue for grown-ups!"


    Amon ignored Lin Zuyi''s ramblings as well. His eyes stared unblinking at Madam Lin. He originally didn''t expect the Madam to decide on taking Wei Feng''s life. He thought that she would give him a couple of beatings as punishment and then let him go. But since the death sentence had been given, Amon would not let the chance go.


    Madam Lin was feeling some strange emotion in her. She could feel the resolution from Amon''s stare. She knew the boy was not kidding. She knew he truly wanted to be the one that carried out the punishment.


    After a moment of consideration, Madam Lin said, "all right, go ahead."


    Amon gave a bow and said, "Thank you, ma''am." He then strutted to where Wei Feng was.


    "You little liar! How dare you nder me. Wait till my family gets to you, you will not wish that you are alive!" Wei Feng threw threats at Amon. He had no reservation about the kid as Amon was a nobody.


    "Brat, don''t underestimate a cultivator," Lin Guo said when Amon approached. "Even though his strength is repressed by my aura, he is still a peak Strength stage cultivator. His body is not something that someone who just entered the cultivation way can pierce through. You don''t expect me to just keep holding him here as you endlessly try to hack him to death now, do you?"


    "No need," Amon said. "Just a few seconds will be enough."

 18 Chapter 18

    "Hehe, a few seconds," Lin Guo sneered. "Kids this day just¡­"


    Lin Guo didn''t have the chance to finish his sentence as Amon had already taken action. A loud bang was heard, startling everyone in the hall. The Swan Dagger also suddenly appeared in Amon''s hand as the loud bang was heard. The dagger produced a streak of straight light speeding towards Wei Feng''s throat. Before anybody could register what had happened, Amon''s dagger had already prated deep into Wei Feng''s throat.


    If even Hei Gong''s weakened Martial realm body could be pierced by Amon''s Silent Swift Stab, what''s more of Wei Feng''s Human realm body? The dagger went in as if a hot knife through butter.


    Amon''s mouth neared Wei Feng''s ear as his dagger was still stuck in Wei Feng''s throat. "This is for kicking me, you shit," he whispered.


    Amon then ripped the dagger out violently, creating a shower of blood. Wei Feng''s body slumped as his eyes were wide staring at Amon. His mouth and opened throat were gushing with blood. He couldn''t believe his life would end at the hand of a small kid.


    Amon could have said it was for Hei Xilia, but that would be lying. He held no importance on others other than himself. If Wei Feng had not kicked him during his visit to the Hei mansion, he would have left him alone. The entire massacre would have been staged as the act of an unknown burr.


    Even as his consciousness faded, Wei Feng still could not connect Amon''s word with what he had done before. ''What kick?'' Was thest question in his mind.


    Everyone stared at the lifeless body of Wei Feng without any sound. Everything had happened so fast. They still could not believe that Amon had the strength to perform the killing blow when it suddenly happened before their eyes.


    Lin Guo was the most unsettled. He was directly in front of Amon. He could clearly see Amon''s eyes from when he started his attack till now. The kid''s eyes showed no feeling of remorse at all, only coldness. It was as if he was only doing what he routinely did.


    A disturbing thought fleeted through Lin Guo''s mind. What if the Wei Young master had indeed been telling the truth? What if the perpetrator of the Hei family massacre was actually¡­ No. As swift as the thought urred, he quickly brushed It away. If he entertained such a thought, then the one standing in front of him was not a kid, but an abomination, a demon in disguise. Such thought was too horrifying. If he told anyone that a six-year-old kid was responsible for those massacres, he would be aughingstock.


    Madam Lin, on the other hand, only saw Amon''s back. She did not see Amon''s expression. In her thought, Amon''s face was full of rage and fury as he avenged his family. She put a hand on his shoulder from the back, and said, "Hei Pho''s soul and the others will find peace now that you have avenged them."


    Amon simply gave a small nod without turning around to face her.


    "This¡­ this¡­ what a mess!" Lin Fong finally regained his thought and spoke out.


    "Look what you have done!" He said to Amon. "But this can be a good thing as well. If the Wei and Lei n came, we can just hand him this kid. This issue had nothing to do with us."


    "I''m the one that asked for his death," Madam Lin uttered.


    "Sister, don''t be so unreasonable. There is no need for us to take the heat now that an easy way out is avable to us."


    "Easy way out? Do you n to sacrifice my adopted son to those Wei and Lei ns?"


    "Considering the alternatives, this is the best option for us. I''m sure father and big brother¡­ Wait a minute, what did you say just now?


    "From now on, Hei Mo here is my adopted son. He will be a part of our Lin n," Madam Lin announced.


    Everyone was surprised by Madam Lin''s words, including Amon. His hope was that Madam Lin took pity on his situation and gave him work within this Lin n while he looked for an opportunity. Little did he know that his disy of ruthlessness had impressed Madam Lin, who had mistaken it as a fearless act in pursuing justice and upholding the duty to his in family. This had influenced Madam Lin into deciding to adopt him.


    "Are you willing to be my adopted son," She said to Amon.


    "Hei Mo greets mother," Amon replied and knelt, he certainly wasn''t about to let this golden opportunity go.


    "Good. From now on you will be called Lin Mo. You are now a part of this family."


    "Wait, wait!" Lin Fong called out. "Sister! Aren''t you being a bit rash? You can''t just let some unknown person into our family just like that!"


    "What unknown? I have known him for a long time. He had practically grown up only knowing me apart from his direct family," Madam Lin said.<sub> </sub>


    That was not wrong, Amon thought.


    "Auntie, I agree with uncle. You are being too rash in this matter," Lin Zuyi joined in. "Although you can''t bear a child, there is no need¡­"


    "Zuyi!" Lin Fong called out.


    Lin Zuyi seemed to realize his blunder. He looked apologetically at Madam Lin who gave him a cold look. Madam Lin''s inability to give birth had been a taboo in the n. If it was a servant who had been uttering the sentence, the servant would have been taken outside andshed.


    "Follow me," Madam Lin said to Amon. She then walked towards the inner part of the mansion. Amon followed closely behind.


    "Sister!" Lin Fong called out again, but he was ignored by Madam Lin.


    *


    Madam Lin took Amon through several corridors, rooms, and gardens. The Hei mansion was truly nothingpared to this Lin''s one. Other than the size alone, each room was fully decorated and furnished. Servants were abundant as they clean every room and tend to every garden.


    They arrived at arge courtyard with neatly arranged gardens and housingplexes surrounding it. There was also a small pond on one side of the courtyard. Several young female servants were there. When they saw Madam Lin, they quickly came to pay their respect.


    Madam Lin introduced Amon to them. Telling them that he was a young master of this ce now and that they should serve him as they did hers.


    She then brought Amon to one of the houses overlooking the courtyard. "This will be your house from now on. You can rest here. If there is nothing important, don''t wander off. Stay within this section of the mansion. This section is entirely mine, so no one would dare toe trouble you if you stay here."


    When Madam Lin was about to leave him, Amon called out, "Mother, wait."


    Madam Lin turned back, smiling. She seemed to enjoy being called a mother. Amon said to him, "What grandma usually made for you, I can do it as well."


    Madam Lin was silent, Amon''s offer waspletely unexpected. "You know what kind of drug she usually made for me?" She asked.


    "I don''t know its use, but I know the recipe and how to mix it. As long as you can supply me with ingredients and a ce to work. I can concoct it for you. It''s the least I can do to repay your kindness."


    Madam Lin said, "ok. Your house had two floors, you can use the first one to make the medicine. I will have someone clear it out for your usage. Someone will alsoe to take note of what ingredients and tools you need. That person will buy them for you."


    After a brief pause, she continued, "if you can be as good as your grandma in medicine, you might be of use to our n. It will be easier for my family to ept you."


    "As long as I can be useful to mother, that is already enough."


    Madam Lin smiled widely, he patted Amon''s head. "Good son," she said. "I will leave you to your rest. I stayed in thergest house over there. You can juste to find me if you need anything."


    "Your son thank you for everything," Amon said with a bow.


    Madam Lin nodded with satisfaction and then left.


    <o>,m Amon watched her departing figure as he organized his thoughts. Repaying her kindness was just a saying to please her. If he was given a ce to practice medicine, he could continue his study on poison. The 101 Primal Poison tome was especially enticing to study, but he would need an appropriate ce and ess to ingredients to do his experiment. He could request these ingredients in addition to the ingredients required for Madam Lin''s drug.</o>


    Luckily he had decided to peek at Hei Pho''s recipe and observed in secret when Hei Pho was concocting Madam Lin''s drug. He was honest when he said he did not know what the drug was for, he just understood that it was more akin to poison than medicine, but from his knowledge after studying under Hei Pho, he knew Madam Lin''s drug was not a strong poison. Rather mild actually. He had no idea what its exact use was for.

 19 Chapter 19

    Now that he was left alone, he went inside his new house. His house also had a small courtyard, it is good to have a private courtyard to practice his martial arts. He entered his house. As Madam Lin had informed, there were two floors. The first one was a guest hall, which he could refurbish into an alchemist room. He went up and found a bedroom and a balcony.


    After being satisfied with his living condition, he went back to the entrance of his private courtyard. He took a string and a bell out of his Space Ring. These were some of the things he had taken from Hei''s mansion. He set the string and the bell into a contraption so that the bell would ring every time the gate to his courtyard was opened. This way, he could hear if someone came to visit. He had a ck Aetherium Stone, which was considered a luxury even amongst noble. He did not want to be caught unaware while cultivating using it. The Lin n might forcefully take it for themselves if they knew he had such a precious cultivating material.


    Although those of the Martial realm had the ability to detect Aether fluctuation, those of the lower stages had a limited detection range. Even if those with high cultivation had somehow detected it, he had read from the books that the fluctuations caused by these Aetherium Stones were almost simr to the fluctuation caused by a good cultivation art. It was fine if someone thought he had a good cultivation art. The worse the other side could do was ask him to share the art, he could simply say that it was a legacy of the Hei family and he could not share them. They could not forcefully take a cultivation art away as they could with an Aetherium Stone.


    After he was done setting the contraption, he started practicing his martial arts, Silent Swift Stab. All his martial skills were in the skilled mastery now. He decided to focus on this dagger art first as it was the strongest killing move he had. He nned to have this art as the first one to reach expert mastery.


    While he was practicing, the servants that Madam Lin said would help him rearrange his ground floor into an alchemy room arrived. He instructed them on how he would like the room to be. He also handed them a list of tools and ingredients which he had written down beforehand. Some of the basic tools he had taken from Hei Pho''s inventory. Considering Lin n''s wealth, he should be able to get the more expensive tools.


    He also had many basic or exotic ingredients from Hei Pho, but he still asked the servants to purchase more as his experimentation would require lots of trial and error.


    It took the servants the entire afternoon under his supervision to set up the room. While the ones that went out to buy the things on his list only came back a day after. Not everything on his list was procured, they were either not avable in the market or were too expensive. Although Madam Lin had adopted him as her child, he doubted that he was given free rein to purchase whatever he wanted. He was sure that it had been through a scrutinize. This didn''t bother him.


    *


    Amon spent his days in the Lin mansion cultivating at night, practicing his martial arts in the morning, and doing alchemical experimentation based on the 101 Primal Poison tome in the afternoon. He was left alone in his routine until the third day when his bell contraption rang and announced that someone had visited. He came out to find a middle-aged man standing at the door observing his bell contraption.


    When the man saw Amoning out, he said, "that was some fancy mechanism you made. Are you afraid to be caught unaware when someonees to visit? That usually indicates that you are hiding something."


    "Aren''t we all hiding something?" Amon replied. "I don''t want to be caught unaware while I''m in the middle of masturbation or when I do something indecent to the female servants."


    The middle-aged man was slightly taken aback by Amon''s retort. "You are one interesting little kid," he said.


    "In whose honor do I receive this visitation?" Amon asked.


    The middle-aged man smiled. "You have to learn to address me properly if you are to be my adopted son," he said.


    "You are Madam Lin''s husband?" Amon asked.


    "I am one of them," the middle-aged man replied. "One of the most senior if not the most favorite, I must say."


    One of them? That hag had more than one husband? Amon was astonished.


    "Well, if I have many adopted fathers, I am confused as to what to call you then. Should I call you the most senior father?" Amon asked.


    "Hahaha, you are funny," The manughed. "You can simply call me by my name, Lin Dong. It is weird for me as well if being called father by a kid I just met."


    "All right, Mister Lin Dong, to what do I earn the pleasure of your visit?" Amon asked.<sub> </sub>


    Lin Dong did not immediately reply. He gave Amon a meaningful smile. Amon had met many people with questionable characters in his past life to be able to read that smile and know that the guy did note with good intentions.


    "I see you have settled in quite nicely here, how do you find your amodation?" Lin Dong asked.


    "Satisfactory," Amon answered with the same fake smile as his conversation partner.


    "Good, good. Now that you have gotten used to your living condition, you should get to know your living associates. It''s not right to keep to yourself, such solitary habit breeds bad gossip."


    "Aren''t we getting to know each other now?"


    "Hahaha, as I said, you are funny. All the children in this mansion had a certain kind of initiation. Call it a rite of passage if you like. If you want yourself to be acknowledged as a member of the Lin n, it is obligatory for you to go through with it."


    Amon did not believe one word of it. Yet, he was in someone else''s territory. He had to y by their rules even if he didn''t like it. One thing he was depending on, was even though these people didn''t wee him and treated him unfavorably, he believed they would not go so far as to endanger his life, out of fear of Madam Lin. From what he had seen, Madam Lin held a rather prestigious position within the n. That would be the only protection he counted on for the time being, until he grew strong enough that is.


    "What kind of rite is that?" Amon asked.


    "Come with me and I will show you," Lin Dong said and walked out the door. He looked back when he saw Amon did not follow. "It will give a bad impression to the others if you are unwilling," Lin Dong said.


    Amon gave him the fake smile and said, "sure, I''lle."


    The two of them walked out of the current courtyardplex and went to another part that looked like a training ground. It was a wide-open courtyard with stone flooring. There were many youths or even young adults training there. The training was done properly, the ones who trained there were divided by age groups and each group had an instructor. Amon was rather impressed by the scale of the Lin n. It held so many people and they were rather well organized, it was not strange for them to be one of the overlords of the city.


    Amon saw that the youngest within these training groups were around eight or ten years of age. He wondered if he would be incorporated into one of the groups that trained here in the future.


    Lin Dong brought him to one of the buildings by the side of the training ground. Inside was arge hall, probably another extension of the training ground but with an enclosed setting. Inside, there were five children who looked around eight or ten years old, Four boys and one girl. They should be grouped amongst the youngest children he saw training outside.


    The five were chattering when Amon and Lin Dong entered. One of them noticed the two and let the others know. The five then looked at the approaching two with wide grins.


    I guess those five will be the instruments to my rite of passage, Amon thought.


    Lin Dong came to those five and introduced Amon to them. "This is Lin Mo, the adopted son of Madam Lin."


    "I guess desperation can cause someone to do unreasonable things," one of the five said. "Even a straggler like him can enter our n because of that. Uncle Lin dong, it''s all your fault, you should have worked harder to give Madam Lin a child." The five did not bother to pretend, they sneered at Amon as if looking at their new ything.


    Amon simply gave them a nd smile.

 20 Chapter 20

    "It is indeed my fault, sigh," Lin Dong was ying along with them. Then to Amon, he said, "This here is your seniors, how about you pay them respects?"


    "Lin Mo greets five seniors," Amon gave them a salute.


    Although Amon greeted them respectfully, they did not feel d. Instead, they felt annoyed. They had clearly insulted him but the kid acted as if their words were empty air.


    "He was either too dull or trying to act brave," one of the five said.


    "Let me introduce these five," Lin Dong said. "This is the eldest of the group, Lin Xiaolong, next to him is his brother, Lin Xiaoying. This girl is the second oldest, Lin Rong. These other two are Lin Bahu and Lin Wuli."


    Amon greeted them by name one by one,pletely impassive to their condescending looks.


    Lin Xiaolong, the supposed leader of the group, felt insulted by Amon''s calm expression. He said impatiently, "Now that we got the introduction out of the way. Let''s get on with this initiation."


    He then came close to Amon and said, "kid, you have two options. One, give us whatever is in that Space Ring on your finger, as a show of appreciation to your seniors. Or two, fight one of us, as a show that you deserve to be counted as a member of the Lin n."


    Heh, so trouble still came despite him ying humble, Amon thought amusingly. "I see. Well, in that case, the choice is obvious then," he replied.


    "Despite your annoying look, I see that you are not a fool," Lin Xialong said after hearing Amon''s reply. "Hurry up and give me that ring. Although I doubt a kid from a backwater family like yours has anything of value. It is just to show your appreciation, anything inside will do."


    "Oh?" Amon gave them a bewildered expression. "I think you have misunderstood me. What I meant was that it is clear that I choose the fighting option."


    Lin Xiaolong frowned at him, before bursting intoughter. The others alsoughed loudly.


    "I think my ears heard wrongly, Xiaoying, can you repeat what you heard?" Lin Wuli asked with a ridiculing tone.


    "He said he wants to fight," Lin Xiaoying answered with a stifledugh.


    "He truly is a kid from the backwater," Lin Rongmented with giggles.


    Lin Xiaolong gave a sign for the others to stopughing, he then said to Amon, "Kid, you probably fought against the other vige kids around your out-of-the-way neighborhood. This ce is not a ce where you do silly fights. I heard you have started your cultivation path already, but how old are you? Six? You have only started cultivating for one year, do you know how long all of us here have cultivated?"


    "You really talk a lot, aren''t you?" Amon responded.


    Lin Dong and the four kids behind were wide eyes. Lin Xiaolong''s frown returned with a darker expression. He never thought that this little backwater kid would have the guts to provoke him. He simply thought of Amon as not understanding the situation so he tried to exin it to Amon. Who would have thought that the kid would retort back with such rudeness?


    "Are you looking to die, kid?" Lin Xiaolong asked with a grim voice.


    "Are we still fighting or not?" Amon asked back.


    Lin Xiaolong took a deep breath, he was trying to hold back his anger. Lin Dong shook his head and uttered, "A kid who ims to be fearless has never met a hungry tiger."


    "Hmph! Big brother, if he wants to fight. Let me do it! You are at peak mortal stage. You will only sully your hands if you fight him. Let me be the one to teach him a lesson," Lin Xiaoying offered.


    "Brother Xiaoying, even you are too good for him," Lin Wuli said. "I am the weakest amongst us five. I am usually the one who got bullied. Now, I have the chance to bully someone, how can you not let me?"


    Lin Xiaolong turned to Lin Wuli. He then nodded, "Hm, all right. Wuli, you teach him a lesson. Although you almost enter the intermediate mortal stage, you are still at the beginning mortal stage. So you can be said to be at the same level as him. But please know that he had just started his cultivation not long ago, try not to be too hard on him. Otherwise, Madam Lin wille to demand an answer from us."<sub> </sub>


    "Do not worry about Madam Lin, as long as the kid is still breathing, I can smooth things over," Lin Dong said.


    "Then we will have to trouble uncle Lin Dong," Lin Xiaolong said with augh.


    "And remember, no weapons. Otherwise, not even I can protect you," Lin Dong warned.


    "Come on, uncle Dong. Do you seriously think we will need a weapon?"


    They allughed again. Amon simply looked at them with a faint smile. It was like watching a group of clowns. It''s not that he underestimated them though. He had experienced the wonder of cultivation. Although these kids did not have the battle experiences and killing instinct as he had, the gap in cultivation could crush all that. No amount of battle experiences could cross the gap when the difference in power was too wide, and such was the case when one had different levels in cultivation.


    He did not expect to win, but he was curious as to how strong he was inparison to others. All the fights he ever had was simply spars with Hei Gong, he never truly fought someone of a simr level. Now he would get the chance. How could he not get excited?


    Wuli came forward with a smug look. He walked with a swagger towards Amon. He stopped right in front of Amon. He was eight years of age, the youngest amongst the five Lin cadets, but his body size was not smaller than the eldest of the group, Lin Xiaolong, who was ten years of age. Standing side by side with Amon, it was like the depiction of David and Goliath.


    Amon''s body was by no means small for his age. The thing was, they all thought he was six years old while he was still four years old. His body was considered big for a four-year-old kid, but it was an average size for a six-year-old. This body size further added to the misconception of his age. Still,pared to the eight-year-old Lin Wuli, Amon was small.


    Hence, Lin Wuli never considered this to be a proper fight, despite Amon being at the same cultivation level as him. Even at the same beginning mortal stage, there could be a huge difference in power. Lin Wuli was at the edge of crossing over to the intermediate mortal stage already, so his current form could be said as the strongest within the beginning mortal stage. Added to their body condition, he was an eight years old child whose body had been tempered with medicine since childbirth, while Amon was a backwater kid who knew no such luxury. Amon''s body should only be tempered by standard cultivation which started one year ago. Thus, the two of them were on apletely different level.


    So, he thought.


    He looked at Amon with a condescending look. "Hey, vige kid. How about I give you a handicap? I will let you punch me one time. Or else, people will say that I bully you."


    Amon frowned. Handicap? What the heck was this buffoon talking about? What he wanted was for him to test his current limit. This guy giving a handicap would simply ruin all that.


    Lin Wuli saw the frown as dissatisfaction, he said, "You think I am being unfair? You are such a greedy kid. Fine! I will let you hit me three times. How about it? Don''t say that I never give you a chance."


    He put both his hands behind his back. "You can hit me any time, but don''t make me wait too long. If you didn''t use your three hits after ten breaths, then consider them forfeited. I will make my move."


    Amon clenched his right hand into a knuckle. He looked at Lin Wuli and asked, "Are you sure about this?"


    Lin Wuliughed hard. "Am I sure¡­? Haha! You truly are hrious. Come on, now. We don''t have all day."


    "Hehe, that backwater kid, he probably used to fight with other vige kids using punches. Does he think a normal kid with no martial art like him can hurt our superiorly cultivated bodies?" Lin Rong mocked and giggled from the back.


    "Fine then, I will do my first punch," Amon dered.


    "Go for it, kid," Lin Wuli said with contempt.


    Amon stomped his feet on the ground as he turned his waist and brought all the weight and force of his body onto the tip of his fist and punched straight. He was executing Bone Shattering Shadow Fist while incorporating the boxing method of his past life. The fist generated an explosive sound as it shot out. A shockwave was created as the forcepressed the air around the fist.


    Before the fist even touched Lin Wuli''s body, Lin Wuli could feel his waist caved in. Soon cracking sound was heard as he felt an electric jolt from beside his sr plexus. His mind registered at once that the bones of his lower ribcage had been broken. His thought and consternation onlysted for a short moment before the pain took over as his body bent backward and shot back. He was thrown around six meters away before falling to the ground and rolled a couple more meters on the ground.


    Lin dong and the four Lin cadets looked back at Lin Wuli who was t on his stomach, moaning and groaning on the floor.

 21 Chapter 21

    The four remaining Lin cadets continued to watch Lin Wuli who was on the floor. They didn''t know what to make of it.


    Lin Dong was the first one to snap out of the trance and ran to Lin Wuli. He turned him over and found out that the boy had fainted. Lin Wuli''s mouth was foaming with a trail of blooding out of it. He made some checks on the body and was relieved that the boy was still breathing. He quickly took out a small medicine bottle and poured it down his throat. The medicine should help some of the wounds inside his body, Lin Dong thought. He also channeled some of his aether into the boy''s body to help alleviate the injury.


    This group of boys was under his care. If they were injured, he would not escape responsibility. He gritted his teeth with anger as he looked at Amon.


    "Huh? I thought you all said that your cultivated body is supposed to be tough?" Amon spoke.


    Hearing his words, the other four turned to him. They felt chagrined by his words.


    "Y¨Cyou¡­! What kind of trick did you pull?" Lin Xiaoying yelled out.


    "Trick? It is called a martial art if I am not wrong," Amon replied.


    "You¡­ howe a backwater kid like you knows a martial art?" Lin Xiaoying asked again.


    "The right question should be why shouldn''t I know one? Perhaps you Lin kids had been too sheltered in this secluded mansion of yours that you didn''t know other houses have martial arts as well. What is that expression called? Oh, yes, like a frog in a well."


    Amon was not sure if this world had the same saying as his old one, but seeing their darkened expression, he assumed they caught what he was trying to say.


    "Well said, then let me experience what you who are from outside our well have to offer," Lin Xiaolong said as he took a step forward.


    Lin Xiaoying came forward and stopped him. "Brother, as I have said, you will only sully your hands if you fight him. Let me be the one to teach this arrogant kid a lesson."


    Lin Xialong did not reply but he didn''t take another step. Instead, he folded his hands and stood his ground. His brother took it as him giving his permission. Lin Xiaoying then approached Amon and stood before him as Lin Wuli had done.


    He gave Amon a contemptible look and said, "I am an intermediate mortal stage, don''t think just because you know a little bit of¡­"


    Before he could finish his words, Amon''s right hand shot out and pped his face. The act had been so sudden and so unexpected that it caught him off guard. The p caused no wound but his pride was certainly injured. His bloodshot eyes bulged as he stared at Amon in fury.


    "Heh? You kids talk too much. Too many weak spots," Amon ridiculed.


    "You!" Lin Xiaoying hunched down as crackles of power rose in his vicinity. Amon watched with amazement as his opponent''s skin slowly turn dry and hard as if the skin of a tree. It turned grey and stiff and had cracks everywhere.


    "You will pay for this!" Lin Xiaoying screamed as he lunged forward.


    This is more like it, Amon eximed in his mind as he watched his opponent''s movement with all his concentration. His opponent was fast, much faster than he was in his previous life. In fact, much faster than anyone he had ever seen in his previous life, apart from those movies which featured superhumans with abnormal speed. Still, his current body even though was tiny, was also stronger and faster than his past self.


    His instinct kicked in as he predicted his opponents'' move. He dodged to the side and grabbed a part of his opponent''s body that moved past him and used his opponent''s own strength to perform a judo throw. His opponent''s body spun and was mmed hard onto the floor.


    While his opponents were stunned by the sudden reversal. Amon punched down at Xiaoying''s chest with Bone Shattering Shadow Fist. A loud crack was heard as his fist connected with Lin Xiaoying''s body. The floor beneath Xiaoying''s body cracked and caved. However, Amon did not revel in this sess. Instead, he quickly shot back just as Xiaoying''s arms shot out to grab him. Amon narrowly evaded the catch.<sub> </sub>


    Despite his sess, Amon was already used to paying attention to his opponent''s eyes and never making an assumption. When his Bone Shattering Shadow Fist connected, he saw the pain in his opponent''s eyes, but there was still rity, meaning that his punch did not cause enough injury. Hence, he had decided to immediately retreat.


    Lin Xiaoying stood up as he watched Amon. There was no contempt in his gaze anymore. It was reced by wariness instead.


    Amon was also astonished. That tree bark skin art that his opponent used was certainly a good defensive art. It was not like his Hardened Bronze Body which required continuous concentration to maintain while still giving superb defense.


    ''Yes, this is more like it,'' Amon thought. A grin subconsciously appeared on his face.


    A grin that caused Lin Xiaoying''s heart to burn with rage. "You think you are good because younded one punch on me?!" He screamed, which then turned into a long bellow.


    As he was bellowing, his hand experienced a transformation. His fingers became elongated and his nails protruded out and sharpened, shaping into bizarre w-like hands.


    Was that also a martial art? Amon was astonished. There was an art that could utilize the aether to transform one''s physiology?


    Before he could analyze the situation, Lin Xiaoying had made his move. He darted forward and swung his arm, wing at Amon. His w-like hand left a white trail as if it cut the air itself. Amon didn''t stay and let himself be a wing dummy, he backstepped to evade the attack.


    Lin Xiaoying continued forward, sending out one relentless w after another, non-stop. Lin Xiaoying''s speed was faster than Amon''s due to his higher cultivation. Amon had to concentrate all his instinct to predict Lin Xiaoying''s attacks before they were executed, and enacted proper dodge for each one. Amon''s feet continuously shifted, profoundly evading one attack over another by a hairbreadth.


    However, it was still impossible to bridge the difference in speed with just skill. Lin Xiaoying''s wed hand finally reached Amon''s abdomen. Amon knew that he could not avoid this attack. His body turned bronze just before his opponent''s w arrive. A loud ng was heard as Amon''s shirt was torn. Sparks were seen where Lin Xiaoying''s w hit Amon''s stomach. Amon was thrown away from the impact.


    Droplets of blood fell to the floor. Amon rose and saw behind his torn shirt that there were four long red lines on his belly. Despite activating Hardened Bronze Body, it still could not mitigate all of Lin Xiaoying''s attacks. Luckily though, the art had protected him enough that the wounds were not deep. If he had not used the Hardened Bronze Body in time, his innards might have been all over the floor already.


    He had not been wearing the self-adjusting chainmail as it caused him difort when he was training. He had always trained barechested to allow his sweat to flow freely. He also did not think that there was any danger inside the Lin mansion that prompted him to wear the chainmail.


    "Xiaoying! Do not kill!" Lin Dong warned. Lin Dong also realized the fact that if Amon had not used his defensive art, he could have died already.


    "Hmph! So you also have a defensive art?" Lin Xiaoying said with a harrumph. It was not clear if he had heard Lin Dong''s reminder.


    "Can''tpare to you. Your arts that turned you into a monster are truly impressive," Amon replied with a smile. Such life and deathbat was what he lived for in his previous life.


    Being called a monster irritated Xiaoying. But looking at his current body, no one could deny it. His defensive art had turned him into a weird grey-skinned creature while his offensive art turned his hands into monstrous beast ws. Yet, what annoyed him the most was Amon''s smile. "You can still smile? I will rip that smile out of your face!" He roared.


    Lin Xiaoying lunged forward. His right arm swung down, intending to w Amon''s face.


    Amon had experienced Lin Xiaoying''s moves in theirst exchange. Despite the boy''s superior strength and speed, his moves were monotonous. He simply swung his arms with the same motion again and again. Amon perfectly read the arm''s trajectory. His punch shot out, hitting Lin Xiaoying''s wrist when it was on the way down, stopping its advance. Then Amon''s other arm punched out, hitting Lin Xiaoying''s armpit.


    Each punch was executed with Bone Shattering Shadow Fist. Amon''s fist art had reached skilled mastery, which allowed him to perform it easily under any situation. Despite his protective skin, Lin Xiaoying still felt the punch when itnded on his weak points.


    Amon did not stay still after his sessful hit. His body continued moving as he moved to Lin Xiaoying''s back while the boy was still being paralyzed by his punches. He sent another punch onto the back of Lin Xiaoying''s knee, causing it to buckle.

 22 Chapter 22

    Lin Xiaoying''s body lowered due to his one leg being down. He then felt another jolt at the back of his neck. He started to feel dizzy, but he forced himself to strike back. He swiped at his back using his w, which was stopped again when he felt another hit on his attacking wrist. He then felt several rapid punches on his back. Each punch was followed by a loud cracking sound that signified Amon''s signature art.


    Lin Xiaoying gritted his teeth. Despite being of higher cultivation stage, despite being of higher born, howe he got yed like this? Howe he got beaten up helplessly? He could not ept it. He would not ept it! He roared as he endured the pain and forced himself to stand up. He turned back and swiped his w with all his strength, determined to rip apart this kid''s face.


    But his monstrous hand wed empty air. Before he knew it, he felt his throat getting another punch. He choked. His thick hard skin produced by his defensive art was still protecting him. Yet, the cumtive injury was gaining on him, not to mention most of the punches hit his weak points.


    While he was paralyzed by the choke punch, he heard another of that cracking sound. Then he felt a strong pressure on his lower jaw. He was forced to look up as he felt his body getting lifted from the ground.


    Amon had used his fist art in an uppercut. Without stopping, he executed, again and again, the Bone Shattering Shadow Fist. Again in the throat, then the chest, the sr plexus, the stomach, then the groin. He felt his supply of aether depleted. He had been continuously using Bone Shattering Shadow Fist non-stop. Using the art in realbat was considerately different than in practice. He had less time to prepare and had to adjust continuously, thus the energy consumption also increased.


    Lin Xiaoying fell to his knees. Amon raised his fist. He deduced he only had enough energy for one more execution of the Bone Shattering Shadow Fist. But looking at his opponent''s empty gaze, one more punch should be enough. He brought the fist down to his opponent''s forehead.


    A loud crack was heard when Amon''s fist hit a hard surface. However, it was not Lin Xiaoying''s forehead. It was a palm. Amon''s strongest punch had been stopped by the open palm of Lin Xiaolong.


    Lin Xiaolong nced at his brother, who seemed to have lost consciousness and fell on his back to the floor. His gaze returned to Amon, whose mouth when seeing Lin Xiaoying had fallen, was grinning again.


    "You bastard!" Lin Xiaolong scolded. Amon then felt a strong impact on his face. His body made a backflip due to the force.


    When Amonnded on the ground, he saw from a nce another two came to his side, Lin Bahu and Lin Rong. The three of them sent punches and kicks his way. Amon had run out of energy already. Even if he still did, he doubted he would be able to do anything against thisbined assault. He wrapped his arms around his head and endured the beating as best he could.


    The three continued to beat him up relentlessly while Amon gritted his teeth and took all those beatings. Still, his gritting mouth was curved upward in a smile. First, because of his victory over Lin Xiaoying. Second, because he could taste the heat of battle again. Third, it had been a long time since he received a beating, including the time in his past life. He savored the pain even when he felt some of his bones were starting to crack.


    "Stop! Stop! I said stop!"


    A strong pressure came upon all of them apanying the shout. Forcing the three heated Lin children to a halt. The three looked back at Lin Dong.


    Lin Dong had released his aura to intimidate them. He was a Transformation stage cultivator. The pressure he released could not be overlooked by these children who were all still at the Mortal stage.


    Amon who was half-conscious could also feel the weight of this pressure. He surmised that if he had to fight someone of that level, he wouldn''t even be able to move under such pressure. Even technique and determination were useless against such a gap in strength. He put a conviction to increase the pace of his cultivation.


    "This is enough," Lin Dong uttered. He felt perturbed. He simply brought Amon here to teach the kid a lesson about who was boss. He had been irritated by Madam Lin''s action of adopting a child behind his back. She had always done whatever she liked and yes, he was only one of her husbands, but he was the most senior. She used to consult with him about most things. So, he had felt offended for not being asked about his opinion when Amon was adopted.


    He had picked these bunch as he knew these five are the bullies amongst Lin''s young cadets. But now, one was seriously wounded, while another had been beaten into unconsciousness. The parents of these two would certainly be furious. Although Amon would most likely be the target of their me, a responsibility would also be demanded of him. After all, these five were under his charge at the moment.


    He looked at Amon with hidden anger. He wished he could beat the kid into a cripple himself, but if so, Madam Lin would be the one that came to demand responsibility. And that would be even worse.


    "He had been beaten enough, take these two to the infirmary," Lin Dong told the three.


    Lin Xiaolong looked at Amon again, he bent down and forcefully ripped Amon''s space ring from his finger. With his stronger cultivation, he broke into the space inside the Space Ring and inspect its content.


    "Asshole!" He cursed. A few books and weapons were extracted from inside the Space Ring and ttered on the floor, while ten aer stones were held in his hand. "You went against us for these pathetic junks?"<sub> </sub>


    He made another kick at Amon as he threw the Space Ring back at him.


    "Xiaolong, I said enough!" Lin Dong yelled.


    "Hmph!" Lin Xiaolong harrumphed and said to the other two. "You two bring them!"


    Lin Bahu went and picked Lin Xiaoying up while Lin Rong helped Lin Wuli to walk. Lin Dong watched them leave with aplicated feeling. When he turned his attention to Amon, Amon was lying on his back looking up at him. Blood was seen from his mouth and nose, yet the kid was still smiling. The crazy kid was smiling while staring at him.


    For some reason, it made Lin Dong shiver. He dismissed the feeling and said, "You go back yourself." Then walked out of the hall.


    Amon watched Lin Dong''s back until he was gone from view. He then looked at the ceiling. Not long after, heughed.


    *


    He started walking back after a few minutes of rest. He picked up all the weapons and books which had been called junks by Lin Xiaolong and returned them to the Space Ring that was now back on his finger again. He touched the ck Space Ring hidden behind his shirt on his chest. The one on his finger was only a distraction. If someone thought they already knew where he stored his treasures, it was unlikely for them to further search his body.


    Some gazes were on him when they saw him walking by with a limp and a torn shirt with blood all over his face. Most were unsettled when they saw such a kid could still grin.


    When he arrived back at his housingplex. He went up to his bedroom. He took out a recovery medicine from his ck Space Ring. It was one of the medicines from Hei Pho''s collection. He drank the medicine and then applied another recovery ointment on his many wounds. He then sat cross-legged and cultivated to allow the aether to replenish his energy core and elerate his recovery progress.


    *


    He continued to rest and cultivate until he heard a ringing sound from his bell. He opened his eyes upon the intrusion and got up.


    He felt pain all over his body from this action. It seemed that his body was still far from full recovery.


    He heard some footstepsing up the stairs. It was light and steady. He recognized these footsteps. He rxed and sat back down.


    Madam Lin''s figure soon appeared in his bedroom.


    "I heard you get into a bit of argument with the other children," Madam Lin said as she looked at Amon''s condition. Amon had wiped the blood on his face and changed into a clean cloth, but the wounds from the beatings were still apparent.


    "I see that you took quite a beating," She said and took a seat in a chair opposite Amon.


    "You should see the other guy. The other two guys to be precise," Amon replied.


    "Oh, I do. In fact, I got a visit from their parents," Madam Lin said.

 23 Chapter 23

    ''Is that why youe? After leaving me alone all this while?'' Amon thought. But he was notining. He preferred it this way. It would be more troublesome if he had to y son too often.


    "They did? I thought they said the fight was an initiation that was customary to Lin children? A kind of rite of passage. Why did they bring parents toin about this customary ceremony?"


    "That is amusing. From where did you hear that?" Madam Lin asked.


    "From an uncle called Lin Dong. He imed to be one of your husbands," Amon answered.


    Madam Lin frowned hearing that.


    "Is he truly your husband? Should I call him dad?" Amon asked.


    "There is no one that you need to call dad. I am your only parent," Madam Lin replied. She then stood up and took out two bottles. He gave them to Amon. "Use these. One is a recovery medicine, the other is an ointment to apply to your wound. You should heal up soon with these."


    Amon epted the bottles. He observed them and found them to be of higher qualitypared to the ones he had used.


    "Don''t worry about those children''s parents. I will smooth things over with them. You just get some rest," Madam Lin said.


    "Thank you for your concern, mother," Amon said with a bow.


    Madam Lin nodded with a smile. She seemed to be hesitating for a bit before she asked, "Is it true that you''ve beaten up Lin Wuli and Lin Xiaoying using tricks?"


    "Was that what they say?"


    "They said that you cheated and took advantage of them."


    "Is that so? Do you believe I can pull tricks against those boys who are older and have higher cultivation than me?"


    "It''s the same unbelievability to say that you defeat them fair and square."


    "Hehe, fair enough. Well, the fact is I do beat them and then they beat me back. Is it important to discuss how the process was? It''s not like it matters what I say, they won''t believe me over those children anyway."


    "I will," Madam Lin said.


    "Then I beat those two fair and square. Well, as a matter of fact, that idiot Lin Wuli allowed me a free punch. So it''s not truly a fair fight, but that was his own fault."


    Madam Lin smiled again. "All right, take some rest then. Do not worry about them."


    "Thank you, mother," Amon said again, which Madam Lin replied with another nod before leaving.


    Heh, he scoffed in his mind. Plenty of time to deal with those kidster.


    *


    Amon spent the next day recuperating and cultivating. He did not practice his martial arts or alchemy. Only after the second day when he felt his body had healed better that he spent some time experimenting with alchemy. He still did not practice martial arts until he felt that his body was healthy enough. He knew straining his body would instead cause further harm. His body was still a four-year-old kid''s, after all, it was still in the process of growing.


    He had concocted Madam Lin''s drug a few days ago, but he did not give it to her yet. He would give it the next time she visited. He wanted to give the illusion that he was struggling in creating these drugs, so he could ask for more ingredients for his trials.<sub> </sub>


    He had made headway at deciphering the first few pages of the 101 Primal Poison tome. The content was indeed profound. He was sure now that even Hei Pho did notprehend the content of this tome. The poison expertise described inside was much moreplex than what he saw in Hei Pho''s skill. He deduced that Hei Pho must have continued to try to study this tome without sess.


    One of those first pages had especially caught his attention, as it did not describe a poison recipe. Instead, it taught the method of how to inscribe poison energy onto an object. If he could apply this method to his daggers, they would be much more deadly.


    The method was not the same as applying a poison salve onto a weapon in which the poison effectiveness would diminish upon time and usage, but it was directly infusing the poison into the being of the object. Allowing it to be one with the object. In other words, the poison effect would be permanent. The amount of poison he delivered with each sh or thrust would not diminish over time.


    He immediately focused all his attention on understanding this poison infusion method. After several days of studying, he sort of caught the idea behind this poison infusion method. He first had to gather the aether into a poisonpound and guide the aether to carry the element of the poison. Once the aether had been transformed into a poison element, then he could begin to imbue that transformed aether into the object.


    However, to do that he found out that he would need to learn the basics of engraving. Just like how his Swan Dagger was an engraved weapon. An engraved weapon was made by infusing aether into a weapon, but the aether used for this engraving was the natural aether. While the one he was studying was using poison aether. The engraving process, on the other hand, was more or less the same.


    Learning this, he went and called for one of the maids. He asked which part of this Lin estate housed a collection of books. The maids informed him that each head of the houses possessed their own collection, but the mostplete one would be at Lin Tome Chamber. It was where the Lin n stored all their martial art, arcane art, and cultivation art books. However, not everyone could gain ess to this chamber. There was a keeper that guard this chamber, only people with permission were granted ess.


    Asking to be permitted into this chamber seemed like a tall order, so Amon asked instead if Madam Lin was around, to ess her book collection. The maid said she was inside her house but she usually didn''t like to be disturbed at this time.


    Amon thanked the maid and walked towards thergest house in this housingplex. The Madam had mentioned that he coulde to find her if he needed anything, so it should not be a problem for him to head over.


    There were strangely not many servants in the house, he would think that such arge house would require more servants. Perhaps Madam Lin had chased them off, the maid just now said that the Madam did not like to be disturbed at this time.


    He saw no one was on the ground floor so he proceeded to go up. Madam''s house isprised of four floors. After going up to the second floor and walking around, he still saw no one, so he went up again to the upper floor.


    When he arrived on the third floor, he heard some sounds. He went in the direction of that sound. As he got nearer, he started to recognize the sounds.


    Heh, his mouth curved up in a smile. That''s why she asked not to be disturbed. He continued to approach the sound until he stood in front of a door. The sounds of moaning, heavy breathing, and rhythmic ppings of flesh were heard.


    Amon was hesitant on how to proceed. No way he was to wait here until they were finished but barging in now would be rude. He still needed this woman for now. After some thoughts, he figured that it was probably better for him toeter. He was about to leave when he heard footstepsing. Another person had entered this house as well.


    It was not long before the person appeared. Coincidentally, it was someone he knew.


    Lin Dong stared at Amon. The older man was also surprised to find the small kid here. The surprise expression soon transformed into a mischievous grin.


    "My son! Fancy to find you here," he said as he approached.


    "I thought you find it weird for me to call you father?" Amon replied.


    "It is, so don''t call me that. But I don''t find it weird to call you son."


    "It is for me, so don''t call me that either."


    "Hahaha, like I said. You are funny. What are you doing waiting outside like this? It''s going to be a while. Come, I''ll take you in."


    Without waiting for Amon''s reply, Lin Dong just opened the door to the room and pushed the boy inside. In the room, there were three naked people on the bed. Madam Lin was with two muscr males. One male was lying on his back while Madam Lin rode him with ferocity. The other one was hugging the Madam from behind as he thrust her ass.


    Amon must say despite the Madam appearing to be a middle-ageddy, her form was quite sensual. Her body was slim with no fat, while her breasts wererge and firm. The two jugs bounced wildly as their owner rocked back and forth. This alluring form was normally covered by her robe whenever he saw her before this.

 24 Chapter 24

    The three were full of sweat as they were panting. From the look of it, they had been going at it for a while. Amon wondered if the effect of this world''s cultivation also allowed cultivators to have longer sexual stamina. He also sensed strange aether flow around them.


    The three werepletely unaware of the two intruders as they were utterly engrossed in their carnal act.


    Lin Dong nced at Amon with a wicked smile, expecting the kid to be awkward by the scene. The kid was just a six years old boy, after all. But when he saw the kid''s face, he was bewildered to see his indifferent expression. The boy even nced at him when Amon detected his stare, as if the scene in front of him was not that special to waste his attention on.


    One of the men on the bed finally saw the two. He uttered, "Lin Dong? Do you want to join? Hey! Who is that kid?!"


    Madam Lin, hearing the man''s words, finally turned around. "Amon? What are you doing here?"


    Interestingly, Amon perceived, the three didn''t slow down their movements in any way even after noticing his presence. They continued to fuck as they looked at him.


    Amon couldn''t help but smile.


    "It seemed that your adopted son was a perverted one," Lin Dongmented. He was rather annoyed actually. Again with that smile. No matter what he did, it appeared the boy was unfazed.


    "Son?" The man who was lying on his back said. "He is that brat you adopted?"


    "Silence you all!" Madam Lin uttered. To Amon, she asked again, "is there anything you need?"


    Amon bowed before saying, "I''m sorry to disturb you, mother. I am just wondering if I can get a book regarding the Item Engraving method."


    "Item Engraving?" Lin Dong scoffed. "That is not a subject for a kid like you. You should look for fairy tale books instead."


    <o>,m Amon ignored Lin Dong''s mockery. His eyes continued to stay on Madam Lin.</o>


    "What do you want with such a book?" Madam Lin asked.


    "For learning. I need this engraving method for something that concerned my alchemy study," Amon replied.


    After a brief thought, Madam Lin said. "Go back, I will have a servant deliver the book to you. But it will only be a basic introductory guide to the Engraving method. Books with moreprehensive details are only avable in our main tome chamber, and even I can''t get it without a good reason."


    "I thank mother for indulging me," Amon said. An introductory guide would have to do for now. He would just look for another way if it wasn''t enough. He excused himself and walked out of the room.


    Before he closed the door, he heard Madam Lin say to Lin Dong, "take off your clothes ande here."


    *


    Since he had to wait for Madam Lin to deliver the basic introductory book on Engraving, he could only put the learning on hold. He went back to studying the poison recipes described in the first few pages of the 101 Primal Poison tome. They mostly used exotic ingredients that he knew not of. He also didn''t see such ingredients from the stock left behind by Hei Pho, the servants that he usually asked to search in the market also informed him that none of the shops knew of those ingredients.<sub> </sub>


    There was one page however that contained a recipe that had avable ingredients, it was the very first page of the tome. Probably it contained one that used the mostmon ingredients for a starter. Still, even though the ingredients were avable, they did note cheap. The servants that procured ingredients for him only managed to buy four sets of these ingredients, while Hei Pho''s stock had seven sets, so he could only do eleven trials.


    The main ingredient of the poison was the Seven-colored Toad''s toxin. The Seven-colored Toad was a lower inferior spirit beast that was actually rathermon, but they only appeared close to a human settlement when it was rainy days. Other than that, they would hide in the depth of the swamp which made them hard to be caught.


    The toad was not a strong spirit beast. However, one still needed particr care when dealing with them. Their skin could change color triggered by their condition, hence their name. Their toxin''s effectiveness changed following the color of their skin.


    Anyone who nned on catching these toads was warned that once they saw the creature''s skin turned ck, they should run away as fast as possible. As that was when its toxin became most deadly. Even a peak Human realm cultivator could be killed when the toad was in this condition. However, the toad only changed to this ck color as ast resort, because they would also die once their skin turned dark. The hunters who hunted this toad usually used paralyzing drugs to keep the toad sedated, preventing them from using this suicide attack.


    The trick for this poison recipe depicted on the tome was about how to turn the toad''s toxin effectiveness into the same as it was when the toad turned ck. The recipe itself was called ck ughter Poison.


    Amon learned about the characteristics of each ingredient, trying to determine how they could serve as the catalyst to drive the toad''s toxin into its ck state.


    He was not exactly an academic person in his past life, but he was also not a stranger to this alchemical process. Selling illegal drugs had been one of the many avenues financing his operations in his early rise to power. On many asions he had directly supervised the production of these drugs, so he was more than familiar with the job. Still, it was much moreplicated when he had to do everything himself.


    Still, he enjoyed the process. Thinking about how this poison could help him excited him to arge degree. If he could infuse this poison into his dagger, that would be even more wonderful.


    He continued to postpone practicing martial arts, first to let his body to further recover, second because he was currently too engrossed in the poison study.


    After roughly understanding the ingredients, he started making a test on their mixing. He tested various elements, the heat used during the mixing, the amount, and exposure to elements. The page in the tome did illustrate the steps, but it still required sufficient practice and trials to master the technique.


    He wasted six of the ingredients set in failure before getting one working on his seventh try. It also took him four days for that. He put thepleted poison into a small bottle and decided to test its lethality by giving a small drop of the poison to a rat, one that he had caught and put inside a cage. It was said that the poison only needed to touch the skin of a creature to take effect.


    Once the small drop fell on the rat, it disyed difort behavior as it started to run endlessly around its cage. Soon it started to make a screeching sound as its body convulsed. Amon saw with fascination as the hairs on the rat started to fall off and he could also see the skin underneath blistered and slightly melted. Foam could be seen from its mouth as its eyes became red before blood started flowing out of its eyes, ears, and nose. It soonid motionless.


    After sessfully making one working poison, he proceeded to use up all the remaining ingredients to make another four bottles. The page described that one dose of the bottle was able to kill a Martial realm practitioner of the Mystic stage if the said victim didn''t receive immediate treatment. If he had used this poison on the Hei n, he would not need to deal the killing blow to Hei Gong, the poison itself would be enough to do the killing.


    After finished concocting the poison, he was ready to practice martial arts again. As he was about to, Madam Lin came to visit him. She was wearing her usual broad dress. If he had not seen it himself, he wouldn''t believe behind that dress was tworge mountains.


    "Mother," Amon greeted and handed her a small bottle. "This is the drug usually concocted by grandma for you. I believe its function should be the same."


    Madam Lin simply received the potion withoutment. Amon handed him another two small bottles and said, "this is to return the medicine that mother has given to me. I studied the potions and concocted simr ones from the ingredients avable. I believe mine should have a better potency."


    "Oh?" This time Madam Lin gave a response, her eyebrows were lifted in a surprised expression. She epted the two bottles and fondled them. "If this is true, I might be able to give you ess to more ingredients or resources you like."


    Amon bowed at him and said, "mother can give it to someone to test the potions yourself. If I am allowed more ingredients, I can create more of the potions."

 25 Chapter 25

    Madam Lin shook her head, "we are always in need of more potions, but these ones aremon products. We can easily buy them. There is no need for you to produce them. What I mean is, if you can already concoct such medicine at your age, then that shows you have the talent to be a pill master. If you can be one, then you can be a valuable asset to this n."


    "I will follow mother''s guidance. If that is what mother asked of me, I will dly give all my best to it."


    Madam Lin nodded, "you are truly as obedient as Hei Pho described." She then took out three books and gave them to Amon.


    "These are the books about engraving that you asked for," Madam Lin said.


    Amon epted the books and bowed in gratitude.


    "I will have the servants take your order if you need more ingredients, I will increase your budget. If you need to read more books, you cane to my house. There is a small library on the first floor. Keep up the good work."


    As Madam Lin left the premises, Amon watched her back with a grin.


    *


    Amon returned to his previous routine in the following days. Cultivate at night, practice martial arts in the morning, study the engraving method and experiment on poison in the afternoon.


    However, he didn''t practice to improve his mastery of the three martial arts in his arsenal. Instead, he learned new arts. Apart from the arcane art books, he had put away two martial art books from Hei Gong''s collection. One was an art to be used with a bow, which he had no ess to at the moment. The other one was for usage with throwing weapons, which he could use in conjunction with the seventeen throwing knives in his possession.


    The martial art for throwing weapons was called Hundred Shooting Stars. It revolved around imbuing the weapon with aether to strengthen it and using the aether to reduce the friction of the air, allowing the thrown weapon to move faster and straighter. The aether that apanied the weapon created a trail of light that made it look like a shooting star when the weapon was thrown.


    Although he was excellent in closebat, his strong suit had always been ranged weapons. His uracy and speed in marking a target were inhuman. That''s how he had be such a legend on the battlefield in his past life. Although there were no firearms in this world, throwing weapons or bows could be a recement.


    He didn''t think the Lin n would grant him a weapon. They had not even given him any aid in cultivation and martial arts. All he was learning in those fields were from what he had piged from the Hei n. The Lin n seemed to only be interested in developing him into a pill master. He didn''t think it was strange, he was an outsider after all. Despite Madam Lin saying she had adopted him, he was not of their blood. They wouldn''t waste resources to help him be stronger. While if he was a pill master, no matter how talented he was, he could still be controlled. After all, power was everything. So, it should still be a long time before he could get a bow.


    He also had to think about how to proceed once he reached the beginning Mystic stage of the Martial realm. His current cultivation method only allowed him that far. If the Lin n did not deem him worthwhile or trustable enough to be given cultivation art for higher levels, he would be stuck there. But that was still a long time from now, he would observe things first before he made further ns.


    In the first week that he learned Hundred Shooting Stars, his thrown knife could prate halfway into a solid concrete from fifteen meters away. After the range of fifteen, he noticed the light apanying the knife starting to dim. Its strength was severely diminished after passing that fifteen meters mark.


    Range-wise, it was hardlyparable to firearms. However, their strength was no joke. To be able to cut into solid concrete like that, normal human flesh would stand no chance.


    His study on engraving was also proceeding well as each day passed. Two of the three books Madam Lin gave him only taught the basic principle of Engraving. In short, the process of engraving was the process of etching the word of power onto an item.<sub> </sub>


    There were many words of power. The words were not themonnguage people used, but rather, mysterious runes that when formed, carried with them some kind of power. No one knows who invented these runes or how they came to be, but they had been passed down since time immemorial.


    The third book that Madam Lin gave him was a collection of the most basic words of power. To Amon, these so-called words of power were non-sensical scribblings that carried no meaning. He had no idea why a simple act of engraving these shapes onto an object would give it miraculous power.


    The words themselves were not fixed, they could be formed by different kinds of runes. When formed incorrectly, or if the lines were drawn wrong, there would not create any effect. But when certain runes were arranged ordingly at particr positions and shapes, they would produce an effect. The scope of how many words of power existed in this world was still being studied. Even many of the highest rank engravers were still doing experiments with the runes to find out a newbination to produce a new word of power.


    Of course, not everyone could apply the engraving even if they knew the runebination, because the fuel to inject the engravings into an object was the aether itself. Also, the precision that was required in the process was brutal, a small deviation of the lines would likely cause the engraving to fail. Being extremely meticulous was the most basic requirement to be an engraver.


    Amon had no problem focusing on a job. He could force himself to be meticulous if he needed to be. After studying the details, again and again, he started to experiment with the process. He used a simple stone as the trial object, and a kitchen knife as the engraving tool.


    He followed the instruction from the book on how to manipte the Aether through the knife and had it seeped into the stone as he scraped the tip of the knife onto the stone''s surface. He picked the easiest word of power, which was abination of the two simplest runes. The effect of this word of power was said to increase the durability of the object, making it harder to break.


    Of course, the process was harder than he thought. It was sort of like carving strange drawings onto an object, while at the same time focusing to divert invisible energy along with the carving. The process also couldn''t stop mid-way. The engraving process had to progress continuously. If the supply of aether was broken, the entire energy that had been applied previously would disperse, and the engraving failed.


    Another restriction was that the amount of aether injected along the engraving had to be equal. Thus, the speed of one''s engraving had to be stable. If one slowed down and the aether umted too much in one part, the engraving would fail as well.


    Amon failed numerous times and damaged many stones. Those that had been carved partway couldn''t be used anymore, so he had to start over by using fresh stone.


    Days passed, then weeks. He exhausted the entire stones in his courtyard and he started to use other things. Branches, parts of furniture which he broke down to pieces, then he went and search for the stones at therger courtyards outside.


    His focus and determination were relentless. More than three months had passed since he started learning engravings before he had his first sess. The stone with which the word of power waspleted, had the carved parts shone for a bit, highlighting the runic symbol on it, before reverting to its original state as if nothing had ever happened. But he could feel a change in the stone. He tried to exert pressure on it. The stone resisted. Normally it would have been shattered to bits by his strength.


    He felt abounding excitement from the sess, but he didn''t ck off. He continued to practice the engraving, with even more intensity now. Another month passed, and he had reached a probability where he was sessful six times every ten tries.


    His cultivation and martial arts practice did not cken despite the engraving study. His Hundred Shooting Stars reached Skilled mastery, where the knife he threw could now fully embed into the concrete from a distance of twenty meters away.


    He had also entered the intermediate Mortal stage, one month earlier than he predicted.


    At this time, he had to stop his practice because Madam Lin called for him.

 26 Chapter 26

    "Mother, youe earlier than expected," Amon said.


    Madam Lin hade to visit him on the same weekly basis, just as how he did with Hei Pho. Amon had secretly used the same air-borne drug as Hei Pho had used on her every visit, keeping the Madam infertile so that his position as her adopted son was not threatened.


    "Is it wrong for a mother toe to see her son when she feels like it?" Madam Lin asked.


    "Of course not," Amon replied. "You have misunderstood my question. I simply mean that I would have cleaned up and presented myself better if I know mother ising."


    He was bareback and full of sweat at the moment after a full morning of martial art practice.


    "That''s fine. You have seen me naked and sweaty. It''s only fair that I get to see the same."


    This slutty hag, Amon said in his mind. But on the outside, he chuckled and said, "it''s normal for a mother to see her son''s body, you only need to ask."


    Madam Lin simply smiled at his response.


    "So, to what do I owe the pleasure of mother''s visit? I will go clean up and have the maids prepare some refreshments so we can have a chat in the garden," Amon said.


    "You do indeed need a bath. Also, wear your best clothes. We are going to see someone," Madam Lin replied.


    "See someone? Who?"


    "My father. The master of this n."


    *


    Amon followed Madam Lin to the biggest building which was seen outside the Lin estate. The entrance to this main building was decorated with impressively wide and grand stairs. It was simr to the entrance stairs of the grand eastern pce of his past world.


    Amon had heard a bit about this Lin n''s master. His name was Lin Weida. He was a Spirit stage Martial Realm cultivator. He was a bit over 400 years old, which was considered old because a spirit stage cultivator''s lifespan was around 500 years old. Though he still had more than a normal person''s natural years to live, it also could be said that he had entered thest hundred years of his life. That''s why he had been eager to break through to the Lord stage of the Martial Realm, which was the next level. Breaking through to the Lord stage would grant him another 300 years of lifespan to live.


    Since Amon''s arrival, Lin Weida had been in seclusion trying to break through to the next level. ''Has he seeded?'' Amon Wondered.


    On top of the stairs were numerous open doors that opened up into a magnificentrge hall. Amon and Madam Lin entered this hall and was greeted by a scene where lots of people were standing uniformly on the left and right side of the hall. The middle part itself was marked by a yellow carpet that extended onto the deepest part of the hall. At the end of this carpeted walkway were an elevated tform and a throne. Someone was sitting on that throne.


    ''Heh,'' Amon chuckled inside his mind. Another person with a ruler syndrome. He remembered that he deposed a lot of such self-made rulers in his past life and then sat on their thrones just for the fun of it.


    He went past a lot of men and women who lined up on both sides. Amon couldn''t help but admire the size of this n. Were they all of the Lin bloodline? But considering that the man on the throne was four hundred years old, he had plenty of time to produce lots of offspring.


    He only recognized a few from the crowd, Lin Fong who stood rather to the front near the throne, Lin Zuyi who stood a bit behind, then Lin Guo and Lin Dong who stood further back. So he deduced the one standing closer to the throne should be the direct bloodline of Lin Weida while those further back were those assimted into the Lin n through various means, like him.


    He could sense many unapproving eyesnding on him. He held himself from sneering at those sights.


    Madam Lin stopped after arriving at around ten meters from the throne, she made a respectful bow and said, "Lin Xi pays respect to father."


    Amon copied her and said, "Lin Mo pays respect to grandfather."


    There were several murmurs heard. Amon maintained his bowing position as he saw from the corner of his eyes that Madam Lin also remained bowing. He could feel an invisible pressure bore down on him. He did not doubt that it came from the head of the Lin n who was sitting on the throne not far ahead. To be able to exude such pressure, if Amon did not have a calm mind, he might have cowered.<sub> </sub>


    Amon stood his ground and maintained his firm posture. The pressure was not bearing down on him physically, but mentally. He might not be able to resist the pressure if it was done physically since the difference in power was toorge. But mentally, there was nothing that could make him cringe. Still, the mental pressure was great. He did read from books that as cultivator increased their cultivation, their mind became more powerful as well.


    After a long moment of silence, a deep and heavy voice was heard. "Hm, I don''t appreciate being called grandfather when I have yet to approve such an adoption. But seeing you can stay on your feet despite my gaze, I will let that slide. Now rise."


    Amon rose his head and looked at the man on the throne. Despite being 400 years old, the man''s face was smooth and youthful, yet it also gave people the sense of meeting an aged elder when oneid eyes on him. Amon couldn''t help but marvel at the wonders of cultivation again.


    "You are indeed an interesting little kid," Lin Weida said as he observed Amon. "I see no anxiety in your eyes despite my aura, even your heartbeats were beating regrly. I might be able to see now why Lin Xi chose to adopt you before consulting with me first."


    Lin Fong, who had disapproved of Amon''s adoption, immediately gave his objection when he heard his father gave Amon such a high evaluation, "Father, you give him too much credit. He is just¡­"


    "I am still speaking, boy!" Lin Weida''s voice thundered out. Almost everyone winced when they heard the voice. Amon felt his ears ringing and a sharp pain coursed through his mind, but he bit down and maintained his posture.


    "I¡­ I''m sorry, father¡­" Lin Fong said apologetically.


    Lin Weida lifted his hand in his direction, indicating that he should not make any further noise. The n master''s eyes never left Amon. Amon himself didn''t avert his gaze away from the n master.


    "Impressive," Lin Weida said. "But such a talented individual can be a boon to the n or the bane. Until I decide which one you are, you will remain an outsider. Outside of what your adopted mother can spare, no resources of this n will be spent on you. Do you feel unhappy about this?"


    "I think it is fair. I''m happy enough to be given a ce to stay in this n," Amon replied.


    "Hm, a good answer, or a political one. Considering your age, I am more inclined to believe that it is your honest thought, but one never knows. It is, however, truly impressive that you have reached the intermediate Mortal stage at your age."


    A few gasps from the crowd.


    As expected, Amon thought. Since the n master was a Martial realm expert, he could sense Amon''s cultivation. He noticed that many of the front row, who he suspected as the direct bloodlines of the n, also did not give any reaction. Most probably because they were already aware since they themselves were Martial realm experts as well.


    Lin Weida turned to Madam Lin, "Did you give him any cultivation pill or resources to boost his cultivation?"


    "Father, I did not."


    Lin Weida returned his gaze to Amon, "what cultivation art do you practice?"


    "Drown Heart Pulsating Art," Amon said honestly. "It was a legacy from the Hei n."


    A voice from the crowd uttered, "It is just a cultivation art from a lowly n, how can it help you improve so fast? Are you taking us for fools? You must be lying!"


    Lin Weida made a wave. A scream was heard from the direction where the voice was heard just now.


    "Take the fool out," Lin Weida said without looking over in that direction. He then said to Amon, "Practice it for me to see."


    "As you wish," Amon said without hesitation. He sat cross-legged and started performing his cultivation art as he did normally.


    After a while, he heard Lin Weida''s voice, "Stop!"


    Lin Weida maintained his sharp stare at Amon as he said, "Although the art does indeed has some peculiarity and your mastery over the art was exceptional, I still do not see how you can manage to reach your current stage without any cultivation pills¡­"

 27 Chapter 27

    "Father, permission to speak," Madam Lin said.


    "Go ahead," Lin Weida replied.


    "He was a prodigy in medicine and alchemy, a grandson and a student of one who I usually procured medicine from. It was not strange if he has a few cultivation pills from his n''s stock. He might have been using those pills to increase his cultivation speed."


    Lin Weida asked Amon, "Is that the case?"


    "It is indeed as mother said," Amon replied. He had nned to use the same reason to exin his cultivation speed if they continued to question. If needed, He could also point out that he was able to produce a basic cultivation pill. It was amongst the recipe in Hei Pho''s note. He had even seen her concoct the pill before. With his current alchemy skill, he should be able to copy it. What hecked was a spirit essence which was the main ingredient for creating the cultivation pill. But since Madam Lin had presented the excuse herself, he decided to just support her words and did not add too much.


    "Father, I would also like to say some words," a charismatic man with a mustache who stood the closest to Lin Weida spoke. Amon surmised he should be the eldest among the Lin siblings.


    "Say your thought then, Bubai," Lin Weida replied.


    "Thank you, father." Lin Bubai uttered. "In my opinion, since he was staying in our Lin house, eating our Lin''s food. He should contribute. Seeing that he had some cultivation resources with him, he should share them with us, consider it as payment for staying in our house."


    "The house he stayed in, the food he ate, are all under my expense. I never asked for extra from the n. I reject this demand." Madam Lin said.


    "Sister, why are you so insistence on this kid. He is just a stray," Lin Fong joined in.


    Lin Bubai said with a more gentle tone, "Little sister, you know we have always conceded to your wants. However, he is an outsider from a fallen n. He is simply an outsider who brings no benefit to our n."


    "He has a very good talent in alchemy. He had been concocting medicine in my house as his grandma had done all this time. With sufficient nurturing, he could even be a pill master. Considering his age, it is not impossible. With our own pill master, our n status will be even more prominent in this city. Apart from that, as father himself had said, he is also a talented cultivator. In terms of benefit to the n, I believe he will be a great asset."


    <o>,m "Even if what you say is true. How can we be sure of his loyalty? He is not of our Lin blood."</o>


    "Can''t you see that he is still a kid? His age makes him a perfect candidate to be assimted into our n. If we can make him feel that he belongs here, then our Lin n will be his family regardless of his origin. There is no Hei n where he can return to anyway. If he won''t give us his loyalty, to whom will he give it?"


    "There is something about him that doesn''t feel right. Sister, I think it is a mistake if you treat him as a kid."


    "You are just being biased to anyone who is not of the Lin blood."


    "That is not true. You know I always think of the best for the n."


    "Big brother is right, sis," Lin Fong said. "I think it is you who has your judgment clouded. Just because you yearn for a child¡­"


    "Enough!" Lin Weida suddenly butted in, cutting Lin Fong''s words. He then pondered in silence as his fingers tapped on the armrest of his throne.


    "Lin Xi, do you truly believe in this boy?" Lin Weida asked.


    "I do," Madam Lin replied with a firm tone.


    Lin Weida appeared to be pondering some more. Amon kept his silence throughout their debate. In a discussion where he was considered an outsider, it was better to stay out of it. If he spoke out of turns, no matter how logical his argument was, it would still be seen as a sign of disrespect. Until his fangs were sharp enough, keeping a low profile and avoiding unnecessary conflict was a must.


    After a while, Lin Weida dered, "Lin Mo will stay under Lin Xi''s house. He will not be supplied with any resources to aid his cultivation. What he owns from his past n will be his, no one is to take them from him. He will have to earn his ce before he can join our n properly. Our n has regr missions. He will have to join this mission to umte points. If he does not reach a minimum required monthly points, he will have to leave this n."


    Madam Lin frowned, "father, he is just six and a half. You can''t be serious about asking him to do a mission, right? Even big brother only go out on a mission when he was twelve years of age after reaching the Strength stage of the Human realm."


    Instead of answering Madam Lin, Lin Weida gazed at Amon. He asked the kid, "boy, what do you think? At what age do you think you will be ready to work on mission?"<sub> </sub>


    Instead of answering the question directly, Amon asked, "these points that I get from a mission. Is it only to mark my minimum requirement or can I use it to exchange them for resources?"


    "You insolent child! How dare you question back our father''s query?" Lin Fong scolded.


    Lin Weida waved for his son to be quiet. He looked at Amon with a sneer. "The points collected from a mission can be exchanged for resources. Of course, items avable for exchange between a real member of the n with a probationary member will be different."


    After hearing it, Amon gave his answer, "I will be ready to attempt a mission two and half years from now."


    The ones present gave Amon a weird look. They couldn''t tell if the kid was boasting or simply ignorant. Lin Weida showed no reaction hearing the answer while Madam Lin frowned deeply.


    "Mo, do not joke about this," she said. "You will only be nine years old at the time. You are hardly sufficient to go out to face the danger of this world."


    Seven years actually, Amon thought. They still had that mistaken concept about his age.


    "Sis, just let this big-headed kid try it. Let him learn the hard way that the outside world is no child''s y," Lin Fong said with a scoff.


    "You, shut up!" Madam Lin scolded.


    Lin Fong felt offended. His rtionship with his sister was always harmonious. It was all because of this little stray that harmed their brother-sister rtionship. His feeling toward Amon all this time was only contempt and disgust. Now, hatred started to bloom in his heart.


    Amon was not exactly boastful. If the points were nothing but ornaments, he would have asked for twelve years of age the same as Lin Bubai''s record when he headed out to do a mission. But since he could exchange the points for resources, it was better if he started early. Apart from being able to get resources from the points, he could also get experience from the mission. He always believed the best learning experience to push oneself was realbat. Staying in a safe environment for a long time would only hinder his development. In his past life, this had been how he honed himself.


    Apart from that, he was using the Strength stage as a starting line. Madam Lin mentioned that Lin Bubai started to do a mission when he became a Strength stage cultivator. Though he was not one hundred percent sure he would be one after two and a half years, he was confident enough to be at least close to it.


    His speed in cultivation even without the aid of cultivation pills was not only relying on the ck Aetherium Stone, but also on his ability to forgo sleep by cultivating. Hence, he had more time to cultivate than others.


    Amon gave Madam Lin a confident gaze.


    "Hahaha," Lin Weidaughed. "I am getting more and more interested in you, kid. I hope you are not as Fong said, a boastful brat and disappoints me. I don''t like to be disappointed."


    "I stick to my decision," Amon proimed.


    "Good! Then go back and train. I dere now, that no one is to disturb your training! Anyone that dares to bully you and hinder your development during these two and half years will face my wrath! Is this clear?!"


    Lin Weida nced at the group huddled at one side. Among them were Lin Xiaolong and Lin Wuli. Their fathers were actually his grandsons. Since Madam Lin had made up her mind to protect Amon, these grandsons of his hade to him the moment he came out of seclusion to demand justice for Amon beating Lin Xiaoying and Lin Wuli.


    This demand had piqued Lin Weida''s curiosity because from what he heard, Amon was only at the beginning Mortal stage of the Human Realm, and had only started cultivating for one year in a fallen n. To be able to beat two talented offsprings of the Lin n who were older, was no small feat.


    The fathers of Lin Xiaolong and Lin Wuli shrank from the stare. They did not dare to utter any objection.


    "But as I have said, the Lin n will not provide any assistance," Lin Weida continued. "You will have to rely on yourself for these two and a half years."


    "I have no problem with that," Amon replied.


    "Hahaha. Good! You are dismissed."

 28 Chapter 28

    During those two and a half years, the Lin n kept their promise, leaving Amon alone to cultivate in peace. Madam Lin continued her weekly visit. Aside from getting her drugs, it''s also to chat with her adopted son. She was furious with him at first. Thinking of him for overestimating himself. Amon expressed his apology and said that this was needed for him to be strong. She replied by saying what a six-year-old kid knew about being strong.


    She didn''te to visit him for the first four weeks. When she finally came, she saw how intense Amon''s practice was, she understood then that Amon was serious with his conviction of bing strong. Her anger subsided and she continued her weekly visits since.


    Amon always spared an hour for a chat with this adopted mother of his, apanied by some snacks under the courtyard gazebo. He tried to create the illusion of affection. Seeing how she had fiercely defended him during the hearing, Amon decided she could prove useful for many more years ahead.


    Along the promised time, Amon underwent an intense training schedule. He did not take even one day of break. He repeated his routine of cultivating at the night, martial art practice in the morning, engraving and poison study in the afternoon. However, he added another two hours of cultivation after lunch while reducing his alchemy study, to boost his cultivation speed further.


    His martial art practice had undergone a huge improvement. His Bone Shattering Shadow Fist had reached Master level. Not only his fist could cause full damage from five meters away, but he could already execute three rapid punches within a second.


    After he reached Expert mastery, some pages in the book that described the step to reaching Master level had be easier to understand. He learned that to perform the rapid punches, he had to manipte the aether differently. In previous Beginning and Skilled mastery, he only needed to umte the aether to strengthen his fist. In Expert mastery, he needed to cause the aether to explode andunched a powerful force ahead.


    At the Master level, he needed more precise control of the umted aether. He had to separate the aether into a few portions and cause them to explode in sequences and in predetermined directions. On his first punch, he had a part of the aether explode forward and gave his fist a fast retract, before having another portion push it back out again. Like having a booster jet strapped on your fist that systematically pushed your fist back and forth, allowing a rapid superhuman punching speed.


    At the Grandmaster level, the control of aether was even more precise as one would need to separate the umted aether to allow ten rapid punches. Amon could still not reach such mastery.


    However, he modified the Master level of his Bone Shattering Shadow Fist so that he could perform them with his two arms at the same time. Allowing him three punches on each hand, totaling six punches within a second. The concentration required for this double execution wasplex, it was as if he had to think about two different things at the same time. Fortunately, this kind of thinking process was a piece of cake for him. In the fast-paced battlefield in his past life, it had been an everyday urrence for him to analyze multiple things at the same time.


    The walls of his courtyard were full of fist marks from all his training.


    His defensive art, Hardened Bronze Body, reached Expert mastery. He could now maintain the skin hardening condition for as long as thirty seconds. He could also now move around while the art took effect, eliminating the weakness of being a sitting duck when the art was active.


    His Silent Swift Stab had also reached Expert mastery. His explosive speed could now let him lunge forward six meters away. Before it only covered a four meters distance. His stab''s power could also prate a solid concrete now.


    He read about the page in the martial art book that described the Master level and found it to be extremelyplicated. The Master level of Silent Swift Stab instructed him to spread the aether to his entire body, simr to the defensive art of the Hardened Bronze Body. But instead of utilizing the aether to harden the skin, it instead was used to bend the light.


    He was not unfamiliar with this concept as in his past life, scientists had been trying to use the same concept to create an invisible suit. That''s how although he had not yet reached the Master level, he understood the effect he would gain when he did. At Master level, the Silent Swift Stab would be the ultimate ambush skill, as no one would see himing.<sub> </sub>


    He was rather looking forward to mastering this art. However, it was not so easy. He would need a long time practicing it.


    Hisst martial art, Hundred Shooting Stars, was also the one he had trained the hardest. Hence, despite its difficulty being on par with Hardened Bronze Body and Silent Swift Stab, he had managed to achieve the Master level of this art.


    At Expert mastery, he could control his thrown dagger to have a curved trajectory. Instead of removing air friction, his aether would instead produce increased friction on one side, making the dagger swerve in the opposite direction. The control was difficult as he needed to bnce how much friction was needed. But after mastering the control, he could hit a target that was hidden behind a pir.


    At the Master level, his control improved, allowing him to throw multiple daggers at the same time. Its power also increased, giving the dagger the ability to reach forty meters mark.


    His engraving study had also undergone a qualitative improvement. He could now sessfully engrave a stone nine times out of ten. He had also practiced different words of power from the third book. Once he got the hang of it, he returned to study the Poison Infusion Method. He realized that one picture on the page was a word of power. It was the word of power to infuse the poison.


    He could use any poison as the base and applied it to an object as he engraved the word of power onto it. Sessfully performing the operation would allow the object to carry the property of that poison. He practiced many times on this poison infusion word of power before deciding to apply it to one of the seventeen throwing knives he possessed.


    p The throwing knives themselves were already engraved weapons. Amon recognized the word of power engraved on it granting the knife additional sharpness. Normally, an engraved weapon could not be engraved further, but as stated by the page in the 101 Primal Poison tome, the Poison Infusion method was special as it could serve as additional engraving without canceling the previous effect. However, failing while engraving this poison infusion would render both his current attempt and the original engraving to be defective.</anda>


    He used the ck ughter Poison as the base. After conditioning his mind, he went to work. With full focus, he managed to work with pinpoint uracy, allowing the Poison Infusion Method to be sessful. The engraving on the throwing knife glowed an eery green color before subsiding and leaving no trace. The throwing knife looked the same as the other sixteen but he could sense deadly energy within. He had no doubt anyone below the Martial realm who got scratched by this knife would immediately fall dead. Even a beginning Mystic stage cultivator would die if not get treated immediately.


    This knife would be his hidden trump card. Considering he still had another four more doses of the ck ughter Poison, he proceeded to use them to engrave more of his throwing knives.


    Unfortunately, despite his stable concentration. One out of those four tries still failed. He had to throw away the defective throwing knife. But the other three were sessful. He now had four poison-throwing knives and twelvemon ones. Due to the additional poison effect, his four poison throwing knives could be considered high-tiered engraved weapons.


    As for his cultivation. He had managed to reach the peak Mortal stage after one and a half years passed. He still had one year until the promised time, but he realized then that he indeed had overestimated his cultivation speed.


    Each increase required a much longer time to reach a higher level. Despite him using his sleep time to cultivate and with the aid of the ck Aetherium Stone, he knew now that it was still impossible to break through to the Strength stage in another year''s time. But he had given his promise, there was no point inmenting a done deal. He could only do the best he could.


    When two and a half years had gone by, as expected, he was still in the peak Mortal stage. Yet, he showed no doubt. He prepared all his weapons and wore the self-adjusting chainmail under his shirt. He was ready when Madam Lin came to pick him up. With a self-assured posture, he followed her to the n mission center.

 29 Chapter 29

    The n mission center was one of the threergest buildings which Amon had seen outside the estate. It was the one with the eight storeys.


    Many people were seening in and out of the building. Everyone recognized Madam Lin, hence they bowed when she passed.


    Entering the ground floor of the building, Amon saw that the avable missions were posted along the side walls. Everyone could study them and choose the suitable one for themselves. In his previous chat with Madam Lin, Amon had learned that missions were ssified into six difficulties, indicated by alphabets: E, D, C, B, A, and S.


    The lowest and easiest difficulty was the E-grade mission, while the highest and most difficult was the S-grade. This bottom floor was mainly filled with young members of the n, this was because this floor contains only missions of the E-grade which posed less risk. Young n members looking for experience mostly picked the mission on this floor.


    As Madam Lin was about to ask Amon to look around for a suitable mission, someone greeted them.


    "Sister, you are here."


    They turned to the source of the voice and saw Lin Fong was there.


    "Why are you here?" Madam Lin asked.


    "Why can''t I be here?" Lin Fong replied with a smile. His heart, however, was aching. Ever since the hearing two and half years ago, his sister had treated him with coldness. Though he knew the reason was that he had shown opposition to her adopted son, he considered the me solely on Amon. If the boy had not appeared, his rtionship with his sister would have been just fine.


    "I have no time to speak with you. I am helping my son pick a mission here."


    "About that, you don''t need to bother. We already have a suitable mission for him."


    Madam Lin frowned hearing it. "We? Who do you mean by we? Everyone is allowed to choose their own missions. What do you mean you have a suitable mission?"


    "It''s me and big brother. About the mission, please follow me upstairs."


    "Upstairs. Are you saying the mission is from the second floor? Don''t be ridiculous. The mission above are D grade ones, they are meant for mid to peak Strength stage cultivators. Lin Mo is not even at the Strength stage yet."


    "Sister, please don''t get agitated. We have discussed this with father and he has agreed with our choice. You can go ask him if you want. If this boy is to prove his worth to our n, he has to show that he is willing to brave dangers following our order. This is necessary if he wants to be epted in our n."


    "Mother, it is fine. If I can get epted by the n, then everything''s worth it. Let''s go up," Amon said.


    Madam Lin was about to object further, but hearing Amon''s calm words, she didn''t say anything further. Lin Fong saw her silence aspliant and started walking over to the stairs. Amon walked after him with Madam Lin following reluctantly.


    They went up the stairs and came up to a simr floor. But this floor was not as crowded as the bottom floor. Lin Fong led them to a group not far away. There was one man in his thirties apanied by three teenagers. The four saw Lin Fonging, they greeted him with respect and did the same to Madam Lin. Theypletely ignored Amon. The three teenagers even gave a disdainful nce at Amon.


    "This is Amon who will be going on the mission with you," Lin Fong said to the four.


    "A group mission?" Madam Lin asked.


    "Yes. See? We actually do him good. We know he is still green to the outside world and his cultivation is stillcking. Thus, we arrange a group mission. Even though the mission itself is of higher grade, he only needs to observe. He can gather experience as he watched his peers work the mission."


    Madam Lin looked at his brother with suspicion, she was not convinced.


    "Look, we even ask an escort to watch over these young members. He will not interfere with the mission but he will take action if there is any real danger threatening the boys'' lives." Lin Fong was referring to the man in his thirties.


    "What is his cultivation?" Madam Lin asked.


    "I am at the peak Transformation stage of the Human Realm," the man answered for himself. "My name is Lin Giru. You can rest assured that I won''t let anything happens to these kids."


    Madam Lin didn''t deign Lin Giru any response, she was still looking at Lin Fong, "What is the mission?"


    "There is a report that air of Greasy Horned Weasel was found. We have to seize the chance immediately before the other ns catch wind of it. Their horns are excellent materials for making high-quality engraved weapons. Our n will get a high profit if we sell these horns to the engraver guild."


    "Greasy Horned Weasel? That''s a mid inferior spirit beast," Madam Lin said.<sub> </sub>


    "Yes, which is just right for a group of Strength stage cultivators," Lin Fong replied as he gestured at the three younglings. "They are all beginning Strength stage cultivators."


    Mid inferior spirit beast? Amon thought. Simr level to the Crimson Grimalkin he had seen four years ago.


    Madam Lin wanted to argue that Lin Mo was not one, but decided otherwise. It''s not like Lin Fong was unaware of this fact. Instead, she said, "Greasy Horned Weasels rarely live alone. How do you suppose a few beginning Strength stage cultivators whock battle experiences to deal with them?"


    "That''s why we have Lin Giru with them. If they meet a situation where the kids can''t handle, he will interfere."


    Madam Lin looked at them one by one. She then said, "I will go along with this, but I have one condition."


    "A condition?" Lin Fong frowned. "Sis, this is already arranged. If you are worried that¡­"


    "If you don''t want this to be a big issue, then shut up and ept my condition. Or else, I will bring Lin Mo away now and I will go see father and discuss with him."


    Lin Fong was helpless to his sister''s stubbornness. He knew her temperament very well. If he insisted, she would not relent. It would just make matter worse. Hence, he said, "all right, what''s your condition?"


    "I want one of my retainers to follow this mission as well," Madam Lin said.


    "Your retainer?"


    Madam Lin took out a small jade piece. She held it on her forehead. The jade glowed bright green for a few moments. The glow soon receded and she stored the jade back.


    That was a limited rangemunication device that was activated by aether. She had shown this device to Amon before. It could transfer one''s thoughts to another who had a corresponding jade.


    "My retainer wille soon," Madam Lin said.


    Madam Lin stood there waiting. Lin Fong tried to strike a conversation with her, but he was being ignored. Embarrassed by such treatment, he red at Amon, clearly indicating that Amon was the cause.


    ? ''Heh,'' Amon simply sneered, which caused Lin Fong''s anger to intensify. ''This brat! How dare he?'' He cursed in his mind. His face was bing red. But Lin Fong controlled his emotion, he did not want to antagonize his sister any further.


    Amon did not care to conceal his contempt for this Lin Fong fellow. It was clear the guy meant nasty things to him. There was no point trying to fake friendliness.


    As they were waiting, Amon went to the wallboard behind Lin Giru that contained the information about the mission. The board showed the mission objective, which was to hunt the Greasy Horned Weasel for their horns as Lin Fong had mentioned. A map was drawn with a marked area showing the rough location where their was supposedly seen.


    There was also brief information about the Greasy Horned Weasel. A sketch showed what the weasel looked like. It looked simr to the weasel from his past life except that there was a long-ded horn at the tip of its muzzle. This ded horn was their objective. The description mentioned that this horn was also the most powerful weapon of the weasel, it could cut through steel easily.


    Lin Giru approached Amon with the three teenagers. He said to Amon, "Boy, since we will be working together. Let us get to know each other. You have heard my name. I will be the one in charge while we are on the mission. You will have to hear and do everything I say. These three talented younglings are Lin Bu, Lin Sora, and Lin Lang. They are much older than you so you have to show them respect."


    The three were still giving Amon the disdainful stare. Amon simply nced at them for a short moment before returning his attention to the mission board.


    "Hey, what kind of manner is that?" The one who was introduced as Lin Bu uttered. "Aren''t you supposed to say your name in return?"


    Amon continued to focus on the mission board, which angered the teenagers even further.


    Lin Giru also frowned. "Boy, that kind of poor attitude will cause disharmony in the group. I said already you have to listen to my words. Imand you to apologize to these three."


    Instead ofplying, Amon pointed at Lin Fong, who was bewildered by Amon''s action. Lin Giru and the others had the same puzzled expression.


    "He said before that I am only an observer. I will only watch you people work. So, there is no need for you to give me an order as I will not be doing anything."


    Lin Fong almost flipped hearing Amon''s words. This kid was using his words against him.

 30 Chapter 30

    Lin Giru showed an irritated expression. He said, "Boy, saying you are just observing is just an expression. You still need to work, otherwise, I will not give you any mission points. I am the appointed leader in this mission so I will decide the points you will get upon missionpletion."


    "And what kind of work will you ask him to do?" It was Madam Lin that asked.


    Towards Madam Lin, Lin Giru did not dare to be haughty. He said in a respectful tone, "Of course, I will only assign him a task that he is capable of, Madam. Rest assured, I will not bully him."


    "My retainer will make sure of that. If I receive reports of you making things difficult for my son. I will make you regret it."


    "I will not dare to," Lin Giru bowed, but Amon noticed Lin Giru shot a worried nce at Lin Fong, who replied with an assuring expression.


    ''What are these two up to?'' Amon wondered. He might have to be careful out there.


    During the wait, Lin Giru took the three teenagers and Amon to the counter to register their names for the Greasy Horned Weasel mission. Since it was the first time for Amon, the counter also interviewed him for his personal info. After the interview was done, the counter gave him a token. He saw that his name had been carved onto the token on one side, the other side was the character Lin. He was to give this token as identification the next time when he wanted to report apleted mission or request a new mission.


    After waiting a while, Lin Fong was getting impatient. He said to Madam Lin, "Sis, their won''t be hidden for long. We need to depart now. We can''t spend time waiting here."


    "He will arrive soon," Madam Lin replied. "If you can''t wait. You can just have your people go. I will help Lin Mo pick another quest."


    Hearing that, Lin Fong had no choice but to continue waiting.


    Not long after, a tall man approached them. "Madam, I have arrived," the man said.


    "Lin Guo, I would like you to apany this group and look after Amon during his mission," Madam Lin said.


    "Oh? My job is to take care of your safety when you go outside. If I go with them, who will protect you if you go outside?" Lin Guo asked.


    "Don''t worry, I will not go out before you return."


    "This¡­ It will be difficult for me to exin to the n Master if something happens."


    "Don''t you worry about my father, I will go talk to him. You just do what I''ve instructed. Nothing will happen to me inside this n estate. Or are you saying that you are not listening to mymand anymore?"


    Lin Guo bowed apologetically, "That''s not my intention. Lin Guo will follow yourmand."


    "Good. Make sure you keep Amon safe. You can leave him be if he is given an appropriate task suitable to his level. But do not let him get bullied by anyone and you have to interfere if any excessive danger urs."


    "Lin Guo obeys," he said as he gave Madam Lin a salute and then came to stand by Amon''s side.


    Lin Giru appeared to be nervous after Lin Guo showed up. Probably because he knew Lin Guo''s cultivation was higher than his. He looked at Lin Fong with uncertainty. Lin Fong then pulled him to one side.


    "What are you doing?" Madam Lin asked with a frown. "Didn''t you say you want them to leave as soon as possible?"


    "I''m just giving him somest advice," Lin Fong spoke. He went further with Lin Giru and then they talked. No one heard what they were saying as they were rather far away.


    ''Heh, so obvious,'' Amon thought. ''Let''s see what you cook up.''


    The two then came back after they were done talking. "Let''s go," Lin Giru said.<sub> </sub>


    "Stay safe," Madam Lin said to Amon.


    "Don''t worry, mother. I wille back safely."


    Amon saw Lin Fong snickered at his words as he turned around.


    *


    They went on foot to the ce marked by the map. It was towards a mountainous region not far from White Cloud City. Their of the Greasy Horned Weasel was supposed to be around the outer part of this region.


    Lin Giru seemed like an experienced scout. He took them on a path that avoided the spirit beasts that roamed the wilderness. But the area around the city was rather lowly popted with spirit beasts so it was not that difficult to avoid them.


    The three teenagers followed him closely. They talked among themselves along the way, sometimes they nced back at Amon and gave a disdainfulugh.


    What a bunch of clowns, Amon thought.


    Lin Guo was running beside Amon. He was having mixed feelings about the kid. In his opinion, the kid''s advancement was rather spectacr. It was just four years ago when he first met him. The kid was still in the beginning Mortal stage at the time, but he was at the peak Mortal stage already. Being a peak Mortal stage at the age of 9 years old could be considered a prodigy already.


    The best prodigy of his current generation was Lin Xiaolong, who had just recently breakthrough into the Strength stage of the Human realm. He was the same as the previous generation''s most talented Lin Bubai, the big brother of Madam Lin, who had also reached that same level at age twelve.


    The three younglings at the front although were not lousy, they could only be considered average for a big n such as the Lin n. The three only reached the Strength stage recently at the age of fifteen.


    Considering Amon''s development, Lin Guo had a hunch that Amon might break through the same level in another year''s time. If that was true, he would have broken the record of Lin n''s most talented by a whole two years. Lin Guo wondered if it was true as the rumor said that Amon had gotten a secret stash of potent cultivation pills from the Hei n''sst stock.


    Amon did not know what Lin Guo was thinking, but if Lin Guo knew that Amon was actually only seven years old instead of nine years old, he would have flipped over. Amon''s body wasrger than a normal kid so this age misunderstanding was not so obvious. Amon never bothered to rify this misunderstanding. Otherwise, he would have to also exin why his energy core was formed before he was five years old.


    They stopped when they were around the ce where their was rumored to be. Lin Giru then asked the three younglings and Amon to search the surroundings for the entrance to their. On the mission board containing the mission they were undertaking, there was also a description of the weasel''sir. It was said to be a hole on the ground or a rock wall, the hole should be around the size of an adult human.


    Around the opening of the hole should be many traces resembling sword cut marks. These marks were the Greasy Horned Weasel''s marking their territory with its sword horn. Apart from that, there would also be some residue resembling grease near the hole. This was the weasel''s saliva which was very much like grease, hence its name.


    With that characteristics, the three teenagers and Amon went in four separate directions to search. Before Amon took off, he nced back and saw Lin Giru approach Lin Guo. They seemed to be having a chat. Amon stayed a while observing them, but Lin Giru seemed to notice and looked over in his direction. Amon turned back after that and resumed his search for their.


    The searchsted for around half an hour before Amon heard a shout from the other direction. Amon headed over in that direction. Before long, he saw almost everyone gathered there. They were staring at a small hole on the sloping ground. There were several long line marks around the hole that looked as if they were made by a sword, apanied by an oil-like smell. Amon assumed that must be the hole to their they were looking for.


    However, there was one problem. The hole looked too small. It was not as described by the mission board where it was a hole of an adult human-sized.


    "It seems the report is inurate," Amon heard Lin Giru say after everyone gathered. "This is indeed air of Greasy Horned Weasel, but it is air made by a young Greasy Horned Weasel."


    "Young?" Lin Bu asked.


    "Yes, the hole is too small for an adult Greasy Horned Weasel. There is a good and bad issues due to this. Good because such a young spirit beast will be weaker, there should also be fewer weasels. Air made by young Greasy Horned Weasel should only contain two or three weasels."


    "And the bad issue?" Lin Bu asked again.


    "Us two adults won''t be able to enter their."

 31 Chapter 31

    The three teenagers looked at each other before one of them uttered loudly, "Well, it''s no problem for us, but I''m afraid someone will be too chickenshit to enter their without the protection of an adult. Just like how he always relies on his mother in the n."


    The other two teenagersughed at this, their eyes were looking at Amon with contempt. They didn''t even feel the need to conceal who they were ridiculing. Lin Giru made a small smile. He then asked Amon, "Will you be brave enough to enter it."


    Amon nced at Lin Guo who seemed to be frowning before saying to Amon, "It is as brother Giru had said. Judging from the hole size, there should be only young Greasy Horned Weasels. There should not be much danger. Even if you meet one, your peak Mortal stage cultivation should allow you to contend with the beast. As long as you stay with these three, you should be fine."


    "See, the coward still hopes for his bodyguard''s protection," Lin Lang mocked.


    "Lin Mo, if you didn''t dare to go in. Fine. But you will get zero points from this mission," Lin Giru said.


    "Just go back and drink your mom''s milk then, haha," Lin Langughed. The two others joined.


    Amon sneered at their childish behavior. It was clear that all of them were goading him to enter their. But he didn''t mind actually. The one he was worried about was Lin Giru here. If it were only these three idiots, he had nothing to worry about. "All right, let''s go in," he said.


    Lin Bu smirked. "Trying to act brave now, are we?"


    ? Amon simply shrugged. "You want to go in first, or do you want me to?"


    "Heh, stop that lousy charade. If we let you go in first, you might get frozen from fright. Then we have to kick you to make you move. Lin Lang, you go first!"


    "Sure thing, brother." Lin Lang replied and then jumped into the hole without hesitation.


    Lin Sora jumped in next.


    Before he went in, Lin Bu looked back at Amon and said, "don''t get left behind. Don''t expect us toe looking for you. If you are lost inside there, it''s your own fault."


    So much rubbish, Amon thought. Once the guy was gone, Amon approached the hole.


    "Wait," he heard Lin Giru call out. Amon turned to him and saw him throw a small thing at him. Amon caught the thing and found it to be a small round stone with a smooth surface.


    Lin Giru exined, "It will be very dark down there. Inject aether into the stone, it will emit light and illuminate your surrounding, allowing you to see. The others also carry simr stones."


    Amon nodded. He made ast nce at Lin Giru before turning. He caught an expectant glint in Lin Giru''s eyes.


    Let''s see what they were ying at, Amon thought and went into the hole.


    The tunnel inside the hole was nted. He slid through that narrow tunnel as gravity pulled him deeper into the tunnel. The wall of the tunnel wasposed of soft dirt so there was not much friction. His speed even picked up after a while.


    How deep was thisir? Amon was slightly astounded.


    He soon came out onto arger tunnel that was no longer going downward. His feet nted on the t ground. He held the stone given by Lin Giru and injected aether into it. The stone abruptly emitted a very strong light.


    ''Isn''t this too bright?'' Amon thought.


    He stored the stone in his space ring, his vision was engulfed by the darkness again. Taking such a ring stone around a hostile territory was the same as putting a bright beacon telling everyone he was there.


    He sat down and waited until his eyes got used to the darkness. Normally, one would take twenty to thirty minutes for this, but he used to train his eyes in his past life to get into such a condition faster. Although he was in a different body now, he also trained this body to do the same. What surprised him was that this body was even better in such adaptations. Now, he just needed around two or three minutes before he could roughly make out his surroundings despite the darkness.


    The cave tunnel in front of him bent in another direction so he could not see its end. The three young clowns were nowhere to be seen. They truly had left him behind.


    Not that he minded. It''s better if they left him so that he could operate alone. However, he didn''t think their ploy here was simply to leave him inside their of spirit beasts. He took out his Swan Dagger and moved forward carefully.<sub> </sub>


    He followed the tunnel which soon branched out in a couple of different directions. He bent down and smell the dirt. One of them had a stronger oily smell, so he went in that direction. He had to crawl as the tunnel was bing narrow again.


    He soon came out into a ratherrge cavern hall filled with packed stctite and stgmite stones. The packed stones made traversing the ce a bit like going through a maze. He stopped near the entrance and made some observations as he gazed at his surroundings. He didn''t rush in blindly because he had sensed something.


    There was something here. No, several. Amon was used to traversing dark or thinly illuminated territory in his past life. He had even fought in such conditions a lot of times. His body had learned to react not just from the information he received from his eyes, but also from his other senses. His ears, his nose, his skin, they had all been honed to be more sensitive to his environment. He could even detect killing intent directed at him, something that others in his past world attributed to a sixth sense. And at this moment, he felt faint killing intent from the existences inside this cavern hall.


    He could differentiate killing intent between one exuded by a beast and one by a human. They had different characteristics. A beast''s killing intent felt more feral, while the human''s one was more cunning. These were humans''.


    Due to sensing these killing intents, he stayed as still as possible as he continued to observe his surroundings.


    Not long after, he heard some sounds. Sounds of footsteps and fabrics rubbing against stony surfaces, someone was shuffling through the stone mazes. He then heard voices, it was a whisper, but Amon''s ears could still pick up the faint voice nevertheless, "Where is he, why hasn''t he appeared?"


    "Shh¡­ What if he hears?"


    "No way. If he is here already, we should already see him. Uncle Giru is supposed to give him the bright re stone.


    "Maybe he didn''t use it."


    "If he didn''t, how can he see anything? Do you think he is like us? To have consumed a Cat-eye pill that allows us to see in the dark?"


    "Just get back to your post! He can be here any second."


    "What do we need to be afraid of? He is just a mortal stage, one of us is enough to take care of him."


    "We need to make sure it is done properly. If Madam Lin gets news that we are responsible, we will be in trouble."


    "Probably he is lost already in the tunnels."


    "He will eventuallye. All the tunnels lead to here, and there is only one exit, he has to go through here for the exit. There is nowhere for him to go."


    "Huh, this is so boring. If uncle Fong didn''t promise us a big reward, I wouldn''t have wasted my time with that squirt."


    "Just shut up and go back to your post!"


    Several shuffling sounds and footsteps before the silence returned.


    Amon had his eyes closed to focus on listening to their whispers. He now opened his eyes, a glint of savagery in his eyes.


    ''Hehe, so they n to ambush me?'' Amon thought with amusement.


    When he started his career on the battlefield in his past life, he also started with a stealth operation. Sneaking and killing during the night. How fitting for his first mission in this world to carry the same vibe. He couldn''t help but grin widely. He was going to enjoy this.


    He stayed low and started moving. They mentioned they could see in the dark due to some drug called Cat-eye pill. So, he should assume that they could see as well as him, or even better. Yet, he was sure they couldn''t hear as well as him. He had trained himself to be able to sneak around without any footstep sound.


    There were three of them. He already knew the position of the two because they chattered. There was still another one which he could only guess the general direction from the boy''s killing intent. He decided to go for one of the two whose positions he was sure about.


    The stgmite stone mazes hindered his progress, but Amon was patient. He continued to stay low and moved slowly and silently towards his prey.


    The three hunters never expected that they would be the ones getting hunted!

 32 Chapter 32

    Amon crawled slowly and silently to the one whose position was closest to him. He could not see his prey clearly, only his general position. He did not rise to check that he was going in the right direction. Doing that would only expose his position. Those boys said that they had taken Cat-eye pills. He didn''t know how effective of a night vision ability those pills granted them, but he was not taking any risk.


    He did not hear any more sound from those boys, meaning they were stationary. He took his time to make his way over.


    Once he was in the vicinity, he still did not act recklessly. He circled around to a part where his back was facing a wall that had no openings. The three boys were paying attention to the entrances into this cavern hall, which were the various hole openings on the wall, and there were many. They would not waste time observing the part of the wall that had no openings, so that''s the location Amon knew to be the safest for making an observation.


    He rose a little bit after arriving at that spot. He took care to not make too much movement that could attract attention. He only rose enough for his eyes to study the surroundings. It took quite some time, but he was patient. He noticed a shadow moving around two to three meters in front of him, which was also the general area he guessed one of the boys to be.


    After he saw that movement, he was sure one of the boys was there. He rose further up slowly. He only had one chance for an ambush. Once the first strike was made, the two others might know his position. So, he had to make sure this first strike took out one first. These boys all had higher cultivation than him. With luck, he should be able to sneak-killed the first one silently before sneaking to the others. Going against two will be tricky. Going against three was suicide. He had to try his best to make the first strike a silent kill.


    He could make out the silhouette of the boy through the darkness. He could not be a hundred percent sure, but he thought the one in front of him was Lin Lang. The boy was having his back on him. He crept slowly to get closer, careful enough not to make any sound.


    Amon had learned from experience that when sneaking, patience was the golden rule. But when one decided to strike, one also could not afford to be indecisive. Once he got into a range where he knew he couldnd a sure-hit, he executed Silent Swift Stab.


    His Swan Dagger carried a streak of light as his body was pushed forward with explosive speed. Lin Lang must have realized something was wrong at thest moment because he jerked his body. But Amon focused his attention on his target as he approached. His hand that was holding the dagger shifted to follow Lin Lang''s movement. The sharp dended squarely into the back of his target''s neck with a soft sound.


    After getting that close, Amon could see the face of his target closely. It was indeed Lin Lang. He was wide eyes with blood streaming out of his mouth as he choked. At the front side of his neck was the Swan Dagger''s sharp end that had punctured from the back.


    Though he could make no sound, his limbs swiveled around violently, breaking the stgmites around, making noises. Amon was astounded. A cultivator''s lifeforce was indeed tenacious. A normal person would have died instantly from such a wound.


    But despite the strong vitality, Lin Lang''s struggle still died down soon as he breathed hisst. Such a fatal injury was not something his current cultivation could undo. There was a small crossbow in one of Lin Lang''s hands, it now dropped to the ground.


    Although Amon''s sneak attack was sessful, Lin Lang had also alerted his other tworades. Who now no longer stayed hidden. Realizing Lin Lang had been ambushed, the two ran to his position.


    ''There goes the chance to finish them all with stealth,'' Amon thought with pity, but he didn''t dwell on it. Situations on battlefields were always ever-changing. Experiences had thought him to always adapt quickly.


    It''s toote to hide now, Amon thought as the two approached rapidly. One of them arrived first, who should be the closest one who talked with Lin Lang in whispers some minutes ago.


    "You!" the person eximed when he was close enough. Amon identified the voice as Lin Bu. He was not talking in whisper anymore, so Amon could recognize the voice easily.


    The Cat-eye pill was pretty good, Amon deduced. Lin Bu was still a distance from where Amon was. Amon could not see Lin Bu''s face clearly. But from Lin Bu''s reaction, Lin Bu could already identify him.<sub> </sub>


    Amon could also see the shape of another crossbow in Lin Bu''s hands, it appeared that the three intended to bombard him from far away while he was being illuminated by the Bright re stone given by Lin Giru.


    Another shadow was approaching some distance away from Lin Bu''s back. Amon could not afford to wait until the two were together. He summoned a small round stone from his Space Ring. He injected aether into the stone as he closed his eyes, then threw the stone out to where Lin Bu was.


    The Bright re Stone exploded with bright light. Lin Bu''s eyes which were enhanced by the Cat-eye pill were immediately blinded by the extreme light as the stone was in too close proximity to him.


    Amon dashed forward while still covering his eyes. Lin Bu was shouting hysterically as he lost his vision.


    ''What a kid,'' Amon thought. A little bit of unexpected situation and they went into full panic. They even forgot to utilize those cultivation and martial arts they possessed.


    Amon stored his Swan Dagger. With Lin Bu making such a fuss, he had no problem determining his position. With his eyes still closed, Amon let loose the full force of Bone Shattering Shadow Fist using his two hands. The sounds of six consecutive impacts were heard, with some cracking sounds apanying theter impacts.


    Without a continuous injection of aether, the Bright re Stone soon turned dim. Amon opened his eyes and found Lin Bu was struggling to stand. Blood was pouring out of his mouth as his eyes stared widely at Amon. The small crossbow was already on the ground as he lost the strength to grip it.


    His eyes were still staring widely as if trying to make sense of what had happened when he slumped down to the floor. He seemed to still be alive but Amon did not go to check on him, because Lin Sora was already in front of him.


    Lin Sora looked at Lin Bu who was spasming on the ground before looking back at Amon. Lin Sora was the quiet bunch amongst the three boys, but his disdainful gaze on Amon was the same as the others. At this time though, that disdainful gaze was nowhere to be seen.


    The Bright re Stone was on the ground next to Lin Bu, so Amon could not use the same tactic against Lin Sora. It would have to be old-fashionedbat now. However, now that there was only one opponent, Amon had more confidence, despite his opponent having higher cultivation than him.


    Lin Sora did not waste any time, he pointed his small crossbow at Amon and shot.


    It would have been better if the guy came at him directly with his martial arts, but to try to use a ranged weapon against Amon one on one, it wasughable. As long as the ammunition traveled in a straight line, Lin Sora could forget about hitting Amon. No matter how fast the bolt traveled, Amon would have been out of its trajectory path. Amon had fought against ranged weapons so many times that his perception and senses allowed him to detect the moment just before the weapon was fired, thus he would already be out of harm''s way.


    A glint of consternation appeared in Lin Sora''s eyes when he saw Amon''s head tilt and his bolt fly past Amon''s face with only an inch to spare. At the same time, Amon was running toward him. But his surprise onlysted an instant. His hand let go of the crossbow and he stomped his feet onto the ground. His mouth opened and a loud yell apanied by a shocking shockwave exploded from his mouth.


    This sudden move took Amon by surprise, it appeared he had underestimated this boy. The other two might just be inexperienced kids, but this quiet one was instead the cool-headed one. The boy was not flustered even when met with unexpected circumstances.


    Amon managed to activate his Hardened Bronze Body just as he sensed the sudden danger. The shockwave st hit him and he felt as if he got hit by a truck. His body was thrown back and he crashed into several stgmites, destroying them all. When hended on the ground, he felt pain all over his body. No bones were broken. His skin was still bronze. His defensive art had saved his life.

 33 Chapter 33

    Amon heard rapid iing footsteps. He immediately snapped to attention. No time to think about the pain. Pain was a good thing, it meant that he was still alive. He rose and saw Lin Soraing at him with a shortsword. He took out his Swan Dagger and parried the shortsword as it came at him.


    A loud ng was heard as the two des met. Lin Sora twirled his hand holding the shortsword and broke into three images that rotated with elerated rotations. Each of the images was as if a spinning chainsaw de. Amon was not confident that his Hardened Bronze Body could withstand a direct hit against these assaults, so he made a hasty retreat as Lin Sora chased after him with the triple twirling des.


    Amon''s back suddenly hit something, there was a stgmite on his back. His movements didn''t stop, he was already jumped to the side once he felt something was blocking his back.


    Lin Sora was stunned by Amon''s response, but he also didn''t stop his assault. Amon''s sudden jump to the side had escaped his two spinning des, but the third one was still on Amon''s path. Amon used his Swan Dagger to block this third de, only for the dagger to receive a tremendous collision and got forcefully torn from Amon''s hand. The force of the impact shot the dagger directly into the cave wall and it embedded deep into the wall.


    That spinning de that had disarmed Amon suddenly changed direction and headed for Amon''s torso. Amon felt a strong impact as his body got thrown away again. He hit a stgmite, breaking it before falling to the ground. Amon was unmoving.


    Lin Sora''s spinning des stopped and revealed his shortsword again. He was panting as he looked at Amon''s still body. He did not expect he would have to go all out against this kid who was still at peak Mortal stage. He was even not expecting to have his tworades fall in this mission. This was supposed to be an easy mission.


    Lin Giru had told them before that today''s mission was a special one given personally by one of the n master''s direct descendants, Lin Fong. They were to lure Madam Lin''s adopted bastard into this supposed Greasy Horned Weasel''sir before ambushing him.


    There was never a Greasy Horned Weasel''sir. Actually, the rumor was true, but their had already been searched. Although there was a trace of the Greasy Horned Weasel, they did not find the beast. The spirit beast must have vacated thisir. Hence, this cave could be used as an ideal ce to conduct the deed. They would then simply ce the me on the illusory beast.


    The n was supposed to be simple. The target was supposed to be weak. How did it end up like this? How should he exin to Lin Bu and Lin Lang''s families when he went back?


    He gritted his teeth. Lin Giru would think of a reason for those two''s families. This was Lin Giru''s n anyway. He had done his part. He was just following orders. Let Lin Giru deal with this mess.


    His eyes looked at Amon again, whose body was still. No way the kid survived his Death Revolving de. But he should still make sure, let''s just stab the kid one more time on the head. He walked over to carry out the deed.


    When he was close enough to have a better look, he stopped. There was no blood on the ground?


    At that moment, Amon suddenly rose. His arm shot out. Lin Sora could see a sh of light from Amon''s open hand. Lin Sora was not taking any chance. Unlike his tworades, he was the more cautious type. He jumped sideways despite not knowing what Amon did. He then heard a whoosh sound as a ray of light zipped past where he stood just now.


    It was a flying knife! Lin Sora realized after seeing the object that had created that ray of light.


    But before he thought of anything further, he felt a sharp sting on the left side of his neck. His hand went to the ce and found a cold knife embedded there, he also felt hot liquid leaking out from there.<sub> </sub>


    Amon''s two arms were spread out. He had thrown out the second knife immediately after the first, predicting Lin Sora''s dodging path. The second knife hadnded urately at the target. He must admit a cultivator''s body resilience though, even without activating a defensive art, the knife still only prated halfway. If it was normal people, their heads would have been cut clean off. His knife throw was enhanced by Hundred Shooting Stars martial art that could prate even concrete.


    Still, that throw had struck a fatal spot. Lin Sora was holding his neck trying to stop the blood that was oozing out. He dared not pull out the knife as it would just tear up the wound and cause more blood to leak out. He retreated hastily, he knew he could no longerplete the mission, preserving his life was more important now.


    Lin Sora''s eyes carried the confusion as he stared at Amon. He couldn''t understand how Amon had survived his Death Revolving de. The kid''s bronze body art was supposed to not be strong enough to resist his martial art.


    Amon did not deign to exin to his prey. The main reason for his survival was because of the Self-adjusting chainmail he had worn under his shirt. Amon felt the pain from the impact. In fact, he even thought that some of his rib bones were cracked due to it. But the chainmail had prevented the de from cutting his abdomen open.


    Amon threw two more knives at Lin Sora consecutively, which Lin Sora dodged. Amon then threw a punch, three bursts of energy shot out and demolished the stgmite where Lin Sora had stood a moment ago. Lin Sora continued to avoid Amon''s assault as he put more distance from Amon. As long as he could get to the surface, Lin Giru would save him. Lin Giru could even use this excuse to execute Amon, iming that he did it to save Lin Sora''s life. All was not lost yet.


    When he almost reached the hole opening which should take him up to the surface, something hard and sharp suddenly impaled his back. He saw a long and wide deing out through his chest. He coughed blood as the pain registered. The one who held this long de then lifted him, he was hanging up in the air by the de that had impaled his chest. He tried to turn around to see who had backstabbed him, but his neck couldn''t make a sufficient turn for him to see his assant.


    Then he heard a growl. From the growl, he realized who, or rather, what had attacked him. Didn''t they say thisir was clear already? He thought in dismay, but his vision was getting blurry. He was losing too much blood.


    Lin Sora then got thrown down violently, his body was smashed to the floor and he rolled on the ground. Before he lost all vision, he saw the silhouette of the one that had attacked him. It was arge cat-like beast with a long de for a snout.


    Amon stared at the Greasy Horned Weasel, he was wondering why the three had picked this beast''sir to ambush him. Weren''t they afraid that this beast would serve as an unknown variable that could disrupt their n?


    Amon did not know that their had been considered empty from the start. He had been fighting with the awareness that the weasel might mount an ambush. As a matter of fact, he had been aware of that beast''s presence when he felt its killing intent as it approached. All the throwing knives and Bone Shattering Shadow Fist that he threw at Lin Sora, were to push him closer in the direction of the spirit beast that was hiding in the dark.


    As Amon expected, Lin Sora was not aware of the hidden danger, and the weasel attacked once Lin Sora was within range.


    But why was there only one Greasy Horned Weasel? The description on the mission board indicated that this was a pack animal. There usually was more than one in air. What Amon didn''t know was that their had been abandoned, but one of the weasel offsprings had gotten left behind. It had been surviving on its own and had developed a very cautious nature. It was very good at hiding and had avoided detection when the previous hunters came. Those hunters then dered their empty while in fact there was still one Greasy Horned Weasel inside.


    It only came out now after smelling blood within itsir. The blood was from Lin Lang and Lin Bu. Still, its cautious nature made it stay hidden. Only after sensing the two still alive ones were not that strong that it decided to strike when one of them got near.

 34 Chapter 34

    The Greasy Horned Weasel now stared at Amon as it approached slowly. Although he could sense that Amon''s aura was weaker than it, its cautious nature did not allow it to charge forward blindly.


    Amon stared back at the beast. Although he knew the spirit beast in front of him was stronger, there was no fear in his eyes. He took out two of the throwing knives strapped on his back. The one in his left hand was the normal one, while the one in his right was the one that had been imbued with the ck ughter Poison.


    He threw the normal one at the Greasy Horned Weasel, the knife created a ray of light that made it travel faster than normal. And yet, it didn''t hit its mark. After seeing Amon make the throw, the weasel scurried with an impossible speed to the side. It instantly disappeared behind the row of stgmites.


    ''So fast!'' Amon eximed. He would not be able to hit it urately with that kind of speed.


    The weasel now crept slowly, trying to circle to Amon''s back while hiding. Such an attempt was pointless, as Amon could determine its position from its killing intent. However, the weasel''s speed was a serious problem. Amon was not confident that he could dodge it if it attacked with that kind of speed. The weasel''s cautious nature had instead allowed Amon some breathing moments to think of a n.


    After a brief thought, he dashed to the cavern wall without hesitation. On a battlefield, there was no time to think of an borate fancy n. You would end up getting blown to smithereens if you were thinking too long. So, he acted on the first idea that came to his mind. He could sense the weasel noticed his sudden movement and was now giving chase.


    On the cavern wall, there were many holes. Amon was heading to the closest one. He didn''t know where it led. It didn''t matter. He just needed the narrow hole. He dashed inside before the weasel could reach him, and crawled further in.


    Once he heard the weasel was on his tail, he looked back and saw the weaseling up on him with a scary speed. He was in a narrow tunnel with a predator which was used to burrowing inside the tunnel. Such a situation was clearly a disadvantage to him. But there was one thing he was aiming for by going into this cave tunnel, it was to make it impossible for the weasel to dodge. Inside this narrow tunnel, they could only go forward or back, no other movement was possible.


    And so Amon threw the poison knife between his legs. Not one, but two consecutively. Amon did not forget about the weasel''s ded horn. When the first knife almost hit, the weasel tilted its head and the knife was smacked. However, it could only hit one knife at a time, the second one went forward as the first one was being hit. This second knife stabbed deep into the weasel''s side.


    It felt pain but it still going forward, such a small wound was not enough to keep it down. Or so it thought. For a mid inferior spirit beast such as it, the ck ughter Poison was too deadly. The engraved poison within the knife seeped into its bloodstream almost in an instant.


    It was only a few meters away from Amon when it suddenly stopped. It spasmed violently and coughed out blood from its mouth. Trails of ck blood soon also leaked from its eyes, ears, and other bodily holes. It was only a few seconds before its convulsions came to a halt and it stopped movingpletely.


    Amon breathed a relieved sigh. It was intense, his heartbeat had picked up a bit, but not because of fear and worry, but excitement. It brought him back to the time when he was still young in his past life when he first hunted a tiger in a rainforest with nothing but a dagger.


    He waited a while. After making sure that the beast was indeed dead, he crawled back and kicked the carcass out of the tunnel, before crawling out himself. He paid attention to his dark surroundings to make sure that there were no more hidden dangers.


    He went around collecting the weapons he had dropped. All his throwing knives and his Swan Dagger. He did not forget to check on the three Lin kids'' Space Ring. Disappointingly, they were empty aside from some provisions. Guess they would note to a dangerous mission bringing valuables. He left their rings, even their crossbows and other weapons where they had fallen. If he was caught with their belongings, he would be in trouble.


    He then used his Swan Dagger to cut through the snout of the Greasy Horned Weasel, separating the ded horn from its carcass. Firstly, because that was supposed to be the objective of the mission. Secondly, he needed it to reinforce his story.


    He used the ded horn and stabbed the three Lin kids where he had wounded them, masking their wounds to make it look as if it was done by the spirit beast. He could have used his poison knives to easily defeat the three, but if any of them were killed by poison, it would be a harder story to sell.


    Once he was done, he left all the Lin corpses and the weasel''s carcass where they were. He only took the ded horn and stored it in his Space Ring. He then went to the hole opening that Lin Sora had been trying to get to during his retreat. He assumed that would be the one that brought him to the exit of this cave.


    His hunch was right. After following the tunnel for a while, he saw light at the other end. He finally came out to the open air.


    "Lin Mo?" A questioning voice was heard from behind. Amon turned back to see Lin Giru and Lin Guo stood not far away. Lin Giru''s expression was especially bewildered. Amon deduced that the guy did not expect to see him alive again after he went down the hole.<sub> </sub>


    Amon came over to them. Although Lin Guo had also persuaded him to go down their, he did not believe the guy dared to defy Madam Lin''s order openly.


    "Where are the others?" Lin Giru asked after getting ahold of himself.


    "Dead," Amon said tly.


    "Dead?!" Lin Giru screeched. "How¡­ How can it be¡­? You are lying!"


    "You are weed to go down there and check," Amon replied.


    "It''s impossible¡­! You¡­ you kill them!"


    "They were killed by the Greasy Horned Weasel," Amon said.


    "No way! There is no more Greasy Horned Weasel in their," Lin Giru yelled loudly.


    Amon frowned. ''So, that''s why¡­ Apparently, the mission was a fake one. They had checked this ce beforehand and assumed their was empty. In other words, that one weasel was an unexpected existence.''


    Lin Guo also frowned. Madam Lin had instructed him to keep Amon safe. Although he was not too fond of the kid, he was loyal to the Madam. Lin Giru had told him prior that their only had a few young Greasy Horned Weasel, and his three subordinates would keep the kid safe. There was no need to worry about sending Amon down into their without their supervision. Lin Giru had even given him a few valuables saying that they were to express his admiration for him and he wished that they could be good friends. Lin Guo had a good feeling about the guy and trusted him. But why did he now say that there was no Greasy Horned Weasel in their? Wasn''t this mission all about that spirit beast?


    Lin Giru had probably realized he had lost his wits and blurted out unnecessary words. He calmed himself before saying, "What I''m trying to say is, that it''s impossible if the Greasy Horned Weasel attacked you all. The three of them died while you survived. You must have made it up!"


    "So, are you saying it makes more sense for me to murder three Strength stage cultivators with my cultivation?" Amon asked.


    Lin Giru was about to say more things but Amon''sment made him choke. It was indeed the same impossible situation.


    He then said, "You¡­ you must have used dirty tricks!"


    "Why do you insist that it is me that has caused their deaths. Why you can''t believe the Greasy Horned Weasel could have killed them? The beast was stronger than me. If you say I can kill those three, then the beast has more capability to do it," Amon stated.


    "It''s¡­ It''s because¡­"


    "Are you going to say again that there is no more Greasy Horned Weasel in thisir?" Amon asked while Lin Giru was stammering. Amon then took out the ded horn from the weasel he had killed.


    "This is the proof that there are Greasy Horned Weasel down there," He said.

 35 Chapter 35

    Lin Giru''s eyes went wide when he saw the ded horn. Lin Guo came forward and checked the horn.


    "This is indeed the ded horn from a Greasy Horned Weasel," Lin Guo confirmed.


    "Are you ready to listen to my exnation now?" Amon asked Lin Giru.


    Lin Giru was still lost for words.


    "Tell us," It was Lin Guo who had asked.


    "We went down there and searched for the Greasy Horned Weasel together. We managed to track one down and worked together to kill it. I was ordered to cut the ded horn off from the dead beast. While I was doing the task, suddenly more weasels came out. The three seniors were fighting those beasts but there were just too many. Seeing as I was the youngest, the three honorable seniors told me to go first while they held the beasts down. Though I was unwilling, I know that my ability is limited. So I ran as fast as possible. I heard their death screams while I was running, that''s how I know they had died to the beasts."


    "Yo¨Cyou are lying¡­!" Lin Giru eximed.


    "Why do you say that?" Amon asked calmly.


    "Be¡­ because¡­" was all Lin Giru could say. He was lost in finding the excuse to counter Amon''s statement. Unless he revealed their real mission''s objective was assassinating Amon, he couldn''t deny the falseness of Amon''s report.


    Lin Guo, however, knew that Amon was not telling the truth. Simply because the story said the three seniors had sacrificed themselves to save Amon. Those three were not that altruistic. He had also seen their disdainful nce at Amon throughout the journey. They couldn''t have risked their lives for Amon. But then again, those three were not his responsibility. Amon was his responsibility. So, he did not refute Amon''s story.


    "You¡­ Go down and bring their bodies back up here!" Lin Giru finally said after trying to collect his thoughts.


    "Are you crazy? Do you not listen to what I''ve just said. I was running for my life to escape that ce. Now you are asking me to return. Do you want the three honorable seniors'' sacrifices to go in vain?"


    The mention of three honorable seniors brought anger to Lin Giru''s head. If he couldn''t control himself, he would have struck this kid down where he stood. But there was Lin Guo here, he could not do as he wished.


    "Let''s return first," Lin Guo said. "The loss of the three is unfortunate, but there is nothing we can do for now."


    "We have to get their bodies back!" Lin Giru insisted.


    "Then you are wee to go down there. With your cultivation, it should be no problem to deal with those weasels," Amon said.


    "I can''t go in! The hole is too small!" Lin Giru almost screamed.


    "Then there is nothing we can do here," Lin Guo said again. "It will take too long to dig a hole and make itrge enough for us. My concern here is Amon''s safety. I will take him back. He had alreadypleted his mission of getting the ded horn of the Greasy Horned Weasel anyway. We wille back another time with manpower to dig into thisir."


    Lin Giru was unwilling, but with Lin Guo here, there was nothing he could do. Finally, he relented and followed them back. Throughout their return journey, he wasmenting about how he should exin to Lin Fong and the three boy''s families.


    After they arrived back at the Lin estate, Lin Giru went off by himself. He was not in the mood to hand in the mission. Amon bet he was going to report to Lin Fong.


    Lin Guo continued to follow Amon to the n mission center. Lin Guo used the jademunication device to let Madam Lin know that he and Amon were back on the estate already.


    Amon went to the counter on the second floor and gave his identification token to be checked. He then gave his mission report and handed over the ded horn.


    Due to Amon being the only surviving member, the entire mission points were given to him. He received four hundred mission points. From what Madam Lin had informed him, Lin Weida had given him a requirement to gather at least three hundred mission points every three months. This was the condition for staying within the Lin n.<sub> </sub>


    This number was given with the consideration that he would be undertaking E-level missions, which generally granted ten to a hundred points. A hundred points E-level missions would usually require several mortal stage cultivators to work together. And the mission length was usually around one to ten days.


    For D-level missions, they generally gave around one hundred to five hundred points. With the same logic where the mission that granted higher points would require more cultivators to perform.


    Amon was lucky. Due to Lin Fong''s ploy, he had instead gained the required mission points in just one mission. Now, he could go back to focus on his cultivation and training before he had to return to doing missions again.


    He asked the counter to be shown the item list that he could exchange with his mission points. The counter gave him a piece of paper. On the paper were written several items with the points required. Most were lower-level pills and low-tier engraved weapons. There was no martial arts nor cultivation arts book.


    The counter informed him that it was a limited list because he was not considered a real Lin n member.


    Amon returned the list. He had no interest in such petty items on the list. In this case, he would not focus too much on doing missions. He would just do it to get the lowest required mission points before going back to focus on cultivation and training again.


    When Amon walked out of the mission center, he saw Madam Lin waiting outside. Lin Guo excused himself after Madam Lin met with Amon.


    Madam Lin asked how the mission was. Amon had no intention to tell her how the three Lin boys had tried to assassinate him. Instead, he told her the same story as the one he told Lin Giru, about how the three made noble sacrifices to allow him to live.


    Madam Lin sighed as shemented the loss of young blood, but noted that such misfortunes did happen from time to time. The life of a cultivator was not a peaceful one. One needed to be ready to face death at every turn.


    She told Amon that she would make donations to the grieving families since those children had helped hers toe back alive.


    Amonmented that she was a very kind woman, to which she onlyughed it off. Amon then asked if she could take him to meet uncle Lin Fong.


    Madam Lin was confused. The way she remembered it, the rtionship between that brother of hers and this adopted son of hers was not exactly sunshine. So, it was surprising for Amon to make such a request.


    Amon told her that he would like to talk with Lin Fong about the mission as there were some details he wanted to check with him. He also added that he knew that uncle Lin Fong had some dissatisfaction with him, if he could start having a conversation with him, probably their rtionship could be better.


    Madam Lin was surprised by Amon''s willingness to form a better rtionship with her family, so she agreed to it. She took him to a housingplex that was no less impressive than where she and Amon stayed. The servants and guards recognized her and bowed to her as she passed. They went directly to the biggest house.


    They heard some shouting and punching sounds as they approached.


    Madam Lin recognized the voice that did the shouting to be her brother. She wondered if her brother was in a fight with someone?


    "Perhaps it is not a good time to visit," Madam Lin said to Amon.


    "We are already here, might as well say hi to him," Amon said. He had an inkling as to who Lin Fong was shouting at.


    When they came to the courtyard of Lin Fong''s house, someone was on the ground full of bruises. Lin Fong was standing over the guy while continuing yelling profane words, asionally kicking the poor guy in the process.


    It took a while to recognize the person on the ground due to all the bruises, but after careful observation, Madam Lin remembered the person to be Lin Giru, the overseer of his son''s mission just now. Madam Lin wondered what kind of mistakes he hadmitted to deserve such a beating from his brother.


    "Fong," Madam Lin called out.


    "Can''t you see I am¡­!" Lin Fong turned around while scolding at the same time. But his scolding was choked partway when he saw it was Madam Lin who hade.

 36 Chapter 36

    "Sis¡­ sister, youe¡­ You should have told me earlier. I would have prepared first," Lin Fong said. His angry tone waspletely gone, reced by a joyful expression for seeing his sister visiting him again. But then when he noticed Amon, his joyful expression turned back to sour.


    "What happened? Why are you so angry with him?" Madam Lin asked Lin Fong, indicating to Lin Giru who was full of bruises on the ground.


    Lin Giru''s eyes, stared at Amon, hatred was clear in his gaze.


    Lin Fong gave Lin Giru a disdainful nce before answering his sister, "don''t need to talk about this ipetent trash. He can''t evenplete a simple mission, and ended up causing casualties."


    "Are you talking about the mission to acquire the horn of the Greasy Horned Weasel? Amon had told me. The mission was still a sess since they got an intact ded horn. But yes, the loss of three talented youngsters indeed did not worth a measly horn. Still, aren''t you a bit too harsh on him? Danger apanies every mission. There is no need to beat him up till that extent."


    Lin Fong harrumph. He said to Lin Giru, "You are lucky my sister spoke up for you. Now go! Inform the families of those three kids and gave them appropriatepensation. I will dock them from your wages!"


    Lin Giru stood up hurriedly. He thanked Lin Fong for sparing him and thanked Madam Lin for speaking up for him. His eyes stopped for a moment at Amon. He forced his mouth shut. Otherwise, emotion might get the better of him. He turned around and walked limply out of the courtyard.


    This was the fate of a ve, Amon thought. Just as in his past world, the weak would only be the ythings of those in power. No matter whether it was his fault or not, Lin Giru''s only sin was being weak. Only by being stronger than others that one could determine one''s own fate and not get rocked around by others'' whims. He had learned this long ago in his past life. He could not afford to be weak in that life and he could not be weak in this one as well.


    "What brings you here, sister?" Lin Fong asked Madam Lin with a bright smile.


    "Actually, I have no intention ofing here. It is Amon who is looking for you," Madam Lin answered.


    Lin Fong''s smile froze upon hearing that. His gaze turned to Amon. What was this little devil nning? He thought.


    "Uncle, can we speak in private?" Amon asked with a respectful salute.


    "Mo, maybe mother should apany you during your talk," Madam Lin offered.


    "Mother, I need to speak with uncle Fong alone. If mother is around, we won''t be able to speak honestly. I want us all to be harmonious with one another," Amon said.


    Seeing his sincerity, Madam Lin was touched. She said, "all right, I will leave you two."


    "Mother, this won''t take long. Do you mind waiting for a while in that gazebo?" Amon asked. "Uncle Fong and I can talk inside his house for a while."


    "All right then, I will wait over there," Madam Lin said. She walked towards the gazebo and called a servant to prepare tea for her.


    Lin Fong was gazing at Amon suspiciously. "What are you going at, little rascal?" He asked.


    "Let''s talk inside," Amon was already walking towards the entrance of the house.


    Lin Fong didn''t have a good feeling about the kid''s intention, but he had no reason to fear the kid as well. So he walked over.


    Amon went inside the house and stood at the entrance. Lin Fong walked past him and went to one of the chairs decorating the entrance hall. He sat on it and then gestured to the chairs beside him. "Sit," he said to Amon.


    Amon peeked at Madam Lin who was enjoying tea underneath the gazebo before closing the door. However, he did not walk over to sit beside Lin Fong. He continued to stand beside the entrance door.


    "I will talk from here. You will talk from there. If you do any sudden movement, I can easily barge out this door. Even though you are much stronger than me, you won''t be able to kill me instantly before motheres to my rescue."


    Lin Fong frowned at his words. "I can''t kill you instantly? You overestimate yourself, kid."


    "Perhaps, or perhaps not. Let us drop all the pretense. We both know you are the one nning for those three kids to kill me during the mission. Considering that you didn''t mind mother knows that you are the one arranging the mission. That means if the mission is sessful and I am murdered, you don''t mind mother suspecting you as the culprit. You probably think that mother''s affection for me is simply temporary. That once I''m gone, even though she suspects you as the culprit. She will get over it with time and forgive you eventually, considering you two are real flesh and blood siblings while I am only a fake child. So, even if you kill me now in the open. You think that she will forgive you sooner orter, but that is considering if you managed to kill me. If you failed, she will keep me by her side even tightly and hate you even more."<sub> </sub>


    "What are you getting at, kid?" Lin Fong asked with annoyance.


    "I''m asking you to not try anything rash. Also, I want to tell you that you underestimate your sister''s motherly instinct. Even though I am not her real child, if she suspects you to be the one responsible for my death, her anger toward you will not be something that will be healed with time. You will forever lose that sister you adore so much."


    "So, is this how you threaten me with? To warn me not to do anything to you or else I will lose my sister?"


    "No, this is not my purpose for speaking with you. I want to speak to you now because I want to make a deal with you."


    "A deal? What kind of deal?"


    "Eight years," Amon said.


    "Eight years of what?" Lin Fong asked with bewilderment.


    "Give me eight years in this Lin n. After that, propose to your father to send me to the royal academy."


    "Royal academy?"


    Amon nodded. "If I am sent to the royal academy, I won''t be wasting the Lin n''s resources. But more importantly, you won''t have to see me anymore. I give you my promise, once I get to the academy, I will not return to this ce. Then you can have your sister all to yourself."


    "You are kidding, right? The spot for the royal academy is not a joke. These spots are also important to our n. People that we sent to the royal academy will be the link that connects us to the royal family. If they do well, they will get a good position in the kingdom, and thus benefit our n in return. It is not something that is given to an outsider like you."


    "I understand the Lin n is allowed four candidates to apply to the academy. Giving me one should not hurt your n''s chance to get that good position you mentioned. And how do you know I will not benefit the Lin n if I get that good position? Most important of all is that I will be far away from your sister once I enter the academy. You know she can''t follow me there."


    "Why don''t you ask her to refer you as a candidate?"


    "She won''t do that. Considering her attachment to me, she won''t agree to let me go."


    <o>,m "Even if I endorse you. There is no certainty for you to join the academy. The entrance test is no joke. Not everyone can pass."</o>


    "You let me worry about that. I can promise you, even if I fail, I will not return here. How about that?"


    Lin Fong pondered for a long while, he then said, "Even if I promote you to be a candidate, there will be many others that give their endorsement as well. There will be a selection trial to pick which amongst the young generations will be taking the spots for the royal academy. It''s not as if you will be sure to be picked once I give my support."


    "Same as myst statement. You let me worry about that. Same offer as well, if I fail. I will leave this n by myself. All you need to do is make sure that I am amongst the young generations that enter this selection trial."


    Lin Fong was silent again. He massaged his chin as he pondered.


    Amon didn''t let him think too long. "You can take this deal, or we continue to do these cat and mouse things. But sooner orter, your sister will realize your intention. At that time, I will goad her to protect me deeply and make her forcefully keep me by her side. With the reason of keeping me safe from you, I believe even your father can''t force her to relinquish me."


    Lin Fong gave him a displeased expression for the words.


    "Or, you can take my offer," Amon continued. "You just need to bear with me for eight years and then I''m gone for good. Hey, I might even try to sweet-talk mother into making up with you. You can have your harmonious brother-sister rtionship again."


    Lin Fong''s face was back to his contemting expression again.


    "So, what say you?" Amon asked.

 37 Chapter 37

    After returning with Madam Lin to their housingplex, Amon returned to his routine. Practicing martial arts, cultivating, and studying poison. For the engraving, the basic was all that he could learn at the time. He would need to find a better book or have a teacher to teach him if he was to continue with that subject. Blindly experimenting would not yield him much result, not to mention he had no time for such a random experiment.


    As for his negotiation with Lin Fong. The guy didn''t give him any definite answer, but he said he would think about it. Amon warned him that if he tried to harm him again in any way, then the deal was off. He would cling to Madam Lin forever and Lin Fong could forget about getting rid of him.


    Of course, Amon did not think that his warning would be enough to deter Lin Fong if the guy truly wanted to harm him. Amon was more careful now of his surroundings. He almost never went out from Madam Lin''s housingplex except to do the missions for the minimum required points.


    When he was doing the missions, at least Lin Fong didn''t use any trick to force him into taking a particr mission anymore. He was free to choose his mission. He always took the second floor D difficulty mission, as he did not have the time to carry out numerous E difficulty missions that granted fewer points.


    For the mission he took, he mainly chose a mission that could do solo. Firstly, because this mission was usually easier. Secondly, he didn''t trust anyone to work together on the mission.


    This solo mission didn''t grant as many points as thest Greasy Horned Weasel mission, so he usually needed to do two or three missions toplete the required quota of his three-month minimum points. It usually took him one to two weeks toplete the missions before he went back to focus on his training and cultivation.


    The missions mostly consisted of hunting spirit beasts, but there were also other more variated types such as delivering a dangerous package and collecting intel. There was also one assassination mission he had taken. He had no problempleting all that. The missions not only gave him practical exp but also helped him know more about this world.


    The points that he amassed, he had no interest to exchange as there were no worthy items that were avable to him. Even after sessfullypleting one mission after another, there was no indication from the Lin n to ept him as a proper member of the n. He did not know if it was Lin Fong''s doing or another. From what he remembered, the big brother of Madam Lin was also not too fond of himself. But unlike Lin Fong, that big shot probably considered dealing with a kid like Amon to be beneath him, so he never took any action against him.


    Madam Lin, who knew about Amon''s collection of unused points, had brought him with her to the n mission center for a personal visit with its manager. Although she couldn''t force the manager to open up more item lists that can be exchanged for Amon''s mission points, she demanded that Amon be allowed to sell these points for Aer stones.


    The manager conceded. He was only prohibited to give out valuable items to Amon, but exchanging for Aer stones was not a problem. The n had more than enough of it.


    Amon was also happy with it. Rather than having useless points, might as well exchange them for Aer stones. These stones were considered themon currency of this world, so he could buy something valuable outside since the n was not willing to part their valuables for him.


    He must say this pretend mother of his was indeed useful, which made him slightly regretful to throw her away once her usefulness was done in the future. Just slightly.


    Three years passed quickly. The mission points that he exchanged had given him 350 Aer stones, which he had not yet spent all this time. Lin Fong seemed to also n to go with Amon''s n since there was no attack anymore all this while, but that didn''t mean Amon let down his guard. Amon remained vignt all the time. There were still another five years till their promised time.


    The reason why Amon had proposed an eight years timeline was that the academy only epted candidates of age fifteen to twenty. Amon was actually only seven years when he negotiated with Lin Fong, hence eight years was the earliest he was eligible to enter the academy.<sub> </sub>


    He could not lie to the royal academy about his age as he did to the Lin people, because he had read that during the entrance trial, the academy would use a tool to measure the candidate''s age. If he was found out to be too young, he would be sent back.


    Within these three years, Amon cultivation had also improved greatly. He had broken through to the Strength stage of the Human realm a year after his first mission. At this time, he was already at the intermediate Strength stage of the Human realm. With his increased cultivation, he could take a riskier mission for more points. But he remained taking missions from the second floor, the third floor with C-level missions was meant for the Transformation stage cultivator. They were not something he could take on yet.


    His martial arts also underwent improvement. Both his Hardened Bronze Body and Silent Swift Stab had reached Master level. His bronze state could now be maintained for a full minute and the defense it provided was also much stronger. As for Silent Swift Stab, his Master level allowed him to turn invisible during execution. It was now his perfect ambushing move.


    With that, all his martial arts were already at the Master level. Sadly, none was able to be upgraded to Grandmaster level yet. It was indeed as Hei Gong had said, Grandmaster level was not something that could be achieved with just hard work alone.


    He had looked over the other martial arts from Hei Gong. None of them caught his interest since they used other types of weapons. So he did not learn them. He did not n to use too many types of weapons.


    There were, however, the three arcane art books. He understood that arcane art was the type of art that utilized the world''s elements. Just like those exhibited by Madam Lin''s entourage when they fought against the Crimson Grimalkin. This art was much harder to learn than a martial art.


    Of the three books he possessed, two of them required him to be at least Transformative stage of the Human realm. Only thest one allowed him to learn with his current Strength stage. He had started learning it when he broke through to this stage.


    Amon found learning it to be very confusing at first since it contained the theory about the utilization of elemental energy which he was unfamiliar with. This arcane art was unlike martial arts that utilized the understanding of his body and its movement which he was more familiar with. He also had no one to teach him so he was at a loss at first. He did not ask Madam Lin for guidance as he knew she was not a teacher type. Asking her might instead cause her to view him unfavorably, which was not something Amon could afford at this time.


    With persistence, Amon slowly understood the teachings described in the book. Arcane arts required mental control over the aether, which was actually not a single entity. It wasposed of different elemental energy. One needed to iste a specific element within the aether before they extracted it and used it as a fuel for the arcane arts.


    The process of understanding and extracting this inner elemental energy took Amon one whole year. When he finally grasped the method, he could then start to properly train the arcane arts.


    The arcane art that he trained was named Water Slicing Ring. It was an art that used the water element of aether to form a ring made of water. The water element had the characteristic of being highly adaptive. It could form any shape. In this case, the art was forcing the water to be as thin as possible into a ring shape and making it rotate at extreme speed. Any object that came into contact with the ring would be sliced apart.


    This art reminded Amon of the spinning sword art executed by Lin Sora during their fight.


    When Amon started to be able to perform this art, it took him around five seconds to form the ring from nothingness to the state in which it could cut a wooden tree apart. He was very disappointed by it. In abat situation, he was most likely killed already if he took so long to get this art ready. To make matter worse, the water ring onlysted a few seconds.

 38 Chapter 38

    It took him some time before he reached Skilled mastery of the art, allowing him only one second to form the water ring. This one second still gave him dissatisfaction. Although it was just a brief one second, this pause could be the difference between life and death.


    He was currently ten years old. He had another five years to train, he should be able to reach the Master level for this arcane art before he took the entrance trial of the academy.


    His study on the 101 primal poison tome did not progress much, mostly because he didn''t have the required ingredients to experiment with. Madam Lin had been supportive of his alchemy study and had continuously supplied him with standard ingredients.


    Despite not being able to create the poison described in the next pages of the tome, Amon used the knowledge he had gained to manipte the standard ingredients into a sufficiently potent poison. He created his own mix of poison that was shaped into a small pebble. This pebble could be used as a thrown weapon that would break upon impact. It would then release a cloud of gas, which if inhaled, would cause instant paralyzation of bodily function.


    Because the ingredients used weremon ones, its potency was not that strong. However, it should still affect Transformative stage cultivators for a short period. As for Strength stage cultivators, they would most likely be unable to move for a whole day. For Mortal stage and non-cultivators, they would most likely die after inhaling this poison.


    He called this creation Poison Cloud Bullet. Amon made thirty of these poison bullets to add to his arsenal.


    *


    One day during his ten years of age, he decided to go into the city even when he had no mission. He wanted to see what he could get with his 446 Aer stones.


    The city was full of shops selling mundane things for the normal citizens'' daily use. Shops that catered to cultivators'' needs were located in one section of the city, called Profound Treasure Market. It was separated from the normal shops to prevent conflict between cultivators and the normal citizens. As cultivators usually looked down on non-cultivators.


    The shops in this market were set up by various powers of the city, but its overall management was controlled by the ruling power, the White Cloud Sect. The justification was to maintain neutrality among the different powers within the market, but the true reason was rather so the sect could control and manage those powers'' growth within the market.


    Many sect followers were standing around the Profound Treasure Market. They served as enforcers within the market to prevent anyone from causing a problem. The weakest of these enforcers were peak Strength stage cultivators. Amon could easily identify them from their attires which were white robes with a cloud symbol on their backs.


    Profound Treasure Market was always bustling on a daily basis. The shops sold various types of goods needed or produced by cultivators. There were shops that sold spirit beast parts, healing and restoration pills, exotic ingredients and herbs, Engraved weapons and armors. There were even some shops that sold martial and arcane art books, but mostly low-tier ones.


    He had learned through more readings inside Madam Lin''s personal library that arts were also divided into several tiers.


    Although he didn''t roam around the Lin estate most of the time, he did go from time to time to observe the training of the young generations of the Lin n. He noticed that although the quality of their arts was not bad, those arts had a certain quality distinctionpared to the arts he got from the Hei n.


    The arts that those Lin children practiced, didn''t differ much when between their mastery levels. The arts only improved a bit in their power when they leveled up, for example from Skilled mastery to Expert mastery. While his arts improved significantly, especially after reaching the Master level.


    His arts could be considered as low tiers at their Beginning and Skilled mastery. But after reaching Expert, they were as good as mid-tier arts. For his Silent Swift Stab, after reaching the Master level and gaining the ability to turn invisible, this art could even be considered high-tier art.


    After some pondering, he thought maybe these were the arts that the Hei n kept from when they were still among the top ns in the past. Most of their more prominent arts might have been razed, but these arts which at first nce appeared as low-tier arts were left behind. Hei n did not sell them off because they knew of these arts'' potential.


    After browsing through the martial and arcane books, he did not find anything he was interested in. He went to the weapon shop. He would like to find a bow or crossbow, he still had a martial art book from the Hei n which could be used in conjunction with this ranged weapon. He already had throwing weapons for rangedbat, but this kind of weapon had limited range. If he could use a bow as well, it should increase his lethality range even further.


    He looked around the shops but didn''t see any that caught his eyes. Mostly they sold melee weapons, like axes, swords, and spears. Swords were especially popr as he saw that one-third of the market was popted by this type of weapon. He, on the other hand, was never interested in a sword. He thought they only looked elegant, but not truly effective. He always thought that they were too clumsy. He preferred a dagger. His current dagger was good but the shape was too ornamental. He hope he could find one that resembled the military knife he used to wield in his past life.


    As he was walking around, he saw a rather imposing shop. It was thergest he had seen in this market. It had a luxurious-looking fa?ade and consisted of several floors. Without hesitation, Amon went in to take a look. The shop sold various kinds of things, but mostly weapons and armor. They were all expensive, with price ranges that were outside of Amon''s current stock of Aer stones. Again, most of the weapons were melee weapons with swords as the majority.<sub> </sub>


    He saw a stair that allowed him to go up to the second floor. He was about to go up the stairs when he was stopped by the two guards guarding the stairs.


    "Kid. Where do you think you are going? The upper floors are only meant for exclusive customers and respectable individuals," the guard said.


    "How for one be considered an exclusive customer and respectable individual?" Amon asked.


    <o>,m The guard chuckled, "For sure, it is not a brat like you. Do you even have enough Aer stones to be in this shop?"</o>


    Amon saw that he wouldn''t be allowed to go up. He was still weak now, not wise to cause trouble. He turned around and left without any further words.


    "Kid these days, no manner," The guardmented.


    At this time, three people came down from upstairs. One was a teenager. Another was a young adult with a slightly overweight body. The third one was a rough-looking adult who appeared to be a bodyguard for his two youngerpanions.


    The teenager saw Amon''s back as Amon walked away. He immediately recognized Amon. He said something to the fat young adult beside him, who smiled as his fatpanion gave an instruction to the bodyguard. The bodyguard jumped forward using movement art and arrived in front of Amon in an instant.


    The guards who were guarding the stairs frowned, who dared to use arts in this shop? Though these people came from upstairs which meant that they were exclusive customers, it didn''t mean that they were allowed to break the rules. They paid attention to this individual to see if he would cause any further problems.


    Amon, who suddenly found someone blocking his path, studied this individual. He also knew the rules of this market. No one sane enough would try to cause trouble here unless they wished to confront the White Cloud sect.


    "My master would like to have some words with you," the person blocking Amon said as he gestured to Amon''s back.


    Amon turned and saw two peopleing toward him. Both were individuals he recognized. The teenager was Lin Xiaoying, the one he had beaten to a pulp many years ago. While the fat young adult was Lin Zuyi, Madam Lin and Lin Fong''s direct nephew.


    Amon just looked at them without saying anything.


    "Look at this, the bastard who thought he can profit off our family," Lin Xiaoying didn''t waste time to start mocking Amon when he arrived.


    Lin Zuyi quickly joined in, "indeed, indeed. I wonder how he has the face toe to this market with his bastard status. I bet he has been tricking my aunt to give him Aer stones."


    "What a pity. Madam Lin has always been the smart one. How can he get tricked by such a brat? Big brother Zuyi, you should visit your aunt more. She might need your words to wake her up."


    "Sigh. I am just worried that other ns willugh at us if they know we have such a bottom-feeder inside our n."


    "Look. He was so ashamed that he was at a loss for words."


    Amon just smiled as they continued to mock him. After they seemed to stop, he looked at Lin Xiaoying, grinned, and said, "How are you doing, loser?"

 39 Chapter 39

    "How dare you!" Lin Xiaoying was just about to attack Amon for the insult when he was stopped by Lin Zuyi.


    "Control yourself," Lin Zuyi said. "Can''t you see he is provoking you? Those guards there have their eyes on us."


    Lin Xiaoying looked back and saw the two guards staring at them.


    "Not only are you a loser, but you are also dumb. It''s a good thing you bring a friend who still has half a brain."


    "You¡­!"


    Lin Zuyi chuckled, "Are you insulting me as well? Saying I only have half a brain?"


    "Since you are associating with this trash, I consider you having half a brain as a fact, not an insult," Amon replied.


    Lin Zuyi''s expression was slightly distorted. "Do not think that just because you have Aunt Xi''s protection, you can act like you want to. You are just someone who lives off our n. Do you think you have the right to bepared with us?"


    "If you remembered correctly, I made a deal with the master of the Lin n. I did my share of missions every three months to earn my ce, so no one has the right to say I live off the n. Also, why do I need to bepared with trashes like you two?"


    Lin Zuyi''s face which was aloof at the start was now filled with an expression that signified anger. They were supposed to make fun of this bastard, how dare he mocked them instead.


    "You seemed to be displeased. If you want to fight. Let''s fight. How about we go one round at the Lin n''s training arena?" Amon asked.


    The training area was the ce where the young generation did their duel. Even adults sometimes had a bout there. Fightings amongst ns were prohibited, but conflicts always happened in a n that pursued the cultivation way. The training arena was the ce where one could issue a formal challenge for a public duel. A referee would be present in the arena to make sure the duel was proceeding fairly.


    Of course, there were some shes that happened behind closed doors such as Amon''s fight with Lin Xiaolong''s group. As long as there was no loss of life or permanent cripplings, the n would turn a blind eye.


    Both Lin Zuyi and Lin Xiaoying didn''t respond to the challenge. Even though they considered Amon a nobody, they still kept a tab on his improvement. From what they heard, he was already at the intermediate Strength stage of the Human realm. While Lin Xiaoying was still at the beginning Strength stage.


    For Lin Zuyi, he had improved to the peak Strength stage, but he was much older than Amon. Fighting Amon even if he won, would not bring any glory. He could be mocked instead. If he lost, he would have no face to see anyone anymore. Not that he thought he could lose, but he had heard the story of how Amon had beaten Lin Xiaoying when Amon''s cultivation was lower. It would be unwise to take a risk when there was no benefit to gain.


    Lin Xiaoying was, of course, even more mum to the challenge. He had lost to Amon when his cultivation was higher. What more of now. In fact, he had med Amon for his slow improvement. He considered Amon to have be his internal demon. His defeat had caused his confidence to drop significantly, which affected his mental state and influenced his cultivation speed.


    "Hmph, Lin Mo, I suggest you know your ce," Lin Zuyi said as he controlled his emotion. "There are plenty of ways for us to deal with a nobody like you. If you think Aunt Xi can protect you, you are greatly mistaken."


    "Are you expecting me to just drop dead and let you nder me like your dog servant there?" Amon said as he gestured at Lin Xiaoying.


    "I am his friend, not his servant!" Lin Xiaoying uttered with a red face.


    Amon gave him a side nce and said, "Bad dog. Don''t interrupt when your master is talking with his equal."


    His remark made Lin Xiaoying almost burst into rage. If Lin Zuyi was not holding him, he might have caused a scene.


    "I''ve said it before, he is trying to goad you into breaking the rule here. Don''t fall for his ploy," Lin Zuyi said to Lin Xiaoying, who was trying his best to restrain himself.


    "Heh, useless," Amon mocked before turning around. He was not interested to talk with these two any longer. However, Lin Zuyi''s bodyguard who had blocked his path the first time came to his front again.


    This bodyguard said, "My master is not done talking to you. And you are very rude to my master, apologize at once!"<sub> </sub>


    "Another dog?" Amon said loudly. He then turned to Lin Zuyi. "You enjoyed bringing many dogs when you are having a walk? Do you get off from having dogs following you around or something like that?"


    Despite turning to Lin Zuyi, Amon was inspecting the bodyguard''s facial expression as he made the remark. The bodyguard didn''t exhibit any visible discontent despite his words.


    ''A true dog,'' Amon thought. He might have to be careful then. If Lin Zuyi gave the order for this bodyguard to attack, the bodyguard might attack without fear of consequences upon his own well-being for offending the White Cloud sect.


    But Lin Zuyi didn''t give the order to attack. Instead, he gave the order to let Amon go, "let him go. We are just degrading ourselves if we deal with trash like him."


    The bodyguard stepped aside. Amon resumed his walk, heading out of the store. Lin Zuyi gave him a warning, "Watch your back!"


    Amon stopped for a bit as he replied, "I always do." He then went out of the store.


    Lin Xiaoying said to Lin Zuyi with discontent, "Big brother Zuyi, are we really to just let him go like that? He is just too cocky. We have to do something or else he will think that he can profit off our Lin n."


    Lin Zuyi was silent. In fact, he had done something before. When Lin Fong discussed his dissatisfaction with Madam Lin''s act of adopting Amon as her child, he had been the one that proposed the assassination n during Amon''s first mission. The trio Lin Bu, Lin Sora, and Lin Lang were his underlings. He was the one that proposed these three for the job. But never had he expected that it was the three that lost their lives instead.


    He still didn''t know how that could have happened. Only those three and Amon knew the truth of what happened inside the cave. Was it truly just bad luck with the appearance of the Greasy Horned Weasel? The Lin n had sent an investigative team to the cave as soon as they received the report. There was indeed a corpse of Greasy Horned Weasel near the corpses of the three kids. And the three indeed had wounds caused by the ded horn of the weasel.


    But the thing that he couldn''t understand the most was his uncle Lin Fong had decided to stay away from this kid. He had gone to his uncle again to propose more ploys, but Lin Fong simply showed disinterest. He didn''t understand what had happened to make this uncle of his change his mind.


    But even without his uncle''s backing, it''s not like he couldn''t do anything.


    "Don''t worry, let him enjoy his days a little bit more," Lin Zuyi said. A wicked grin appeared on his chubby face.


    "You have a n, brother Zuyi?" Lin Xiaoying asked.


    "Follow me," Lin Zuyi simply replied.


    Lin Zuyi took them to another shop in the Profound Treasure Market. It was a store that sold spirit beast monster parts. The storekeeper greeted them warmly seeing their wealthy attires.


    "Take me to your manager," Lin Zuyi said.


    The storekeeper seemed at a loss at how to reply when another voice was heard from deep in the store, "It is a pleasure to be visited by the young master of the Lin n. What can we do for you?" An elegant woman with thick makeup came out to greet them. "This lowly one is Wei Ling, to what pleasure do we owe this visit? Do you perhaps have a particr spirit beast parts that you are looking for?"


    "I''m not here looking for anything, I''m here to offer something," Lin Zuyi replied.


    "Oh¡­?" Wei Ling showed a confused expression.


    "How would you like to know about the true culprit behind Wei Feng''s death?"


    *


    Amon was at the other end of the market. There was nothing he could do to prevent others from plotting against him. All he could do was be ready and always be alert to his surroundings. He had developed this kind of awareness when he became the most hated person in his past life.


    He was about to be done with this shopping and went home with empty hands when he caught the sight of a dpidated stall at the corner of the street. It was at the edge of the market and had very few passers-by. He approached the stall and looked at the wares.

 40 Chapter 40

    The reason he hade by this stall was because there were several bows and crossbows disyed. The stall owner was a woman who wore leather clothes. The leather seemed to be sewed roughly together from a collection of animal hide. The woman had a beautiful countenance but her expression and demeanor were far from elegant.


    She looked at Amon with a frown and said with a heavy voice, "What are you doing here, kid? This is no ce for children."


    "I''m looking for a bow or crossbow," Amon replied as he studied the ones on disy.


    "And what are you going to do with them? They are not a toy."


    "I''m going to use it to kill things."


    "What things?"


    "Anything that posed a threat to me or anything that needs killing," Amon replied.


    The woman bent down to take a closer look at Amon. Her crudely made clothes were full of holes, when she bent down, one of the openings revealed part of herrge breasts, but she didn''t seem to mind.


    "You are an interesting kid. Do you know how to use a bow?" She asked.


    "Enough to do the killing."


    "Which one do you prefer? Bow or crossbow?"


    p "I prefer crossbow. Something smaller than the one disyed here will be best, do you have other than the ones disyed here?"</anda>


    "Of course. Considering your small size, using the ones here will be rather unbnced. Tell you what, if you can hit that piece of wood hanging up there from here, I will make one for your size. With a fee, of course. Here, use this."


    She gave Amon one of the crossbows on the stall. Amon inspected the weapon. It was an engraved weapon, though it was only of low-tier. Having studied engraving himself, he could identify it with a single nce. The construction and craftsmanship of the crossbow itself were exquisite. Amon could see that the one who made it knew what she was doing.


    "Did you make this yourself?" Amon asked.


    "Of course, do you see me as a mere trader who sold someone else''s wares?"


    "It is nicely made," Amon gave his praise.


    "It is weird getting apliment from a kid," the woman said. "So, are you still taking the bet?"


    "How many shots am I allowed?"


    "Three."


    Amon double-checked the crossbow again. It was already nocked and a bolt sat on its flight groove. Seeing no problem with it, he aimed it at the piece of wood mentioned by the woman. This piece was tied to a rope that was dangling by a rope from the roof of a nearby building. It probably used to be a wooden sign held by two ropes, but one had broken off and no one bothered to fix or clean away the wood and rope.


    Amon got into a posture as he adjusted his aim. He slowed his breathing to a stop before he pressed the trigger. The bolt went past the side of the wood andtched itself onto the roof''s overhang.


    "Two more chances," the woman said as she handed Amon another bolt.


    Amon pulled the bowstring back before inserting the bolt into ce. He then took another aim and fired. The bolt struck the wood urately. The wood swayed around due to the force. Every ranged weapon had its own characteristics. Amon studied them in his first shot so that he could make adjustments for a more urate shot on his second try.


    "How much is the fee for that custom-made crossbow?" Amon asked.


    The woman gave him an impressed look. "You truly know what you are doing," she said, then added, "One hundred Aer stones. Fifty now, fifty when it''s done."


    "I give you a hundred now, you let me keep this crossbow. I will return itter when I pick up the one you make," Amon countered.


    The woman seemed to give the offer some thought before replying, "all right. But if that crossbow is damaged, you have to pay for it as well."<sub> </sub>


    "How much is this crossbow?"


    "Thirty Aer stones."


    Amon raised his brows, "You charged me more than three times the price for making a new one? Are you not taking advantage of me?"


    "The one I custom made for you will be using special materials. You won''t regret it."


    "Fine. How long will you need to make that crossbow?"


    "Give me three to four weeks. Hunting for the materials will not be easy, I only use the best materials for custom work."


    Amon nodded. He stored the crossbow in his Space Ring. He then paid the woman and let her take his measurement, particrly his arms. The crossbow was to be made especially for him, after all. After it was done, Amon was about to leave when the woman asked, "what''s your name, kid?"


    Amon hesitated for a bit before answering. He briefly thought about giving his real name but then decided to still stick with the name he was given in this world. "Lin Mo," Amon replied.


    "I am Xin Lie," the woman said.


    *


    A few days after, Amon went to the n Mission Center. It was already the time for him to do some missions to fulfill the needed quota. He strolled around the second floor searching for a suitable mission.


    There were murmurs when the other young generations saw him. Although he rarely had contact with the others, almost all the other young generations of the Lin n knew about him. He was called the bastard of Madam Lin by these kids. The fact that Amon never bothered to socialize with the others, always trained by himself, and did lone missions all this time, had alienated Amon further.


    Amon''s cultivation level was no secret to the others, and the other kids associated it with Madam Lin spoiling him by giving him ample resources. Jealousy arose which then bred nasty rumors, but Amon ignored all that. As long as they didn''t cause trouble for him, he didn''t care what those kids think about him.


    Of course, there was time to time when this dissatisfaction caused some hot-headed youngsters toe with the intention of bullying him. Amon always replied by throwing them a challenge to fight in the training arena. Even if the kids he challenged had higher cultivation, Amon didn''t care.


    Some epted, someughed him off. Those that epted, were mostly beaten to a pulp. Some, who were much higher in cultivation than Amon managed to win over Amon, but these kids always didn''t win easily despite being much stronger. Relying on his experience and battle instinct, Amon made them suffer before they tasted victories. Even when they won, they didn''t feel joy, as they could feel that Amon enjoyed the fight even if he was losing.


    Amon''s craze for fighting instead doused the enthusiasm of those who wished to bully him. Those kids ended up avoiding him instead. Amon thought it was a pity. The arena was a perfect ce for him to practice the way of fighting in this world, as there was a referee that would stop the fights if any participant''s life was in danger. So, it was an ideal ce where he could enjoy a safe fight.


    As Amon was browsing the missions on the boards, he bumped into a familiar person. It was Lin Xiaolong and his brother Lin Xiaoying.


    "Hmph, the bastard," Lin Xiaolong uttered.


    "How about another round in the arena?" Amon asked. Lin Xiaolong was among those who he had fought in the arena and had lost against. But in that fight, Amon also caused a small fracture in the bone of Lin Xiaolong''s left arm. This wound had caused Lin Xiaolong to have to rest for a while.


    Amon himself suffered a more serious wound, but he healed faster. Amon learned that his Demon Body could heal faster than normal people. Added to his ability to concoct his own recovery pills and salve, he didn''t mind getting these little wounds from time to time.


    "Who wants to waste time with a freak like you?" Lin Xiaolong responded.


    Amon just shrugged, he then continued browsing the mission. Not long after, he found one he liked. It was an assassination mission. The reward point was 350 points, so just doing this one mission would be enough for him to fulfill his quota for the next three months already. He immediately took the approval paper for this mission to the counter.


    After he left, Lin Xiaolong and Lin Xiaoying came to the board that Amon had taken the mission. They studied the mission information. After a while, Lin Xiaolong said to his brother, "Go inform brother Zuyi."


    *


    After receiving the approval to go ahead with the assassination mission, Amon studied the more detailed information provided by the counter. The target was an influential merchant who used to do profitable business with the Lin n. But recently he had a change of heart and changed his business partner to the Lei n instead. Such betrayal was a p to the face for the Lin n, they had to take care of this merchant, but at the same time, they could not leave evidence that they had something to do with it.


    The merchant goes by the name of Man Sam. He was a weak cultivator of only the peak Mortal stage, but he was always apanied by several bodyguards with cultivation around the Strength stage, the head of the guards was even a peak Transformation stage. Such a contingent usually warranted the mission to be put on the third floor instead of the second floor. But considering the target to be assassinated was only of the Mortal stage, the difficulty was being bnced. All the assassin needed to do, was to look for an opportunity when the target was not protected.

 41 Chapter 41

    The reports provided by the counter detailed the location of the merchant''s house and his shops, also brief information about his family and his normal itinerary. Based on these basic reports, Amon started to follow and spy on the merchant in secret.


    Scouting and trailing someone was child''s y for him. With the addition of him being in the body of a kid, it made the job even easier. People tended to not suspect children. Amon brought many different attires and hats that he changed regrly while trailing the merchant. After all, if the bodyguards kept on seeing the same kid, they would still get suspicious.


    The merchant followed a clockwork routine. Other than some asions where he had to meet his associates, he always visited his many shops situated around White Cloud city for daily inspection. He departed from his house early in the morning around 7 o''clock and went back homete at night around 11 o''clock. All the while, his five bodyguards always followed him around. The bodyguards were dismissed after he arrived home, but his house itself was filled with more guards. Amon didn''t see attacking the merchant in his house as a good option.


    Amon spent more than two weeks studying the merchant''s habits. The merchant mostly ate at the same restaurant, which was actually owned by him. His food was cooked in front of him by a trusted cook in a private room and he ate them inside the same room. Even the ingredients of the food were inspected by his bodyguard before being cooked. The level of security employed by the merchant bordered on paranoia. Amon saw little chance to use poison on the food.


    One notable thing about his routine was he always visit the same brothel thrice a week, and always spent his time with the same hooker. Amon found out that while the merchant was inside the room with the hooker, the bodyguards waited outside. After spying for these two weeks, Amon surmised the time the merchant spent with the hooker was the most ideal time for him to perform the assassination.


    With that thought, Amon made preparation when the merchant visited the brothel for the third time in the second week. Amon came to the brothel an hour before the time the merchant usually showed up. The brothel was named Sinner''s Bliss. It was situated in a business block near the outskirts of the city where many wealthy citizens spent their night-life here. The block had taverns, restaurants, inns, and various brothels. The Sinner Bliss was one of the more reputable ones amongst the brothels on the block.


    Amon had always scouted this area from the roofs of the surrounding buildings when he was following the merchant. Now that he was walking the street towards Sinner''s Bliss, the rowdy denizens around the block looked at him with curiosity. This was not a ce for little children after all, especially at night.


    "You lost, boy?" One of the hookers from a more low-ss brothel called out to him. "How about youe and help big sis here? I will let you stay the night."


    Amon ignored the hooker, which caused the woman to pout, "Such a rude kid."


    When he arrived in front of the Sinner''s Bliss, he just entered like nobody''s business. The guard of the brothel, who was chatting with his friend at the time, didn''t see Amon when he passed by. The guard''s friend pointed at Amon, which made the guard turn to look. Seeing it, the guard immediately gave chase.


    When he caught up to Amon, Amon was already inside the main hall where many customers were lounging around chatting with various women. A middle-aged woman was standing in front of Amon. The guard who just arrived immediately spoke nervously, "I''m sorry, madam. He just barged in."


    The madam was looking at Amon with a hard stare. Amon stared back at her with a calm face.


    "This is not a ce for kids, child. Do you lost your parents?" She asked.


    "I''m not. I''m here to use your service," Amon replied.


    The madam''s one eyelid rose in fascination upon Amon''s reply. The guard, who misinterpreted the expression as the madam being displeased, went forward and grabbed Amon''s shoulder.


    "Don''t worry, madam. I will drag him ou¡­ Ouch! Ouch!" The guard''s words were twisted into pained yells when Amon twisted the guard''s arm that was grabbing him. Amon was squeezing the guard''s pressure points.


    The physiology of the humans in this world was no different than in his past world, so Amon could still utilize his knowledge of the human body''s pressure points in this world. The guard''s cultivation was also less than Amon, at the beginning Strength stage. Thus, he was powerless to resist Amon''s grip.


    Amon was still staring at the Madam while the guard made a whining sound helplessly. The Madam''s surprised gaze turned to amazement. She then said, "I see you are not an ordinary kid. Do you mind letting him go?"


    Amon let go of the guard.


    "Can we talk business now?" Amon asked.


    The Madam waved for the guard to leave, who then left reluctantly as he massaged his pained arm and threw an angry nce at Amon. The Madam then called for one of her girls to bring some drinks. She then gestured for Amon to sit on an empty sofa. After Amon sat down, she sat beside him.


    "May I know this young master''s name?" The Madam asked.<sub> </sub>


    "You can call me Amon," Amon gave his real name. No one knew his name in this world and the mission required him to not leave a trace to the Lin n. Hence, he was using his real name as a disguise instead.


    "So, what can I do for young master here?"


    "I''m interested in one of your girls," Amon answered.


    "You are too young," the Madam replied. "I will get into trouble if someone reported me of giving indecent service to a kid."


    "What kind of service is considered indecent?" Amon asked, to which the Madam replied with a chuckle.


    "You don''t seem like an innocent kind of kid, so I believe you understand what I mean," the Madam said.


    "How about if I only require a dance? Will that be considered indecent?"


    "A dance?"


    "A dance. I have heard that there is a girl here that is very good at dancing. I was told that her name is Ning Ning. Can you bring me to her?"


    "I''m sorry, young master. Ning Ning is unavable."


    "If you are worried that I have no Aer stones, you cany your worry to rest," Amon said as he ced fifty Aer stones on the table.


    Fifty Aer stones were not exactly arge amount. That was the price the madam usually charged her customers for one session with her best girls. For her more ordinary girls, she usually charged around twenty Aer Stones per session, but these ordinary girls had more sessions per day. Hence, generating fifty Aer stones per day for a single girl was not a difficult sum. Yet, to see this amount brought out by such a young child was indeed surprising.


    Amon had also learned about this price beforehand. He learned about it when he was following Man Sam on the street. The merchant liked to chat with his bodyguards along the way, which allowed Amon to learn many things. Just like his eyes, Amon had honed his hearing to be able to eavesdrop easily from a distance. He had practiced this for the scouting missions in his past life. This world''s cultivation further increased his senses as his level grew, and he had an even better ability to discern conversation from afar.


    From this snooping, he had learned about the situation inside the brothel. Since he could not go into the brothel without being noticed. His objective at the moment was to identify this Ning Ning and to find out the room where Man Sam and Ning Ning would be meeting.


    "You misunderstand, young master. It''s not a matter of price. It''s because Ning Ning will be having a visit from a regr VIP soon, so she is truly not avable. If it is only for dancing, perhaps I can interest you with my other girls. They are as good as Ning Ning in dancing."


    "I am curious about what I have heard about Ning Ning, not the others," Amon said as he took back his Aer stones. The Madam had a slightly disappointing glint in her eyes.


    "You do say that she will be having this regr VIP soon, correct? That means she is still avable at the moment. A dance will not take long. Half an hour will be enough. Tell you what, just for a simple dance, you can have these Aer stones. I will even increase them to eighty Aer stones. I believe none of your girls made such an amount for such a short period where they don''t even need to touch their clients, right?"


    The Madam''s brow creased, she seemed to be deep in thought. Amon let her think in peace, while his hand continued to y with the Aer stones. The Madam couldn''t seem to let go of her sight from the stones in Amon''s hand.


    "You won''t ask for any indecent request, right?" She asked.


    "I can promise you I won''ty a hand on your girl," Amon answered.


    She finally said, "All right. Follow me."

 42 Chapter 42

    The Madam led Amon to the third floor. When he passed by the second floor, he saw a series of enclosed rooms with thin partitions. There were various moaning and groaning voices from inside.


    Amon figured the bottom floor was where the customers socialized with the girls as they were served refreshments and snacks. The second floor was where they did what they came here to do. While for the third floor. It was also a series of enclosed rooms, but each room was separate and alsorge. There was not much noise on this floor. Amon figured this to be the floor for VIP customers, where the best girls were at.


    The Madam took him past a few corridors before arriving outside a room. The Madam made a few knocks. The door was opened by a young girl of around twenty years of age. She was pretty and rather tall.


    "Is he early?" She asked. She then showed a puzzled expression when she saw Amon. ''What''s a kid doing here?'' was written all over her face.


    The Madam gestured for them to talk inside while she asked Amon to wait outside for a moment. Amon didn''t mind. As they were talking, Amon did a little walk to review this third floor. The room that Ning Ning was in was on the inner part of theyout. It was not at the side of the building and thus not connected to the outside. There was no window. The only ess to the room was from the front door. Did that Man Sam choose this room for security purposes?


    Amon heard the Madam calling for him. He walked back to the room.


    "I thought you are pulling a prank on me," the Madam said after seeing Amone back.


    Amon simply entered the room without replying, he handed her eighty Aer stones.


    "Then I will leave you here. Please understand that you can''t take too long," she said as she closed the door. Amon saw a lock behind the door and he applied the lock.


    He then walked around the room, surveying the walls. Ning Ning was sitting on a chair and was watching him with bewilderment. She was already unsure when the Madam told her about this young child''s weird request. She was confident the kid was just ying a prank at first, but after seeing him hand that many Aer stones to the Madam and seeing his calm expression, she was not sure anymore.


    Amon walked around the room and knocked on the walls for a bit. The walls were of stone, but not that thick. If someone screamed loudly, the people on the other side could still hear it.


    Followed by Ning Ning''s curious gaze, Amon sat on the bed on the opposite side of the room''s entrance. Amon simply sat there in silence for a long time which made Ning Ning ufortable.


    "What are you doing here exactly?" Ning Ning asked.


    "Didn''t the Madam exin already?" Amon asked back.


    "She said you want to¡­ see me dance?"


    "That is my intention."


    Ning Ning was puzzled. Although she did dance for her customers, no customer asked her to only dance. That was just forey before they went into the real business.


    "Only a dance?"


    Amon nodded.


    Ning Ning stood up. She started to walk gracefully towards Amon. After arriving in front of Amon, she turned around slowly, before extending her hand to Amon in a suggestive manner. Her movements picked up in pace as time passed.


    Amon was slightly impressed. She thought that this hooker just did a simplep dance to arouse their clients. But from the girl''s graceful movements, she did know one thing or two about dancing.


    "Start taking off your clothes please," Amon instructed.


    Ning Ning''s dancing stopped upon the request. "I thought you only want a dance?"


    "That''s correct. But don''t tell me you always dance with your clothes on? I am here for a dance as well as a feast for my eyes."<sub> </sub>


    It was already strange for him to show up here. It would be even weirder if he didn''t act perverted in this house built specifically for perverted people. Although his existence was rather famous within the Lin n, the outside world knew nothing of Madam Lin''s adopted bastard. There was little chance that his visit here would be linked to the Lin n, but still, it was better to be careful.


    "My promise is not to touch you," Amon added. "What''s the matter? Don''t tell me you are shy just because the one seeing your body is a small child. Do you prefer perverted old guys to feast their eyes on you instead?"


    Ning Ning frowned. Although she did work as a hooker, she did not appreciate being looked down on by this little kid. It was not like it was her will to be a sex worker.


    Ning Ning''s resumed her movements. She swayed left and right as her hands started to slowly work on theces of her shirt. She erotically unfastened them as her face showed an inviting expression at Amon. Amon must admit this girl knew what she was doing. No wonder that merchant only picked this girl whenever he came here.


    She was wearing clothes with multipleyers. She opened them one by one in what a pervert would perceive as a painstakingly slow process. Amon surmised if she did this with the other customers, those customers would have pounced at her by now and tore her clothes apart rather than being tortured for seeing her slow undressing procedure.


    Amon, on the other hand, preferred this show rather than a raw carnal act. It was already a long time ago in his past life that Amon no longer considered sexual satisfaction as something to be chased after. He only did it if it served a function. Otherwise, he had other interests that satisfied him more than performing intercourse with an attractive being. Like having an intense battle, for example.


    By this time, only her undergarment was covering her most private parts. Ning Ning left them on for a while as she continued her dancing. Amon saw that although she was not exactly amongst the most beautiful women he hadid eyes on, her skin was clean and white. Her body shape could be considered perfect. Her tall physique gave her long and slim legs that were very tempting. Any normal man would not be able to control themselves upon seeing her half-naked body dancing in front of them.


    p As if she was waiting for Amon to show a perverted reaction, she continued to tempt him with suggestive moves while keeping her undergarments on. Although Amon''s eyes were fixed on her, his face continued to show indifferent expressions throughout her dance. This indifference actually disconcerted her.</anda>


    Resolving to draw a reaction out of her young client, she stopped abruptly and removed herst piece of clothing, fully revealing her naked body.


    She was slightly disappointed when she saw Amon''s continued steely expression. ''Is this person truly a kid,'' she even wondered.


    "Continue," Amon said, indicating her dance.


    Ning Ning dismissed her bafflement and continued her dance. She decided to forget about Amon''s existence and danced to her heart''s content. It was not every day that her customers wanted her to dance, to truly dance. Dancing was actually what she had aspired to do when she was young. But circumstances and demands had caused her life to move into her current profession. She had to do what she had to do to survive, even though it''s mean letting go of her dream and bing a sex toy for perverted men.


    Amon admired the girl''s fully exposed body as she danced with passion. Amon could see how the girl was truly dancing at the moment. Her long legs whirled around gracefully as her breasts bounced following her movements. Her breasts were not asrge as Madam Lin''s, but they were firm and well-rounded. Her waist was slim without any excess fat, while her ass looked tight yet rounded. In his younger days in his past life, he might not have been able to hold his urges after seeing such a well-curved sight. Even now, he felt a slight heat under his navel.


    They then heard knocking on the doors. Ning Ning stopped her dance upon the intrusion. The Madam''s voice was heard. "honored client, the time is up"


    "Is your VIP customer arrived already?" Amon asked while still sitting on the bed.


    "Not yet, but he should be arriving any minute now," the Madam''s voice replied from outside.


    "Come call me again when he is on his way up," Amon replied.


    "That¡­"


    "I will give you another twenty Aer stones as a bonus. It doesn''t matter, right? I will go out once he ising up. He won''t even have to wait."


    There was silence. Then the Madam said, "okay, but no more dying again the next time I call. I''m serious."


    "No problem," Amon replied.


    After he heard the Madam''s footstep going away, he said to Ning Ning, "continue."

 43 Chapter 43

    It was a few minutester before they heard the second knocking. They heard the Madam''s voice again.


    "It''s time. Our VIP customer has arrived."


    "All right," Amon said. He stood up from the bed as Ning Ning collected her clothes and put them on again.


    "I really enjoy your dance," Amonplimented before heading to the door. Ning Ning just stared at him, she didn''t know if she should be happy getting apliment from a little boy.


    When Amon opened the door, he could see a relieved expression on the Madam''s face. She probably thought that he was trying to stall again. Amon handed her the additional twenty Aer stones without any words. She epted them with glee.


    ''Dealing with a greedy person was truly simple,'' Amon thought.


    He then just stood there while the Madam counted the extra Aer stones. The Madam finally noticed him and asked, "Do you need anything else, young master?"


    "I forget the way down," Amon replied.


    The Madam chuckled. "I will take you down," she said.


    On their way down, they saw several mening up the stairs. The Madam bowed to the lead person and said, "Mister Man, we are always d for your presence here. Ning Ning is already waiting for you upstairs."


    "Haha, it is my pleasure toe here. You give the best service," the lead person replied.


    "I try my best."


    Amon watched their exchange silently. He had confirmed his target. This lead person was Man Sam, the one he was after. The face was the same as the drawing provided by the n mission''s counter.


    Man Sam finally noticed Amon''s existence. He said to the Madam, "I didn''t expect you to bring your son to this ce."


    The Madam finally realized Amon was still by her side. She said, "He is not my son. His name is Amon. He is a customer."


    "A customer?" Man Sam furrowed his brows. He was trying to determine if the Madam was making a weird joke or was making fun of him.


    The Madam probably acknowledged the weirdness of the situation, she quickly said, "I will not stall you any longer. Please head up. Ning Ning is already waiting in her room."


    She then hurriedly ushered Amon down. As he walked down, Amon nced at the six that were going up.


    After arriving back in the main hall, Amon just walked towards the exit. The Madam called from behind, "Come here again when you hit puberty, young master Amon. I will prepare my best girl to take your virginity."


    Amon paid the Madam''s words no heed. After he arrived outside, the street was still teeming with life. This ce was especially lively when it was at night.


    The guard whose hand he had twisted before was at the side of the entrance. He was giving Amon a hostile re. He was thinking about teaching the kid a lesson, the incident just now should have only been a fluke. He was not careful. Thus, the kid had managed tond a cheap shot at him.<sub> </sub>


    Amon turned and nced at him for just a moment before turning back again and walking away. The guard was fuming, the kid was underestimating him. But he stayed in his ce. He had discarded the desire to take revenge. At the short moment when their eyes met just now, he did not feel his anger. He had instead felt fear. He couldn''t exin it, but that short moment had made him change his mind about giving Amon trouble.


    The guard didn''t know that the change of his heart had instead saved his life. Amon went around the block and came to the backside of the brothel. The back here was more deserted. Amon searched for a secluded corner and changed into a ck suit that he had prepared. He also covered his entire head with a ck cloth, leaving only his eyes visible. He took inspiration from the ninja outfit of his past life.


    He then took out two sets of climbing ws. He had made the climbing ws himself, another inspiration from the ninja tools from his past life. These tools allowed him to scale a t wall. His cultivation allowed him to perform a high jump, but his current Strength stage could only allow him to jump to a maximum height of five meters, while the windows of the third floor of the brothel were almost ten meters high.


    He targeted a window that was without any lighting, indicating that the room was most likely unupied. Before he made the jump, he looked around first to make sure that there was no one around. After making sure everything was safe, Amon jumped. After reaching five meters of height beside the wall, he pped his two palms onto the concrete wall. The des of the climbing ws dug into the wall, holding him in ce.


    He then slowly alternated between his left and right hands as he made his way onto the third floor''s windows. His cultivation gave him the strength to easily pull the weight of his entire body with only one arm, giving him an easy time climbing the wall.


    Once he reached the window. He didn''t immediately open it. Although it was dark inside, it didn''t guarantee that it was unupied. He ced one of his ears on the window. After making sure that there was no sound from inside. He opened it and slid inside.


    He then went to the door. Again, he ced his ear to listen to the sound outside. It was good that Man Sam used the third floor. If it was the second floor, Amon would have trouble sneaking around that crowded floor.


    After making sure from the absence of sound that no one was walking around in the corridor outside. He opened the door ajar. He peeked outside to make sure before he went out.


    He already memorized theyout when he walked around the ce before. He walked through the corridor without making any sound. Walking swiftly without making any sound was another of his past life skills. He had also added rubber soles underneath his feet, allowing it to further dampen the stepping sound. While he passed through the corridor, he asionally heard moaning andughing voices from inside some of the rooms.


    After reaching a corner, he peeked around the corner. As expected, the five bodyguards were outside Ning Ning''s room. It would be impossible to go in from the front without fighting those five. He saw the five chatting merrily instead of standing on alert. Good, that should make their reaction a tad bit slower.


    Amon turned back again. He headed to the room that was behind Ning Ning''s one. He reached the door of that room. Unfortunately, the room was upied. He heard some groaning from inside.


    ''What a pity,'' he thought. He hoped he would only have to kill the merchant, and possibly Ning Ning. Now, it seemed there would be two other additional victims.


    He took out a dagger. It was not the Swan Dagger. Swan Dagger used to be Madam Lin''s weapon. Someone might recognize it, so he was using another dagger just in case.


    After giving another look to both ends of the corridor to make sure that no one was around. He opened the door, then swiftly closed it again. The couple on the bed was too engrossed with their sexual intercourse that they didn''t notice someone had just barged into their room.


    On the bed, the man was lying on his back as he moaned with his eyes closed, enjoying himself as the sexy woman sat on him and rode his manhood. It was only after Amon arrived by their sides that they registered Amon''s presence.


    "Who are¨C" the man''s words were cut short as Amon sliced his throat. The woman was about to scream but Amon''s slicing motion circled around to her, cutting her throat as well. With one round motion of his arm, Amon had taken two lives instantaneously.


    The woman''s lifeless body slumped onto his partner''s bare chest. Their blood was still spurting out, covering the entire bed. Amon did not spare the two any nce after killing them. He went to the wall behind the bed. The setup of the room was the same, so Man Sam and Ning Ning should be directly behind this wall.


    The wall was not that thick, he ced his ear to the wall. He could slightly hear the two''s voices as they were enjoying themselves. Good, they were directly behind the wall. If they had any fancy idea and were fucking in the middle of the room, it would be a problem.


    Amon steadied his breaths as he readied himself behind the wall. He would only have a very short moment. Once the noise sounded, it would only take the five bodyguards outside a moment to barge in. His left hand clenched into a fist, while his right gripped his dagger tightly.

 44 Chapter 44

    After taking a few series of deep breaths, he held his breath and punched. His Master-level Bone Shattering Shadow Fist punched through the wall like it was made of foam. The wall crumbled and his target was immediately visible.


    Coincidentally, they were doing doggy style. Their back was to Amon. Man Sam was just about to turn around. Amon''s hand moved in a blur and with one fast powerful sh, cut his head clean off. Ning Ning was on her four with her face facing down.


    Amon had nned to kill her as well so that there was no witness. Although he was fully covered, his small body was a problem. Someone who saw an assassin of his size might connect him to the boy who had just visited not long ago. But in that split second, he decided that he did not need to. The girl was not looking at him. No need to waste another second killing her.


    Amon kicked the bed and immediately shot back. As he rushed through the door of the room he came from. He heard someone opening the door of Ning Ning''s room violently. He then heard Ning Ning''s high-pitched scream.


    He paid no heed to all that as he ran with high speed to the outer window he had entered from. He had left the door and window opened, hence he did not need to stop to open them or made a sound by crashing them. His body shot out of the window. Although his cultivation was not enough to allow him to jump to this height, it still allowed him to survive falling from this height.


    The backside of the brothel was still deserted. But even if some people were passing by, theck of lighting would make it hard for them to see Amon clearly.


    Amonnded on the ground and did a roll-fall to cushion the drop. From the roll, he stood back up and continued running, all in a fluid motion. There was no pause.


    By the time he heard rm and mor from the brothel, he was already some distance away. He didn''t allow himself to be careless though, he continued to run, but he avoided the crowded street. He went further into the outskirts where there were many deserted parks with trees.


    When he thought that he was far enough and was about to stop to change back to his regr clothes, he felt heavy killing intent. His instinct caused him to jump sideways as a long spear stabbed through the ground where he should have been if he didn''t change his trajectory.


    He looked at the source of the killing intent which was also the source of the spear. Up there on the branch of a tree was a man with white hair and a half-covered face. His eyes were staring at Amon.


    "Impressive, you managed to dodge my sudden attack. Are you truly just at the intermediate Strength stage?" He asked.


    Amon didn''t answer his question. His instinct informed him that the person above was dangerous, which could only mean that his cultivation was higher than Amon, yet not at the level of the Martial realm yet. An expert of the Martial realm wouldn''t ask the question about his cultivation as they would have known it already by sensing it.


    There were also three other people below the tree where the man with white hair stood, two men and a woman. The lower half of their faces were also covered.


    ''I am targeted?'' Amon thought after seeing the situation. Was it Lin Fong again? The guy had not made any move on him all this time. Could he have changed his mind and decided to get rid of him again?


    No time to ponder, just the white-haired man alone was already dangerous. Added with another three. He was at a disadvantage. Amon turned around and ran in the direction away from the city.


    He had prepared an escape route if he was chased by Man Sam''s bodyguards. He never expected to use the route against a group of assassins instead. How long have they been watching him? Amon did not believe it was so coincidental for them to attack right after hepleted his assassination. They must have waited for him to finish his mission before taking action. Most probably they want to pin his death on Man Sam''s guards'' retaliation, which meant that they knew his identity. They were afraid of drawing the ire of Madam Lin. Amon''s suspicion of Lin Fong was growing.


    The brothel was close to the outskirts, and there were woods not far away. This was the closest wilnd near the city. There were spirit beasts inside but they rarely came out of the woods to trouble the city''s upants. The citizens also didn''t venture into these woods or else they risked noting back out again.


    Amon had chosen these woods as his escape route. It was in the night, the darkness of the woods would cause pursuers to have difficulty chasing him. He, on the other hand, had sharp senses that allowed him to feel danger. Trekking through dangerous jungles in the night was something he had done often in his past life.<sub> </sub>


    His cultivation allowed him superhuman speed and powerful jump. He vaulted from one tree to another, like the one depicted in martial art movies in his past life. However, his pursuers were also not of low cultivation. They chased after Amon with faster speed and easily went from one tree to another. The difference was that Amon had better control over the environment and could choose the best path in a split instant, while his pursuers were hindered by the darkness and sometimes had to purposefully slowed their speed to avoid crashing into an unseen branch or the trunk of the tree.


    "Spread out! Don''t lose him from our sights," Amon heard one of his pursuers from behind. It was the voice of the white-haired man. Amon deduced that guy was their leader. The danger he felt from this man was much stronger than the others.


    He could feel other dangers from down there on the ground. A more primitive killing intent. It was the spirit beasts. He had studied the distribution of spirit beasts around the White Cloud City. Although it was rare for spirit beasts to wander so close to the city, these woods were a special case.


    The spirit beasts in these woods were called White Bone Ants. They were mostly lower inferior beasts, but there were some with a slightlyrger frame amongst them that ranked at mid inferior. With his increased cultivation, Amon should have no problem dealing with this level of a beast. However, these White Bone Ants often roam inrge groups. Hence, even peak Strength stage cultivators would be in trouble if getting swarmed by them.


    Amon saw a cluster of tightly packed trees and slid in between them, making it more difficult for his pursuer to follow and keep him in their sights. His sense told him that there was a pack of White Bone Ants nearby, and he purposely went past near to them.


    Not long after, he heard a startled cry from one of his pursuers. That person must have stumbled into the pack of White Bone Ants. He heard some shing sounds from there.


    Amon made a few more zig-zag movements amongst the trees. With his dark attire, it was easy for him to blend into the darkness. When he felt that his pursuers had lost sight of him, he sneaked into a shrubbery beside a tree and stayed still.


    He heard some sounds from above. He looked up and saw three shadows jumping around up there. It appeared the three had left behind theirrade who had blundered upon the White Bone Ants. He could still hear some faintbat sounds in that direction.


    The three shadows above stopped.


    "Damn it! How can we lose him?" One of them cursed.


    "He shouldn''t be far. He is just a kid, we should be able to find him," the lone woman in the group said.


    "If he is JUST a kid, we wouldn''t have lost him in the first ce. Now spread out. He should be hiding around here. It''s impossible that he outruns us," this was the voice of the white-haired man.


    "What about Ah Lok?" The woman asked.


    "Screw him. He has to save himself. We have a target here, we can''t waste time taking care of each other. That goes for you two. You make a mistake, you deal with it yourself. Do not expect me to save you!" The white-haired man said. "Go! The more we talk, the more possible for the kid to escape."


    He then saw them spread out in three directions. They werebing the area. Amon looked in the direction the woman had gone and crept silently that way.


    The woman was searching around from up in the trees. But she soon realized how difficult it was to see from up there with all this darkness. She didn''t want to make the mistake like their friend, Ah Lok, so she carefully surveyed the ground first. After making sure that no spirit beast was around, shended on the ground.


    As she walked around trying to find Amon, she didn''t realize a hand with a daggering from behind when she passed through a tree. The hand deftly sliced across her throat. The woman was unable to make a sound with her throat opened. Another thrust went through the back of her skull and finished her.

 45 Chapter 45

    Amon held the body of the woman as he slowlyid her down on the ground, so as to not make any noise. He then delved back into the darkness again.


    This world''s practitioners were too used to using their cultivation level to decide on winning or losing that they werepletely alien to stealthbat. But Amon figured this style was only effective when he was going against Human realm cultivators. In the Martial realm, cultivators could sense others'' cultivation, which also meant that they could sense others'' presence. He would not be able to use sneak tactics against those beings.


    Amon covered the body of the dead woman with shrubs to hide it. As long as these supposed assassins still underestimated him, it would ease his effort. He heard the scream of a man. The direction indicated it was the one who had stumbled onto the White Bone Ants. This meant only two were left.


    He then sneaked to the other side where the other two should be, going from cover to cover.


    The white-haired leader was nowhere in sight. That guy had probably gone further away searching for him. Thest of his underlings, on the other hand, was sitting up there on a branch of a tree. He was scanning the surrounding, trying to spot movements. Amon was watching him from behind a tree.


    ''This one is more careful,'' Amon thought. He then picked up a rock, which he flung to a nearby tree. The rock caused a sound as it hit the tree and fell to the ground. The assassin above immediately responded to the sound. He jumped to the tree branch above where the sound was heard.


    He tried to look below but couldn''t see anything down there. Amon was expecting him toe down to check, but instead, he made some spinning motions using his two arms. Flickers of fire were created following his motion, which came together and fuse into a fiery ball the size of a grapefruit.


    This ball of fire was then dropped to the ground. Where the fireball touched the ground, me erupted and radiated outwards. It even hit the tree where Amon was hiding at. One side of this tree was on fire as Amon stayed still on the other side.


    The man who had used the me art looked again down there. Everything had been alighted by his me. Hence, he could see better, but he still did not see Amon anywhere.


    After seeing how effective his fire art was in lighting up an area, he went and tossed one fireball after another to other areas. The me spread out more and more due to his action.


    ''Idiot!'' Amon thought. He had crept away already. He was not staying around waiting for one of that guy''s fireballs to light up the ce he was on.


    "Haha! Let''s see if you can continue to hide!" The assassinughed as he kept on tossing fireballs all over the ce.


    Suddenly, several white objects shot out with high speed from the me, heading to where the assassin was at. His reaction was not bad as he managed to jump before the white object hit. The branch he was on a moment before was shattered to pieces.


    Hended on another branch but soon another volley shot out from underneath. The pattern continued until he found that most branches were snapped already. There were fewer for him to jump to.


    The white objects that shot out of the me, were now crawling around the trees around the assassin. They were the White Bone Ants that dominated this ce. Any cultivators who ventured into these woods would be careful when they passed by so as to not disturb these spirit beasts unnecessarily. This assassin had instead gone around destroying their habitat, how did they not provoked?


    ''It seemed like I do not need to do anything,'' Amon thought as he observed from afar.


    "Found you," Amon suddenly hear a voice from above. He looked up and saw the White-haired man high above the top of the tree.


    ''How?'' Amon thought.


    "It seemed that you can sense one''s presence," the white-haired man said. "Impressive. Normally, only a Martial realm expert can do that. How do you do it? Is it a secret technique?"


    He jumped down andnded not far away from Amon. There were sounds of the other assassin shing with the White Bone Ants some distance away. That assassin had been calling for help for a while now, but the white-haired manpletely showed no care for his teammate. He walked leisurely but keep his distance from Amon.


    "You must be wondering why you can''t sense my presence, don''t you?" The white-hair man asked.


    Amon did not answer, but he was indeed curious. It was impossible for someone to fool his senses like this. And yet, this person was directly in front of him, but he couldn''t hear his footsteps, his breaths, or his heartbeat. Even the smell and aura he exuded previously when he first met the man, was non-existent.


    Amon was also good at erasing his presence, but the way he did it was more like blending in with the environment. This was how he was so good at stealthbat. But the man in front of him, It was as if he was looking at an illusion. As if something¡­ was shrouding the person.<sub> </sub>


    Upon this thought, Amon asked, "Is it an art?"


    "Hehe," the white-haired man snickered. "You can have an art that allows you to sense someone despite being in the Human realm. Why can''t I have an art that blocks others from sensing me?"


    ''So there is such an art. I will have to get my hands on one of this¨C'' Amon''s thought was cut short as he felt strong killing intent from the white-haired man. He was unable to sense anything from the man, but when the man was about to strike, the overflowing desire to kill could still escape whatever shrouding art this man used.


    Amon''s body reflexively dodged to the side, just as he felt a sharp thing cut through the side of his left arm. A tree behind Amon was sliced cleanly. Its heavy upper trunk fell as it lost its bottom support.


    Amon looked at his arm, blood was flowing from theceration. Fortunately, the wound was not deep. If he was any slower, his entire body would have been cut clean off already. Even if his self-adjusting chainmail could resist the attack, he would still be badly wounded. This was dangerous, he didn''t think his opponent had such a deadly skill.


    The white-haired man was no less surprised himself. "How do you do that?" He asked.


    Amon did not answer, his right hand took out the Swan Dagger while his left hand gripped five of the throwing knives. He didn''t bother about the wound on his arm that was still bleeding, he also didn''t bother to hide his Swan Dagger anymore. His opponents were specifically targeting him, so they clearly knew who he was.


    "Your response was way too fast for a Human realm cultivator," the white-haired man continued. "No¡­ Rather than calling you fast. It is more correct to say you move before I deliver my attack. As if¡­ You can predict my move?"


    It wasn''t like that. It was because his intention had been exposed before he performed his attack. But Amon was not going to bother to exin.


    "Is it another art? Heh, the handler had indeed sent us an interesting target. Tell you what, kid. You teach me this art, and I will think about sparing your life. How about that?"


    "All right," Amon replied.


    "Good. Now teach."


    "First, you have to learn how to feel your surrounding. Close your eyes, and let your other senses work."


    The white-haired man was staring at Amon with a sneer. "Who do you think I am? A little kid like you? You think anyone is going to fall for that dumb trick?"


    Amon shrugged. "I thought you are dumb enough."


    "Hehe. What an interesting kid. You either knows no fear or you still do not yet realize your inevitable fate. Do you truly think you will walk out of these woods alive?"


    "I don''t think so. I know so."


    "Interesting. Then let me see how you achieve that!"


    The white-haired man''s arm lifted just as his words ended. Amon again felt that strong killing intent. He was more prepared now. Amon dodged to the side as his body turned to bronze. At the same time, the five throwing knives in his left hand were released.


    The white-haired man followed his first attack with a second wave of his other arm. Another cutting energy was shooting at Amon.


    This second attack was immediately after the first, Amon had no chance to change the direction of his dodge. So he twisted his body and ced his Swan Dagger on the energy path which was right in front of his chest. The cutting energy mmed onto Amon, producing a loud nk. Amon was thrown by the force of impact. His body was spinning violently in the air before he fell to the ground.

 46 Chapter 46

    Although the cutting energy produced by the white-haired man was deadly, Amon had used threeyers of defense to soak the damage. The swan dagger, his inner self-adjusting mail, and the defensive art of Hardened Bronze Body. Despite these multipleyers of defense, he still felt as if one or two of his ribcage bones might have cracked. But at least his life was not in danger.


    The moment when Amon was sent spinning in the air was the perfect time to deliver a finishing blow, yet the white-haired man didn''t. Not because he didn''t want to, but because the five knives thrown by Amon didn''t permit him to.


    Each knife flew in an arc, hence it was difficult to predict their trajectories. In addition to that, three of the knives were targeting the assassin''s vital parts while the other two flew to his left and right, cutting his escape paths. The white-haired man must admit that his target''s mastery over the throwing art was truly fantastic.


    The white-haired man revealed his weapon, which was something like a tonfa with a sharp de at its two ends. This tonfa whirled around, deflecting all the thrown knives.


    Amon was already on his feet when the assassin was swatting his knives. He ignored the pain in his chest and punched out using Bone Shattering Shadow Fist. The assassin jumped up, the repeated fist energies passed below him then mmed and ravaged the tree behind.


    The height of the white-haired man reached around ten meters height, indicating the man''s cultivation to be at the Transformation stage. The man performed a wave again using his arm and sharp energy shot out as before.


    <o>,m Amon was already running at his fastest speed yet in a zig-zag direction before the man attacked. The white-haired man sent out several more sharp energy waves, but they only created deep gashes on the ground where Amon passed by. Amon''s movements although not too fast for the white-haired man, his erratic paths still made all the attacks sent by the white-haired man to miss. The white-haired man couldn''tnd a clean hit.</o>


    Amon weaved through in between the trees to increase the difficulty of the white-haired man to hit him. Such powerful sharp energy surely used up lots of aether. Even though the white-haired man was at the Transformation stage already, there was still a limit to how much he could abuse his energy reserve.


    The man jumped from tree to tree and fired at Amon from above. Yet, he still could not hit Amon sessfully after this long. He was starting to feel annoyed.


    He made a few gestures with his hand before his body dropped down heavily. As he touched the ground, his hand pped the ground. The earth in front of him deformed and started to create waves, the ground was acting as if it was water.


    The earth waves spread out at high speed in arge area. When it was about to arrive at Amon''s feet, Amon made a high jump. He didn''t know what would happen if the wave caught his feet, but he was not nning to find out.


    Amon''s jump brought him to a tree. He then kicked at it and brought himself higher. The assassin was on the ground, so he was going up. But before he could reach a sufficient height, the ground beneath which had been effect by the waves, erupted. Arge earth snake shot at Amon.


    Amon did not fluster with this sudden change. He continued to kick around the tree as the earth snake weaved around chasing after him. The earth snake was rather powerful, as some trees that were bumped by the snake got knocked down.


    While Amon was running away from the earth snake, he felt the strong killing intent again. He quickly ducked just as sharp energy shot by. The White-haired man had joined the pursuit. Amon had to dodge assaults from two sides.


    Amon stored his swan dagger and took out his crossbow. he used it to shoot in the direction of the white-haired man. The white-haired man used his tonfa to deflect the bolts. This caused him to stop his sharp energy assaults.


    Amon used this chance to approach the white-haired man, while continuously reloading and shooting his crossbow. This was something that was not doable If this was in his past life because the act of pulling the crossbow string was not something that was easy to be done. But here, his body possessed superhuman strength and speed.


    The shots using his crossbow didn''t consume any aether, hence Amon could still easily maneuver his move. While for the white-haired man, he could not use his sharp energy assault as he had to defend against the barrages of crossbow bolts using his tonfa. He needed a breath to umte the aether for the sharp energy art. Hence, Amon managed to get close to him while the earth snake was chasing Amon from behind.


    Amon dropped down abruptly when he was close. The earth snake appeared to continue onward to crash onto the white-haired man.


    "Petty trick!" The white-haired man said with a sneer as he made a pushing down gesture. The earth dragon made a sharp turn. Amon threw something at this time. The white-haired man couldn''t dodge as he was controlling the earth dragon, but his tonfa spun to swat what he thought should be Amon''s throwing knife.<sub> </sub>


    Yet, it was not. It was a small pebble. When the pebble hit the white-haired man''s tonfa, it did not produce a nking sound. Instead, it burst apart. Purple color smoke filled his view.


    "You think blocking my vision will allow you to flee?" He yelled.


    He heard a loud thump which should be his earth dragon crashing onto the ground. He let go of the control of the earth dragon. It was running out of aether anyway. He could just make another one. He rushed past the purple smoke and saw Amon. Strange, didn''t the kid n to run away after using the smoke as cover? Never mind, he would not let go of this opportunity. He prepared to execute his sharp energy assault when he felt choked. Both his body and his cirction of aether suddenly stopped and didn''t respond to hismand.


    ''What is happening?'' He thought rmingly as Amon threw several throwing knives.


    The powerful throws stabbed onto all four limbs of the white-haired man who was still incapacitated. The man dropped heavily to the ground.


    Amon jumped on top of him just as hended, then stabbed using his swan dagger at the white-haired man''s shoulder. The white-haired man cried from the pain. Amon ripped off the cloth covering the man''s head, revealing his face. Amon also aimed the crossbow at his head. His Poison Cloud Bullet could only affect the Transformation stage cultivator for a few short moments, but the wounds he had inflicted should be enough to hold the man down.


    The white-haired man stared at him with eyes full of disbelief.


    "Talk," Amon said.


    "You¡­ you used poison?" The white-haired man asked.


    Amon aimed his crossbow at the man''s side belly and released a shot. Another cry of pain was heard.


    "That was not the talk I asked," Amon said. He reloaded his crossbow and aimed it back at the man''s face. "Tell me who hired you to kill me."


    "Heh. Who do you think you are? You can hurt me all you want. But you won''t get a word out of me," the white-haired man said defiantly.


    Amon nced at his surroundings, before locking eyes with the white-haired man again. He said, "Have you studied about the White Bone Ants? Do you know what they do to incapacitated victims that are still alive?"


    A glint of fear appeared in the man''s eyes.


    ''It seemed that he knows, this should make things easier,'' Amon thought. He then continued, "the white bone ants will sting the victims and deliver a toxin thatpletely paralyzes them. They will then drag these victims back to theirir. Inside thisir, there is this queen that willys eggs inside the victims'' bodies. The queen will also insert some sort of tentacle into the victims'' bodies, delivering nutrients and toxins, keeping the victims paralyzed and alive at the same time. After a while, the eggs inside the victims'' bodies will hatch, and the small hatchlings will feed on the fresh live meat, slowly. The victims will be alive throughout the process of being eaten bits by bits from the inside."


    Amon stopped to let the white-haired man think about it for a while. He then continued. "I can hear them moving not far away. Searching for the intruders that had so audaciously ruined their home. Can you hear them?"


    Amon again let silence do the work. There were indeed some sounds of scurrying feet, scratching the surface of the ground.


    "You have the time until they arrive to tell me everything. If you do, I will grant you a swift death. If you don''t, then you will spend the rest of your life nourishing the next generation of White Bone Ants."

 47 Chapter 47

    The sounds of feet scurrying were sounding more and more as time passed. Amon just waited in silence. Hepletely left the decision to the white-haired man to decide his own fate.


    The white-haired man''s expression was continuously changing. He was having a tense internal struggle. He must still hold hope of getting out of this situation somehow. Amon gave him time toe to grips with his situation.


    The man won''t be able to move again in a short time even if he used recovery salve on his wounds. Amon had targeted the ligaments on the white-haired man''s limbs when he threw his throwing knives.


    Amon stood up, then backed away a bit. The white-haired man was confused at first, but then he heard the sound. He looked back and saw a White Bone Ant crawling slowly at him. The sight of this spirit beast broke all the pride left in him.


    "I will tell you! I will tell you! Don''t let it take me!" The white-haired man shouted.


    Amon lunged out, his body turned translucent as he arrived in front of White Bone Ant, his swan dagger stabbed deep into the ant''s skull. The spirit beast fell lifelessly. Amon walked back to where the white-haired man wasying.


    "Talk. If too many appear, I won''t be able to stop them," Amon said.


    The white-haired man gulped. He was shivering. He must havee to terms that he would not live through tonight. It was either a quick death or a tormenting slow death.


    "I don''t know exactly who hires us. We just receive the target from our handler," the white-haired man said.


    "Who is this handler?" Amon asked.


    The white-haired man was silent.


    Amon stood up and made a show that he was leaving.


    "Wait! Wait! I''ll tell you, I''ll tell you!"


    Amon stopped, but he didn''t approach. He just stood there and waited for the man''s words.


    "His name is San Guo," the white-haired man said.


    "Be more specific! Where can I find this San Guo?"


    "¡­ He has a clothing store at Shining Gold street called Impure Desire. The store is just a ruse. Inside it is a ce where the underworld criminals gathered to exchange information and receive jobs. San Guo is the organizer, he is the intermediary for the high-profile jobs. He knows almost every criminal in the city and also has a good connection with the powerful ns. He will know the one who wants your death."


    The white-haired man heard some tapping sounds from behind. He turned and watched in horror as three White Bone Ants were approaching him.


    "I already tell you what I know. Kill me! Kill me!"


    Each of the White Bone Ants bit one part of the man''s body and started dragging him.


    "One more question, tell me the cultivation level of this San Guo."


    "He is a beginning Strength stage. Kill me! You have promised me! Please¡­!"


    Amon watched with cold eyes the white-haired man getting dragged further by the White Bone Ants. He was screaming hysterically, begging for death. When he was almost driven insane by the fear of his impending dreadful fate, Amon swung his arm. A ray of light flew rapidly and stabbed at the White-haired man''s throat.


    Blood spurt from the wound. The white-haired man coughed blood. His crazed eyes showed relief before hisst breath as his body continued to be dragged away.


    Amon did not care whether the man suffered or not before his death, but he had given his words. He had no problem betraying people if needed. But he kept his words when possible because he was too arrogant to break his own promise.<sub> </sub>


    He didn''t go to pick up the throwing knife lodged inside the white-haired man''s throat. There were another five White Bone Ants that showed up, he didn''t want to take a risk for a single knife. He turned and left the woods.


    *


    One week after, in the basement underneath a clothing store called Impure Desire, was arge hall. Several people with a rough demeanor were lounging around the hall. There was one bar counter on one side of the hall. Several female servants wearing revealing clothes took drinks from that counter to serve the rough-looking gangs. The ce had the vibe of a tavern rather than the basement of a store.


    At one corner of the hall was an expensive-looking desk. Arge and slightly fat man with avish coat was sitting on an exquisitely carved wooden chair before the desk. A thin person was opposite him from the desk, sitting on a simple stool.


    "Have you heard anything from Si An or his crews?" The fat man asked.


    "No, it''s as if they have disappeared from the face of the earth," the thin man answered. "Thest report was they were intercepting their target near Sinner''s Bliss. There were also rumors from the local residents that some fight broke out near that area and the White Dusk Woods at that time."


    "It was unlike him to not report after a job, whether sess or fail¡­"


    "Should I send men to the White Dusk Woods to search? Maybe some of them had fallen there. We should look for their bodies to make sure."


    "If they died in White Dusk Woods, there will be no bodies to be found. The White Bone Ants would have dealt with the bodies. What about their target, that Lin Mo boy?"


    "No news as well. Our watchers informed us that the boy has not yet returned to the Lin estate. You can''t have thought that little boy to have escaped Si An, can you?"


    "I also thought it was unlikely¡­ But thinking about it again, of how our clients paid a generous sum for this little boy, that might indicate that he is not simple. Call some men to search around the town, for Si An and this Lin Mo. Particrly focus around the district where they werest seen."


    "Right away, boss," the thin man uttered and went away.


    The fat man, who was San Guo, sighed. Why did a simple job turn into such a headache? He was due to submit a report to the client as well. He rubbed his forehead. He then called for a female servant nearby, who brought him a jug filled with wine. He drank directly from the jug.


    San Guo spent the next two hours organizing report papers from the other jobs and settling payments with his hired men. After that, he came out of the store as it was closing for the evening. His hired men exited from a secret exit at the building behind the store, which was also owned by him. People would start asking questions if suspicious-looking men kept on going in and out of his clothing store.


    San Guo walked to his vi apanied by his two guards, both were Transformation stage experts.


    His vi was not far from his store and was ratherrge. It was nothingpared to those mansions owned by ns, but he was satisfied with his vi as it was the product of his hard work. He didn''t have a high level of cultivation like most prominent figures in the city, but he had a talent for building connections as well as organizing and dealing with different types of individuals. This vi was both a refuge for his family and also the pride of his aplishment.


    The two guards stood outside the vi on standby as San Guo entered. He was eager to hear the sweet sound of his daughter and savored the embrace of his beautiful wife before he went out again to meet his client.


    "Aling!" San Guo called. Weird, usually his cheerful daughter would havee running at him if she heard the front door being opened.


    San Guo put down his bag as he stretched to ease his tired muscle and walked to the kitchen. He wanted to have some meal first before going out again. His wife was a good cook apart from being good in bed. He always enjoyed tasting his wife''s cooking. That''s why he had be fatter by the day.


    When he arrived at the kitchen. The sight in front of him made him freeze.


    "Do not yell, or I will cut both their throats," a little boy in a ck attire said. He was standing in between two bound women, one adult and one young child below ten years of age. The two women were sitting on a chair with both their hands and legs tied to the chair, their mouths were gagged with clothes so they could not speak. Tears were rolling down their cheeks as their faces showed confused and frightened expressions.


    "You¡­ Lin Mo¡­ What do you want¡­?" San Guo recognized the boy who was holding his wife and daughter hostages. He was the one that distributed Lin Mo''s data to Si An, so he was sure to be able to identify Amon in a single nce.


    "What do I want?" Amon asked. "Simple, I want information. Tell me who asked you to hire people to assassinate me, then these two don''t need to die."

 48 Chapter 48

    "Where are the house guards?!" San Guo asked in anger.


    "They have been disposed of," Amon answered casually. "Now stop thinking about the others and focused on these two women beside me."


    "If you dare toy a hand on them, I swear¡­"


    San Guo''s words were cut by a muffled scream from his wife, who had a knife being stabbed on her thigh.


    "You¡­ monster¡­!!"


    "Another more unnecessary word and I will nt another one," Amon said as he took out another knife.


    "Stop¡­! Stop¡­ What do you want to know¡­?" San Guo said weakly.


    "I already told you what I want to know. Do you want to see what will happen if you make me repeat myself?"


    San Guo was quiet. His expression showed his internal struggle. Betraying a client could mean the end of his career. All the aplishments he had built were based on trust. If words spread that he had betrayed the identity of a client, he would be done for. No one would want to work with him anymore.


    Amon didn''t let him think for long as another knife went into his wife''s thigh again. The woman was sobbing in pain.


    "I don''t like waiting," Amon said. "The next one will go into this girl''s."


    "No, don''t! Don''t! I will tell you, I will tell you!" San Guo couldn''t stand this. All his wealth and career were meaningless if he lost his wife and daughter.


    "I''m listening."


    "The one who asked for your death is Wei Fan, a young master of the Wei n," San Guo said.


    "Wei Fan?" Amon frowned. Who was that? He was expecting Lin Fong or Lin Zuyi. Turned out it was an unknown person from a different n. Why did the guy want his death anyway?


    After a brief thought, he remembered something. He asked San Guo, "This Wei Fan, what''s his connection with Wei Feng?"


    "Wei Feng?" San Guo thought for a bit before answering. "Do you mean the one who was executed by the Lin n six years ago? That Wei Feng was Wei Fan''s older brother."


    Understanding dawned on Amon after hearing San Guo''s words. But why did they target him now? And why did they target him in the first ce? The broadcasted news was that Madam Lin was the one who executed Wei Feng. The only one who knew that he was the one thatnded the killing blow was the ones inside the room when it happened. In the end, it was still one of the Lin people''s doing. They must have told the Wei n about him, that''s why the Wei n was gunning for him now. But they didn''t dare to do it openly because they were afraid of Madam Lin''s retaliation. That''s why they hired outsiders like San Guo to do the deed.


    As Amon took a while thinking, San Guo was getting impatient, he said, "I''ve told you what you want to know. Now let my wife and daughter go, please¡­"


    Amon stared at him with cold eyes. San Guo couldn''t believe these were the eyes of a twelve years old kid. He shuddered as he stared at them.


    "How do you contact Wei Fan? When will you be meeting him again?" Amon asked.


    San Guo hesitated a bit, but when he saw the knife in Amon''s hand, he quickly said, "We have an agreement to meet in a secluded cemetery at the city''s outskirt. I was nning to go meet him after having dinner here."


    "How many times have you met with him for the job?"


    "Tw¨CTwice¡­"


    "Did he always meet you alone or did he bring other people?"


    "The two times I met with him, he had two other people with him."


    "Do you know his and the two people''s cultivation level?"


    "His cultivation level is peak Strength stage. As for the two he brought, I don''t know for sure, but during our meeting, he said that his two bodyguards are intermediate Transformation stage."


    ''Transformation stage, this will be rather problematic,'' Amon thought. The White-haired man alone was already dangerous. If he had to deal with two like him¡­<sub> </sub>


    "Young sir¡­ can you¡­ can you please let them go?" San Guo begged.


    Amon didn''t answer. He was still formting a n in his mind. San Guo did not dare to be rude to him. San Guo had no choice but to wait obediently.


    After a while, Amon took something out. "Do not shout," Amon told San Guo''s wife before he took off the gag in her mouth. As she was gasping for breath, he threw the thing in his hand into her mouth. He then put the gag bag into her mouth and pinched her nose.


    "What are you doing?" San Guo yelled in panic.


    "Do not overreact," Amon told him. He paid attention to the front door and was d that no sound was heard. The guards outside did not hear San Guo''s yelling. He then turned back to San Guo''s wife who was having difficulty breathing.


    "Swallow it," Amon said to her.


    After making sure that she did. Amon moved to the girl and told her that he would feed her the same thing as her mom. If she didn''t want to get hurt, she had to follow his instruction.


    "N¨Cno, what did you feed them?" San Guo asked.


    Amon did not answer him. Amon asked the girl if he understood what he said. The girl was also full of fear, she nodded. Amon released her gag and put the same thing into her mouth. He didn''t force her like her mom, but his gaze stayed on the girl until she did the swallowing. He then put her gag back.


    After that, Amon said to the older woman, "I''m going to dress your wound now. It will hurt."


    Amon pulled out the two knives on her thigh. Blood was leaking but not severe. Amon had avoided major blood vessels in his stabs. He poured healing salve and then applied a bandage on the wound.


    After finishing, Amon said to San Guo, "let''s talk in the other room."


    Amon walked by San Guo. When San Guo was considering running over to free his wife and daughter, Amon said, "Do not try anything stupid. You know my information, right? You do know my cultivation is higher than yours. I will kill them both if you try anything funny."


    Hearing that, San Guo aborted his intention. He gave the two another look before following Amon to the next room.


    Amon closed the door after he entered. He then said to San Guo, "I fed them a poison of my own making. They have twelve hours before they need to take an antidote. If they don''t, you can just pick up their corpses."


    "You¡­!" In his anger, San Guo lunged at Amon, which Amon easily neutralized by using San Guo''s own momentum to throw him down. Amon then twisted his arm as hey there on the floor.


    "Now listen carefully. I have the antidote. My antidote is the only one working. If you take them to doctors or healers, they will need to study the poison first to find the cure. Twelve hours is not enough for that. I am your only hope if you want the two to survive. Do you understand this?"


    San Guo nodded. He was too distressed and angry to say a confirmation.


    "Good," Amon let him go.


    After he stood back up, San Guo calmed himself and asked, "What do you want from me?"


    "I want you to take me to the ce where you meet Wei Fan. You have to listen to my instructions and follow them to the letter. Do you understand?"


    San Guo nodded weakly.


    "Good, we will start by you asking your two guards outside to leave. Tell them you have changed your n, your wife and daughter are sick so you have decided to take care of them for the evening. Give them some Aer stones and ask them to spend the stones in the tavern or something."


    San Guo went to the front door and do as he was told. Amon reminded him, "put on your usual face, do not let them think there is something wrong. Your wife and daughter''s lives depend on it."


    San Guo stopped after hearing Amon''s words. He straightened himself and rubbed his face, trying to regain hisposure, before stepping out the door. Amon stayed hidden beside the door and listened to San Guo to make sure he didn''t say anything suspicious.


    After a while, San Guo came back in. They waited a while for the two guards to put some distance before Amon gave him arge cloak that covered his whole body. He then gestured for San Guo to walk out the door again. San Guo looked in the direction of the kitchen where his wife and daughter were still bound. He wanted to look at them one more time as this might be thest time he saw them. But ultimately, he walked out the door as Amon was giving him an impatient look.


    Amon went out following him and closing the front door.

 49 Chapter 49

    Amon let San Guo lead the way to this secluded cemetery where he was supposed to meet with Wei Fan. He was not worried that San Guo would try to run. If he did, then he had sealed the fate of his wife and daughter.


    During the walk, San Guo continued to steal nces at Amon. He couldn''t believe this was what the report said as a twelve years old child. Could such a young child be this cruel and cold? The kid was more like a demon in human skin.


    After a long silence, San Guo finally said, "I know I will not make it through the night, but can you promise to at least go back to my house after this is over and give my wife and daughter the antidotes? Please allow them to live at least. They won''t pose any danger to you."


    "If you follow all my instructions. I will let them live," Amon said.


    San Guo was hesitating for a bit before he asked again, "You didn''t lie to me, right?"


    "There is nothing I said that will give you the certainty you want. So you can just trust me, or don''t. All you need to know is that if you don''t follow my instruction, they are certain to die."


    San Guo gritted his teeth. It was basically telling him that his only option was to gamble for Amon to keep his words. He had no other choice, the other was a certain doom to his family. Even if he was to fall, he wanted at least his wife and daughter to have a chance of surviving.


    *


    The secluded cemetery was indeed secluded. No people were living nearby, but it was also not quite a wilnd, so no spirit beast around. It was like a deserted section of the city. The lighting was also bad, it was dark all over the ce. The cemetery must have been deserted for quite some while already.


    Inside this cemetery, three men were standing. They appeared to be waiting. Two of them were holding a torch in one hand. The third one was one with a luxurious suit,pletely ipatible with the current venue. He was pacing back and forth with impatience.


    "Where the hell is that fatso? Doesn''t he know that making this young master wait is a serious offense?" The man with the luxurious suit grumbled.


    "Young master Fan, it was unlike San Guo to bete. Something might have happened," one of his aides said.


    "Hmph! It better be. If he makes me wait without any good reason, I''m going to teach him a lesson!" said the young master who was Wei Fan.


    Not long after, they saw hasty footsteps approaching. They looked over and saw two figures approaching, onerge and small. They could not see clearly due to theck of light.


    "I''m sorry, I''m sorry!" Therge figure called out. The three recognized that the voice belonged to San Guo. "I''mte, but I bring a gift which should satisfy young master."


    "Hmph, there are very few things in this world that can satisfy me," Wei Fan uttered with arrogance.


    "I believe this one will not disappoint," San Guo said. He was close enough now to be alighted by the torches carried by Wei Fan''s two aides. At the same time, the light also revealed the one that came together with San Guo, who was revealed to be Amon. Amon''s arms were bent to his back and appeared to be bound.


    "Lin Mo!" Wei Fan called in a surprise.


    Seeing Wei Fan''s reaction, San Guo said with a smile, "I don''t know what young master''s grudge is with this kid, but I figured that you might want to deal with him yourself instead of just receiving the news of his death."


    "Hmph! You never thought you will fall into my hands now, do you?" Wei Fan said with hatred to Lin Mo. "All this time I was unable to vent my rage for my beloved brother''s death because we all thought that it was Madam Lin that has killed my brother, but it turns out it was a brat like you? How dare you! I will show you what the consequences are for crossing our Wei n. By the time I am finished with you¡­"


    "Young master Fan, please calm yourself," one of the aides said. "we shouldn''t involve ourselves because Madam Lin might investigate his demise."


    The other aide nodded, "yes, that is precisely why we hired outside help." He then turned to San Guo, "San Guo! This is unlike your method. We gave clear instruction to have him dealt with, not to bring him to us. Why do you deviate from the agreement?"


    San Guo gave a wry smile. "I just think that this will make young master Fan happier. I want to build a better rtionship between me and the young master. Please forgive me if this instead makes you unhappy."<sub> </sub>


    "Hmph. No, I indeed prefer this way. I want to kill the brat myself," Wei Fan dered.


    "Young master Fan!" The aide warned with an rming tone.


    "Hmph, what is there to be afraid of? He is not truly a family of the Lin n. He is just an adopted bastard. I bet that after his disappearance, Madam Lin will simply pick up another straggler to be made her child. There is no need to be afraid."


    "I still think that it is best if we act prudently."


    "Act prudently? The Lin n had trampled our dignity by dragging the young master of our n in broad daylight and then executed him without any trial. All the cowards in our n just treat it like nothing has happened. Are you still saying about acting prudently? Even the Lei n who imed to be our backer did not do anything to demand justice. How can I just leave it be? If I don''t demand justice for my brother, who will?"


    The two aides, sensing Wei Fan''s determination, could only sigh and decided not to persuade anymore.


    "All right, now bring him here!" Wei Fan demanded.


    San Guo obeyed as he pushed Amon forward.


    "Halt! We will receive him," the two aides came forward and put themselves in front of Wei Fan. They were still vignt despite the target being bound was a small child.


    As the two came close to Amon. They caught a sudden movement from San Guo, who threw two small pebbles. Each at one of them. They were vignt enough to immediately deployed defensive measures. The one on the left unsheathed his saber to cut at the pebble while the one on the right used his hand which had turned to wood to block.


    The pebbles exploded upon contact, exuding green smoke. At the same time, Amon''s arm came out from his back, he was not bound at all. His two arms flung two knives forward. Both were the poison type, he was going all out right from the start.


    The aide on the left jumped back as he let go of his saber, yet the saber did not fall. Instead, it twisted around, creating a protective barrier. Amon''s poison knife was deflected by the saber.


    The aide on the right was not that fortunate. He had blocked the poison bullet using his hand. Although his hand suffered no damage because he had used an arcane art that turned his hand into sturdy wood. The green smoke exploded near him. He could not avoid inhaling some of the smoke, which caused him a brief paralyzation. The poison knife came at this time.


    He still had a small amount of control to turn the part that would be struck by the knife into wood for a defensive measure. However, his response was a bit sluggish due to the poison smoke effect. The knife was stopped from prating deep into his flesh. However, the tip of the knife had already entered before the defensive art took effect. A scratch was all it needed, the ck ughter Poison immediately sipped into his body.


    The violent poison ravaged his innards. Anyone below the Martial realm had little chance to survive this poison. He screamed in pain as ck blood oozed from all the holes on his body. He slumped lifeless to the ground not long after.


    Wei Fan and his remaining aide were stunned by theirrade''s death. What kind of potent poison did the kid use to kill a Transformation stage cultivator that fast? Even San Guo was shocked by it. He was more sure now that Amon was a poison expert. The poison that his wife and daughter took should be not simple as well. He was slightly relieved now that he didn''t take a gamble by defying Amon and taking his wife and daughter to the local healers to be cured.


    The surviving aide whose attention was on his dying friend just now, turned his gaze back to Amon, only to find that Amon was no longer there. He quickly looked around to locate the enemy, but Amon was nowhere to be seen. He felt a sudden draft and saw the dust on the ground shift despite nothing walking on them. He didn''t take any chance, he made a wave and a round metallic shield appeared in front of him.


    A loud ng sounded just as the shield was formed. Amon materialized holding another poison knife. He had used Silent Swift Stab and turned invisible as his opponent was distracted. Unfortunately, his opponent was a cautious veteran.


    This aide threw his saber and it spun in Amon''s direction. Amon hurriedly dodged. He took out his Swan Dagger and used it to parry the flying saber when he could not dodge.


    Amon realized he won''t win if fighting directly against a Transformation stage practitioner. He needed a distraction.


    "San Guo! What are you waiting for? Capture that young master!" Amon ordered.

 50 Chapter 50

    San Guo hesitated a bit before resigning to be Amon''s aplice. After all, he had made the first attack that caused one of Wei Fan''s aides to fall. There was no way Wei Fan would let him go if he survived this.


    San Guo ran towards the young master. His cultivation was lower than Wei Fan''s, but in terms of real life and death experiences, he had more of them. Before he became a mediator between the powerful families and the lowly criminals who needed dirty jobs, he himself was one of these mercenaries. He had done many jobs himself before he gathered enough knowledge and connections to be the organizer.


    The speed he exhibited belied his fat body. He pped forward with an open palm as the young master came into range. His palm appeared as if covered by white dust.


    ? "You overestimate yourself!" Wei Fan yelled. He punched out. His fist was covered by fire as it struck San Guo''s palm.


    After the fist and palm connected, a clear winner was shown. San Guo was thrown back several meters as he vomited blood. He was after all, lower in cultivation levelpared to Wei Fan. His palm that had connected with Wei Fan''s fist was also charred ck.


    However, when Wei Fan wanted to continue attacking. He felt something was wrong with his fist. He looked at it and found that blisters had formed around it, with some white dust covering his fist which made him feel itchy. He also had a problem controlling the aether in that hand.


    "What did you do?" Wei Fan screamed in anger.


    "Hehe, don''t underestimate my White Dust Palm," San Guo uttered.


    While San Guo and Wei Fang were dueling, Amon continued to dodge the flying saber while he slowly approached Wei Fan. The aide he was fighting finally noticed and immediately moved to go to his young master''s side.


    Amon threw five flying knives at Wei Fan. The five knives flew in non-linear arcs as they left behind light trails, as if five shooting stars were heading at the young master. The aide could not make it in time, he immediately controlled his flying saber to intercept these five flying knives. The saber spun rapidly as it cut through the knives one by one.


    Amon took the chance when the aide was distracted to throw six Poison Cloud Bullets. The aide quickly used his defensive arcane art to form a round metal shield again. But the poison bullets were thrown at different positions, he blocked two while the other four flew by his side. Amon had practiced inserting his aether into the pellets so he could detonate them while in the air. The resulting poison smoke surrounded the aide. He quickly held his breath to prevent from inhaling this poison smoke.


    Holding breath could prevent him from being poisoned by the smoke, but it also weakened his control over his aether. Amon didn''t let go of the chance. He executed Bone Shattering Shadow Fist with his two fists. Three strong fist energies were unleashed from each fist. The six energy punched at the round metal shield. The shield didn''t have enough supply of aether to sustain these rapid punches, it broke apart.


    Five shooting stars came into the aide''s view at once. He was still holding his breath, he could not form another protective shield fast enough, so he tried to dodge by jumping to the side. Amon had predicted it thought, he was already throwing hisst normal knife in that direction. The knife hit the aide''s leg.


    Amon ran towards him with Swan Dagger on his right and a poisoned knife on his left. He only had two poison knives left with him, he won''t throw thesest two unless he was absolutely sure they would hit.


    Wei Fan who had been saved by his aide, couldn''t continue to stay idle. He realized now that his aide was struggling against this little kid. He was still wary of San Guo but he decided to attack Amon as well. He sped his hands which then alighted with me before punching forward. A fist of fire rushed at Amon.


    Amon was fully aware of his surroundings even if he was fighting against the aide. He easily dodged Wei Fan''s ming fist as he ran at full speed. The young master''s mastery of the art was not good enough.


    The aide, who watched Amon getting closer, gritted his teeth as he tried to resist the pain in his leg. He looked at Amon as the kid came closer, he had already summoned his flying saber back. It was currently flying towards Amon''s back, but suddenly Amon turned invisible again.


    Remembering thest time Amon used that art, he immediately took defensive measures. However, instead ofing at him, Amon appeared beside the unsuspecting Wei Fan. The young master was too green to react to that sudden change. Amon shed his Swan Dagger and cut Wei Fan''s one leg clean off. Wei Fan screamed in pain as he fell to the ground.


    "Young master!!" The aide shouted in panic as he rushed towards his liege.


    Amon spun around and kicked the hurting Wei Fan towards the aide. The helpless young master flew at him. The aide quickly received him. But as he grabbed Wei Fan, a knife burst out through his body and stabbed into him as well. Amon had used the full power of the Hundred Shooting Stars art to throw the poison knife. This art at the Master level could punch through a solid concrete wall, much less a human''s body. Although a cultivator''s body was strong, it was still not enough to sustain this prative force.


    The ck ughter Poison immediately reacted inside the two''s bodies, killing them both in a short time.


    Silence returned to the cemetery as all three of the Wei n''s people were lifeless on the ground. San Guo was holding his charred hand. He was still unable to believe the scene, he didn''t expect the little boy would manage to do it. He had killed two transformation stage cultivators and a peak Strength stage cultivator, while still at the intermediate Strength stage.


    Amon himself was panting. He had forced himself to continuously use his arts. He was running low already at the moment. San Guo could see that as well. He was having an internal debate at the moment. Should he attack? Maybe he could find the antidote if he searched the kid''s belongings.<sub> </sub>


    But when he looked again and saw Amon''s stare, he immediately doused that thought. The kid''s stare told him that Amon was ready for an attack.


    Amon went around the battlefield to pick up his throwing knives. Those were his important arsenals. He wouldn''t leave them behind unless absolutely necessary, especially the poisoned type ones, he only had four of those.


    He didn''t forget to collect the three space rings as well, but there was not much inside the aides'' ones, just some recovery pills, salves, somemon weapons, and some worthless necessities. They were not like him who brought all his stuff with him. These people had a safe ce to store their belongings, preventing them from being a target of theft.


    The young master''s one only had arge pouch inside, containing 500 Aer stones.


    "Let me guess, the price this guy paid for my death is five hundred aer stones?" Amon said to San Guo.


    "It''s the bnce. The deposit is also five hundred which had been paid in front," San Guo replied.


    Amon was impressed, he was worth one thousand Aer stones? But it was the Lin word in his given name that was worth that amount. Although he was an unwanted member of the Lin n, he was still in the Lin n. Assault on him meant offending the n. No one would want to do the job if the pay was not tempting enough.


    "I will take these Aer stones aspensation then," Amon said as he stored the pouch in his space ring. San Guo didn''t make anyment.


    "I will leave you to deal with these corpses," Amon said. "The Wei n wille searching. How you deal with them to avoid getting med will depend on your own wits."


    San Guo creased his forehead, "You are not killing me?"


    "Do you want me to?" Amon asked back.


    San Guo didn''t know what to say.


    Amon took out two round pills and threw them at San Guo, who deftly caught them with his other hand that was still fine.


    "That''s the antidote for your wife and daughter. Give them before the sunrise and they will be fine."


    San Guo looked at the two pills. After witnessing Amon''s coldness, he actually never believe he would see the antidotes, much less be the one to administer them to his wife and daughter.


    "Why do you let me go? Aren''t you afraid I will retaliate?"


    Amonughed. "You are wee to try. Also, don''t forget you are my aplice in killing these three. If I tell this to the public, who do you think will receive more harm. As long as I hide inside the Lin n, the Wei people will not dare toe looking for trouble. You, on the other hand, will not have that kind of protection."


    San Guo was silent. Amon was right, he was just a nobody who worked himself up to his current position relying on his rtionship skills. He did not have any solid backers to mention of. He would not survive if any of these big ns were gunning for him.


    "I let you go because I see that you might still have a value," Amon added. "Though your strength iscking, your connections with the underworld are impressive. I might need something that required your helpter. Of course, I must warn you. If you ever daree after me again, there will not be any warning. I will bury you and your family. Are we clear on this?"


    San Guo nodded silently.


    "Good, I will leave this cleaning to you then," Amon said and dashed away into the darkness.

 51 Chapter 51

    Amon went back to the Lin n and submitted hispleted mission. Hey low for the remaining days while monitoring the news.


    San Guo had made the corpses of the Wei people disappear. The Wei n as expected sent people to investigate, but they couldn''t find anything at the cemetery where Wei Fan wasst known to have gone to. San Guo had done a good job erasing every trace.


    The Wei people went to meet San Guo after. He was the one that had the appointment to meet with Wei Fan, after all, the Wei people naturally considered him to be thest person to have seen their young master.


    When they arrived, San Guo exined that he never went to the cemetery as his wife and daughter had suddenly gotten ill. It''s a good thing that after he administered the antidote, he had called the local healer over to apply further treatments. His wife and daughter''s bodies were still weak from the shock and the poison''s aftereffect, especially his wife who also had additional wounds on her thigh, which San Guo exined to the healer as idental cuts. The visit of the healer was known to the neighborhood, and when the Wei people visit the healer to question him, the healer also coborated with San Guo''s story.


    It was also a good thing that Amon had given him the cloak to hide himself from being identified when they were heading to the cemetery. San Guo couldn''t help but think that the kid had nned this as well from the start to allow him easier escape from the Wei people''s investigation.


    But the most convincing point was that San Guo was just a beginning Strenght stage. The Wei people made a thorough checking on all his guards and the known criminals he worked with. Every one of them was ounted to not be anywhere near the cemetery at the time. There was no way San Guo alone could have done anything to two Transformation stage cultivators and one peak Strength stage.


    The Wei n, however, still maintained surveince on San Guo. They didn''t use him partly because there was not enough evidence, another part was because there was another suspect. The Lin bastard who had been Wei Fan''s target. Although the kid was equally impossible to have done anything to the three high-level cultivators, his whereabouts during that night were unknown. Hence, Amon was the most likely suspect.


    After that, whenever Amon took a mission, he always made sure to only pick a mission where he was close to the public area with plenty of crowds. It was unlikely for the Wei n to ask San Guo toe after him again. Not only because he was convinced San Guo was afraid of his threat, but also because the rtionship between the Wei n and San Guo had been severed due to this incident.


    If the Wei n was still intent oning after him, they could only hire second-rate criminals, which Amon had no worry of. Another way was for them to send their own high-level cultivators to deal with him. That''s why Amon chose his mission to be close to the public area. If a confrontation broke, everyone could see the Wei ning after the people of the Lin n. Such a public disy would force the Lin n to interfere. Otherwise, they would appear weak.


    *


    In this way, half a year had gone by. Amon continued to be vignt whenever he was out on a mission.


    One day, he received a summon.


    "The master of the n wants to see me?" Amon asked with furrowed brows.


    Madam Lin nodded. "An honorary guest is visiting. They are meeting with my father at the moment, and now it appeared that they want to talk to you."


    "Honorary guest? Who is it?"


    "The Master of the Wei n."


    Amon creased his forehead further. Did theye to demand he be investigated? Maybe they found no chance to ambush him in the dark, so now they were making a move on him in the open. If they did, there was no guarantee the Lin n would be willing to protect him. But to just hand him over to the Wei n would be a disy of weakness, it was unlikely.


    After that brief thinking, he said to Madam Lin, "Let''s go then."


    Following Madam Lin, Amon went to thergest buildingplex within the Lin Estate with thatrge hall where Amon had met the Master of the Lin n for the first time, but Madam Lin didn''t take him to enter this hall. Instead, they went to a smaller structure next to it which seemed more like a garden than a building. There were several guards around this structure.


    Lin Bubai was at the entrance.


    "Sister, please stay with me. Father wants him to enter alone," he said when the two arrived.


    "I''m not letting him out of my sight," Madam Lin replied.


    Lin Bubai sighed, her sister''s protective instinct towards this child was truly as the report his people had gathered.<sub> </sub>


    "There is no need to worry, sister. Father means him no harm. He just wants a chat with the boy."


    "What about the Wei n? What do they want with him?" Madam Lin was not a hermit, she had also heard the news about Wei Fan''s death and the rumors about Amon''s involvement.


    "They will not dare to do anything inside this wall. I give you my words that no harm wille to this boy."


    "It''s okay, mother. I''m curious to talk with the n master as well. I believe everything will be fine," Amon said.


    Madam Lin looked at Amon, her expression softened as she said, "if anything happens, just yell. I wille running."


    Amon nodded. He then walked through the entrance under the gaze of the two Lin siblings. Behind the entrance was a narrow stone path with high nts decorating the left and right. There was only one path so there was no need for a guide. He continued on as he followed the path.


    He soon heard chattering andughter not far away. The path took him closer to where that voice came from.


    He came out of the path into a surreal pond with an elegant-looking pavilion in the middle of it. There were some stone steps on the pond which continued from the path Amon was walking on. Three people were sitting inside the pavilion chatting merrily as two maids were serving them. Amon recognized one of them to be the master of the n, Lin Weida.


    Amon continued his walks toward this pavilion.


    As he got nearer, the people inside noticed his approach. They stopped talking as they looked at him. Lin Weida continued to wear a smiling face but the two men opposite him forsook their merry bearing and turned to cold expressions.


    Amon continued walking leisurely, but he could feel extreme pressure from these three people, apanied by a feeling of danger. These threepletely outssed him. But the pressure he felt from the two strangers was slightly less than Lin Weida, indicating that they were weaker than the n master.


    He arrived at the pavilion and gave Lin Weida a polite salute of a junior to a senior as was the custom in this world.


    "You have improved further," Lin Weidamented. "You didn''t disappoint me. Come! Sit by my side. I will introduce you to these two fine gentlemen, they have been asking to meet you personally."


    Amon gave his thanks and took a sit as was offered.


    "This old geezer is Wei SuangSou, master of the Wei n. An old friend of mine. This dashing man is Wei Linkun, Suangsou''s most talented grandson. He was the third ranker during the past White Cloud tournament."


    Amon gave the two a simple salute as he asked Lin Weida, "White Cloud tournament?"


    "It is a tournament organized by the White Cloud sect every ten years. Every talented youngster who lives in White Cloud city who was fifteen years of age or below can apply to join."


    "Hmph! It''s not something a street rat like you can join," Wei Linkun uttered. He didn''t bother to show hostility to Amon right from the start.


    "Brother Weida, I see old age had started to gnaw on you. How can you let a descendant of a fallen n join your n? This will carry a stain on your ancestor''s pride."


    "Haha, brother Suangsou, you are too serious. Old-timers like us should know about the greatness of the Hei n in the past. Even now, our ns can still hold no candle to it during its heyday. Unfortunately, they have to pick a taboo path. But that is all in the past. The Hei n has suffered all this time, it is only fair that I preserved itsst descendant."


    Wei Suangsou didn''t reply, he just drank his tea. As he ced his cup on the table, he said, "Brother Weida, you know me as someone who doesn''t waste time on idle talks. So I will just get to the point. I want you to hand over this kid to me."

 52 Chapter 52

    Lin Weida also did the same, he casually drank his tea first before replying, "May I know what brother Suangsou needs with him?"


    "We just want to talk to him," Wei Suangsou said.


    "You can talk to him here just fine."


    "Brother Weida, let''s drop the pretense. Even though you have given the authority of your n''s operation to your first son, I know you still follow most of the recent events in the city. I''m sure you are aware of the disappearance of one of my grandsons, Wei Fan."


    "And you think this kid here is responsible? This little kid who is still at the intermediate Strength stage?"


    "I know it is unlikely, but he might have aplices. That''s why we need to speak to him in detail."


    "As I said before, you can speak to him here just fine."


    Silence followed afterward. Wei Suangsou stared at Lin Weida with an intense gaze while Lin Weida responded with a casual smile as he took another sip of his tea. Wei Linkun appeared agitated but he did not dare to speak out during the two senior''s exchange.


    Amon also maintained a calm expression. There was a cup of tea in front of him which had been put there by the maid when he sat. He took it and drank it while everyone was silent. Wei Linkun felt more vexed after seeing Amon to be this calm.


    After a long silence, Wei Suangsou finally spoke, "Brother Weida, I have overlooked the incident years ago with Wei Feng. That can be considered as me giving face to you. If I just let this current incident slide again, my own people will question my position as the n master."


    "Do you have any evidence pointing that Lin Mo here is responsible for what happened to Wei Fan?" Lin Weida asked.


    "¡­ no."


    "Then it''s all just conjectures. You can''t expect me to hand over one of my own to you just because of rumors now, can you?"


    "Is it worth it for you to protect him?"


    "Aside from whether he is worth it or not, he is still a part of my n. But most of all, handing him to you will cause me a headache with my beloved daughter. I''m not very keen on that. So, if you can''t give me any solid evidence for your im, you must excuse me for not giving brother Suangsou a face."


    Another period of silence. Amon was enjoying his tea all this time. Wei Linkun could finally stand it no more. "Don''t act so smug, you prick! You think you can be protected forever?" He said to Amon.


    Amon ced his cup down and said, "I''m sorry, did you just threaten a member of the Lin n in front of the Lin n''s master?


    Wei Linkun''s expression became dark. Lin Weida instead was grinning as he shook his head. He took up his cup to his two guests. "I think everyone is a bit too tense. How about you two give me face and let us forget about all the unpleasant matters and just enjoy the beautiful scenery here?"


    "We are not here to enjoy the scenery," Wei Suangsou said.


    "Then we are at an impasse. I will not relinquish him without evidence, brother Suangsou."


    "How about a challenge then?" Wei Linkun uttered.


    "A challenge?"


    "Let us settle things in the way of cultivation. A match to the death, with this kid."


    "Against you? Are you not ashamed, junior Linkun? You are a whole level above him."


    "Of course not against me. We will have someone who is on the same cultivation level to fight him."


    Lin Weida rested his elbow on the table as he thought about it. He nced at Amon, who was also looking at him. Seeing the kid''s indifferent expression, he smiled. He then said to his guests. "I agree to this challenge, but on one condition."


    "What is it?" Wei Suangsou said.


    "It is to be done within the next White Cloud Tournament two and a half years from now. The one you picked to fight with him has to also be amongst Wei''s young generations who were participating in the tournament."


    Wei Suangsou and Wei Lingkun looked at each other before saying, "All right. We agree to this deathmatch then."


    The two then stood up, "We will excuse ourselves. Otherwise, we overstayed our wee."


    "I won''t send you off then," Lin Weida said as he gave the two a salute.<sub> </sub>


    The two saluted back and walked away. Wei Linkun''s eyes continued to throw Amon a hostile re before he went away.


    After they were gone, Lin Weida asked, "What do you think of them?"


    "Very strong," Amon said, "but not as strong as you. I know the Wei n is a subsidiary of our rival Lei n. Why gives them so much face? You can crush them both easily."


    "Hahaha," Lin Weida gave a heartyugh. "The rtionship between the ns in this town is moreplex than you think. An enemy now can be a friend in the future."


    "The reverse is also true," Amonmented.


    "Very true. Now, don''t you take lightly that master of the Wei n? Although I am stronger than him, he is only half a level weaker. The reason why the Wei n is much weaker and is a subsidiary of therger n is that they have a much fewer number of expertspared to us and the Lei n. But that n master himself can go toe to toe either against me or the Lei n master. It is always prudent to avoid confrontation from an equal opponent."


    "Really? Where is the thrill in that?"


    Lin Weida chuckled, "I did hear about your antics on fighting those stronger than you in our Lin n''s training arena. Do you know the young generations gave you the nickname of mad dog?"


    "Kind of ttering," Amon said.


    Lin Weida grinned. He stood up and said to Amon, e with me."


    Amon rose and followed.


    While they were on the way, Amon asked, "Why do you arrange that we fight in that tournament instead of right away?"


    "For publicity," Lin Weida asked. "Our n always needs to draw more experts into our fold if we want to continue to be amongst the best party in this city. Our main force will always be those of the main bloodline, but we can''t do everything with our limited number. A sect had more advantages in this scope as they are not limited to the bloodline. Therefore, we won''t be able to contend against them if we don''t grow. The White Cloud tournament is a good venue that draws all the attention of the city. Your win in the special deathmatch within the tournament should boost our n''s reputation."


    "Are you not afraid of losing a reputation if I lose?"


    Lin Weida shrugged. "Then we will simply say that you are never really one of us. That you are just an adopted bastard."


    "Clever, so you have nothing to lose," Amonmented.


    "Yes. Will you lose?"


    "No."


    "Good."


    They have been walking through the garden beside the pond and arrived at a path that seemingly led to a dead end. But Lin Weida reached into something that was covered by vines hanging down the wall. Not long after, the wall that blocked their current path opened. The inside was covered by darkness. Lin Weida walked in with Amon following behind.


    It was pitch ck inside, Amon could only roughly see some outline after his eyes adjusted. Lin Weida didn''t use any torch or turn on any lighting. Amon was following based on the footsteps in front of him.


    Not long after, they came into arge round hall with dim lighting. Amon could see more clearly in there. There was an elevated round tform in the middle of the hall, beneath the tform was water. A stone stair took them up to this tform.


    The elevated tform was veryrge, it was roughly the size of two basketball courts. Amon sensed strange pressure as he stepped on the tform. Lin Weida walked and stopped at the center of the tform.


    "This is my personal cultivation and training ce," Lin Weida said. "This ce was constructed by master builders and enhanced by master engravers to siphon the aether from the ley lines beneath our estate."


    Ley Lines, Amon had read about it from books. It was like a concentration of aether under the ground that moved as if a river. Some people called it the blood vessel of the world. Such ley lines were rare. If one was found, it would be fought over by thergest ns. Amon did not doubt that the threergest organizations of this city, the Lin n, Lei n, and White Cloud sect, monopolized the ones in this city.


    "No wonder I felt ufortable. This is a pressurized aether?" Amonmented. It felt much denser than when he used the ck Aetherium Stone.


    "Why do you bring me here?" Amon asked the n master.


    "I want to make sure," Lin Weida replied.


    "Make sure of what?"


    "Most Strength stage will have fainted if they step onto this tform."

 53 Chapter 53

    Amon''s brows furrowed, The n master was testing him?


    "There is something different about you. Is it something that you bring with you?" Lin Weida asked.


    "There is nothing that will interest a powerful senior like you," Amon answered.


    Lin Weida extended his palm out, "let me see your space ring, then."


    "Are you robbing me?" Amon asked.


    "Robbing is too strong a word. I am inspecting you. I want to make sure you didn''t keep anything from the n."


    "Weren''t you the one who said six years ago that everything from the Hei n is mine and no one is to take them from me?"


    "Hahaha. That''s true. I will be ashamed if someone sees me not sticking to what I have said. But¡­ do you see anyone else here?"


    Amon snorted. It''s not like he expected the master of the n to be anyone honorable. In fact, in his experience, there is no such thing as honorable. It was just a matter of opportunity and circumstance. Just as the n master had said. In this ce where no one saw what had transpired, even if Lin Weida killed him and robbed him after, a story could easily be woven to exin his disappearance.


    Seeing that he was powerless to do anything about it, he could onlyply. He took off the ring on his finger and gave it up. Lin Weida epted the ring and forcefully intruded the ring''s inner space, a trivial matter considering the gap in their cultivation, and checked the things inside.


    After a while, the n master frowned. There were some things inside but nothing out of the ordinary. The most valuable thing inside the ring was Aer Stones which amount was quite substantial for someone who received no support from the n. But then again, he remembered a report about Madam Lin forcing the n mission manager to allow Amon to exchange his mission points with Aer stones. Probably that exined the sum here.


    Amon just stood there waiting patiently as Lin Weida inspected his belongings. But suddenly the n master''s arms swiped forward. Amon caught the abrupt movement and jumped back, but Lin Weida''s action was too swift. Uncountable blue energy des shot out with undetectable speed.


    When Amon''s feetnded back on the ground, all the clothes on his body had been shredded. He was naked leaving only the self-adjusting chainmail covering his upper body.


    Amon looked at his body. No wound. The blue energy just now only cut his clothes. Lin Weida''s control over the attack was inhuman. ''Hm?'' Amon touched his skin. There were beads of water on his skin. ''Is this the residue of his attack just now?''


    "That was one fast reaction," Lin Weidaplimented. "And also a very fine protective garment you have there."


    "Are you interested in it?" Amon asked.


    "No, although it is good. It is only the level of the Human realm. It provides no advantage to me who is in the Martial realm. I, however, am interested in the thing that is dangling from your neck."


    Amon looked down and realized that the ck ring he wore as a ne waspletely in view now that his clothes were gone. This was bad, all his real valuables were inside this ck Space Ring. If Lin Weida took them from him. It would set him back by a great deal.


    However, considering the current situation. Even if he resisted, the end result was the same. Might as well feignpliance and thought of a way to get it backter. He took off the ck ring from the makeshift ne on his neck and threw it to the n master.


    Lin Weida caught it with a grin. He then sent his consciousness into the ring.


    "Hm?" The n master''s brow creased into a furrow. He turned the ring around before giving Amon a nce.


    "What is this ring? Why do you wear it on your body?" He asked.


    Seeing the unexpected reaction, Amon surmised there was something wrong. He decided to tell a lie, "It is a memento from Hei Gong, the past Hei patriarch. That is the remainder of his belonging that I carry with me to remember him by."


    Lin Weida looked at the ck ring onest time before throwing it back to Amon. Amon caught it, then sent his consciousness inside for a quick check. Everything seemed to be still inside.


    "So it is just a rubbish ring. It seemed that you are really honest about having nothing of interest," Lin Weida said.


    Amon was puzzled by the n master''s words, but he kept his cool expression, not allowing his surprise to inform the n master that something was out of the ordinary. Amon reattached the ck ring back onto his ne and wore it back with a calm expression.


    Lin Weida had also given Amon back his normal space ring. Amon made a quick check and saw that nothing was missing as well. He then took spare clothes inside the space ring and wore them.


    "Since it was not because something you carry to resist the pressure of this room, that means it''s your body," Lin Weida said.


    Amon''s heart skipped a beat hearing it, but he continued to maintain his cool expression.


    "You must be those kinds of people who were born with special talent or constitution," Lin Weida continued. "Which means me investing in you to win the deathmatch in the tournament will not be a waste. Probably you can even win the tournament for our n."<sub> </sub>


    "You are registering me for the tournament?" Amon asked. He thought at first Lin Weida only sent him for that duel with the Wei n during the tournament. The tournament sounded like a high-profile match, so he did not expect someone that was always considered an outsider in the n would be given the right to participate.


    "Of course, why not? Win glory for our n, and perhaps we will treat you better, don''t you think?"


    Amon did not take the n master''s words at face value. "What''s in it for me for winning?" Amon asked.


    "Haha," Lin Weidaughed. "You sound as if winning it is just a matter of if you want to or not. All right, let''s put it this way, if you can ce yourself in the top ten, I will grant you one-time ess into our Lin Tome Chamber and select one art inside."


    Amon was intrigued, he was indeed interested in this tome chamber ever since he heard it from the maid. It would probably be worth the effort to win this tournament.


    "To show my sincerity, here," Lin Weida threw a book to Amon. "Hopefully it can help you in the deathmatch."


    He caught it and read its title, "Endless Concealed sh."


    "I heard from Lin Xi you like to use a dagger. That is one of the best arts we had for daggers here in this Lin n. Not many practiced it since dagger is an unpopr weapon, so I guess I can spare the art for you rather than leaving it being useless. However, I am rather confused why you pick that weapon in the first ce. Is it because you don''t have ess to any other weapon? Tell me, I can give you another high-quality weapon if you like."


    "No, dagger is fine for me," Amon said.


    "So be it. Well, that will be it."


    "We are allowed to use weapons in the tournament?" Amon asked.


    "Not at first, but you are allowed to use weapons in the final," Lin Weida replied.


    Amon nodded at the answer.


    "Practice well and do not embarrass our n two and a half years from now. Do know that I don''t have any use for a failure," Lin Weida reminded him.


    Amon grinned but didn''t say anything in response. He just turned and started walking out of the room.


    "Wait! One more thing," Lin Weida called out.


    Amon stopped.


    "Do you truly have nothing to do with Wei Fan''s disappearance?" Lin Weida asked.


    "No," Amon replied and continued walking.


    Lin Weida continued to stare at Amon till the boy was gone. He was wondering in his mind. He still couldn''t decide if this boy was an asset or a liability.


    Amon retraced the stone path to get back to the entrance of the garden. Madam Lin was there with Lin Bubai. She approached once she saw Amon. She asked, "I saw the Wei peoplee out. They didn''t look happy. What happened inside?"


    Amon told her about the deathmatch agreement which is to be carried out during the White Cloud Tournament.


    "A deathmatch? Why do you agree to it?" Madam Lin asked, a worry in her tone.


    "Don''t worry, mother. I won''t lose," Amon said.


    "Bold words from someone who has no idea about his opponent," Lin Bubaimented. "The Wei n might be smaller than us and is only a subsidiary of the Lei n, but do not underestimate them. Some of their top talents are not any less than our Lin or Lei ns'' talents."


    "In that case, I should have no worry," Amon responded.


    Lin Bubai red at him. Did he just insinuate that the Lin n''s talents were nothing to be worried about?


    Madam Lin didn''t let the two converse further, she said to Lin Bubai, "Brother, if there is nothing else, we will be leaving."


    She turned away and led Amon away before Lin Bubai could give any response. Lin Bubai simply looked at her back and sighed. "Why is that sister of his got so smitten with the boy?"

 54 Chapter 54

    As they were walking, Amon took out the ck Space Ring and observed it again. There was no problem for his mind to delve into the space within. But from the n master''s reaction, it was clear that he failed to look into it. He simply saw it as a normal decorative ring. Amon wondered why. He thought back to when he found the ring, it was empty then. He was also wondering at the time why Hei Gong didn''t use this ck space ring to store his possession.


    After some thought, he decided to take the risk. He called Madam Lin and showed her the ck Space Ring. Madam Lin took it into her hand and inspected it.


    p "It''s a beautiful ring, where did you get it?" She asked.</anda>


    "I buy it from a street vendor. The seller said it is a space ring as well, but I cannot ess it. Can you?"


    "A space ring?" Madam Lin seemed to concentrate, then she said. "You must have been cheated. You should test its ingenuity before you buy it. Where is this street vendor? Tell me, mother will punish him for you."


    "Never mind, I buy it cheap anyway."


    "I see. It''s a beautiful ring regardless. If you have no use of it, how about giving it to mother?"


    "I will be insulting myself if I give mother such a cheap ring. I will prepare a more fitting present for mother."


    Madam Lin giggled. "It doesn''t matter if the gift from my son is cheap or expensive. But I will be waiting for it," she said and handed the ck ring back to Amon. Amon took it and stored it back on his ne. It seemed that this ck space ring was more than it seemed.


    *


    After returning to Madam Lin''s housingplex, Amon did not immediately train the Endless Concealed sh that he received from the n master. He went to the Profound Treasure Market instead.


    He had started learning the martial art of bow weapons that he got from Hei Gong''s belongings, so he would like to focus on this art first. This martial art for bow had a name called Soul Searching Shot. He had studied its basics, but he would like to practice it after he got a proper crossbow.


    He had missed the promised time to go back to Xin Lie''s stall due to the assassination incident with Si An and San Guo. When he went to the stall, she was not there. He had returned a few times during this half-year time, but he never found her.


    ''Can I have been cheated? The bitch ran away after receiving my Aer stones?'' Amon wondered. He grinned, ''heh. Here I am putting my vignce against assassins and powerful opponents but end up getting cheated by a swindler. At least I still get one crossbow.''


    He looked at the crossbow in his hand. Despite not being perfect, it was not bad either. Considering the craftsmanship, it should not have been made by a swindler. Otherwise, he would have been suspicious when he bought it.


    After some thought, he looked at the stalls near the one where Xin Lie''s one used to be. There were several. He then approached and asked them one by one.


    One imed to have no idea, one had shooed him away before he even asked. He had a hunch that one of them should know something about the woman. He thought that he would first use nice words to ask, if he got nothing, he would try taking out some Aer stones as an incentive. If that didn''t work either, he would resort to violence. Thest n was rather risky, considering this territory was under White Cloud Sect''s protection. He hoped he didn''t have to go that far.


    Luckily, he didn''t. The third person told him what he wanted to know.


    "That woman Xin Lie? I haven''t seen her for weeks," the merchant said. "You have some important matter to be looking for her?"


    "Yes, we have a business deal, but I missed our promised time to meet. I have brought my payment and I wish to find her toplete the deal."


    "I see¡­ Well, I do hear sometimes ago about where she lived. But you know, at my age, it is terribly difficult to remember things."


    Amon secretly snickered. ''Whatever world, it''s the same.'' Amon brought out twenty Aer stones and ced them on his stall. "Will this help you in remembering?" He asked.<sub> </sub>


    His face lit up upon seeing the Aer stones. "Oh, young master truly is generous! I remember now, I remember. Her house is in the woods outside the city, South West of White Cloud City. The White Cloud river, thergest river that goes through this White Cloud city, goes out and into these woods. I once heard her say that if you follow the river, you should find her house in those woods."


    "That is a big help, thank you for the information," Amon said before leaving.


    As he walked, he was pondering if he should go out to search for Xin Lie. It was still fine if he was in a public ce. But once he was in an isted area, it would be more troublesome if someone powerful came after him. The Wei n had arranged a deathmatch with him, but it didn''t mean that they would let an opportunity go if he was vulnerable in the open.


    He decided to move around the city as he paid attention to his surroundings, sometimes making a sudden turn or running to check if someone was tailing him. After making sure that there was not, he then looked for a secluded ce and put on a concealed cloak to hide his identity before heading out to the southwest part of the city.


    On his way to the southwest part, he happened upon the White Cloud river. The part of the river he chanced upon was around fifty meters in width. He just followed the river afterward, since he would be following it after going out of the city. When he reached the outskirts of the city, the river was around thirty meters in width.


    He came out of the suburban area and entered a more natural territory as he continued to follow the river. He could already see the woods that was mentioned by the merchant.


    ''Why does anyone choose to live in such a wild ce?'' He wondered. In his past life, it was not so weird. But here, there were spirit beasts that could easily take someone''s life out here in the wild. Probably Xin Lie was a high-level cultivator that she was not afraid to live out there? But he didn''t feel pressure from Xin Lie thest time they met. Probably because she was concealing it. It should not be possible in his past life, but after the incident with Si An, he knew that there was such a concealing art in this world.


    When he was further away from the city, he didn''t feel the need for his concealment cloak anymore. He took off the cumbersome clothing and stored it back in his space ring. He then sprinted along the river.


    With his sprinting speed, he could cover the distance much quicker. Not long after, he was deep inside the woods as he continued to run alongside the river. There was still no human-made structure in sight.


    Can the merchant be lying just to get a few of his Aer stones? Or can it be that Xin Lie was lying when the merchant heard about her house''s location? Amon wondered. Such conjectures were meaningless, he could only make sure for himself. If the merchant was truly lying just for a few Aer stones, Amon would find him and teach him the lesson of such transgression.


    Amon''s ears picked up some faint sound as he was running. He slowed down his pace as a result. He paid more attention and decided to head over to the sound. The sound was more of something made by a human rather than an animal or a spirit beast.


    As he approached, the sounds, or rather, voices, were getting more clear.


    ''No way¡­'' Amon thought as he recognized the voices. But the voices were unmistakable.


    Amon jumped onto the branch of a tree and then from there he leaped from one branch to another, taking the higher ground for observation. As he arrived at the ce where the voices had originated, he found it to be truly as what the sounds had suggested.


    ''They are really doing it in the wild¡­ Talk about adventurous fornication," Amon thought as he watched from above a naked man who was lying on his back in the bushes while a naked woman was riding him wildly on top. The two were moaning and groaning loudly as they enjoyed each other.


    ''Aren''t they afraid if suddenly a spirit beast came nearby? Hm¡­? Don''t tell me¡­'' Amon jumped to another branch to get a clear view of the woman. He was only seeing her back at his original position. As he switched ces, he could see her more clearly.


    ''It really is her,'' Amon said in his mind. The naked woman who was passionately mming her round ass repeatedly on the man''s piece as her two huge breasts bounced wildly, was Xin Lie, the woman he hade to search for.


    ''Heh, here I thought something had happened that prevented her to give me my crossbow, only to find her happily¡­''


    Amon didn''t finish his thought as he saw something unexpected.


    "Urgh¡­!!!" The man closed his eyes and groaned loudly as he ejacted his seed inside Xin Lie, who at the time had her hand reached inside the side bushes and pulled out a long knife. Without pause, she stabbed the sharp knife right onto her lover''s neck.


    His groan was turned to choking as blood gushed out of his mouth. Xin Lie pulled the knife violently and blood spurted out of the wound on his neck.

 55 Chapter 55

    Amon watched with astonishment as the man whose eyes were before closed in ecstasy, now open wide in consternation and disbelief. However, his eyes only showed awareness for a little instant before they turned white as life escaped him, following the river of blood that continued to pour out of him non-stop.


    As the man turned lifeless, Xin Lie who was still sitting on top of him revealed an expression of euphoria herself.


    ''Does that lunatic bitch gets off from such a barbarous act?'' Amon thought as he continued to watch the scene in fascination. However, his eyes caught something strange. The air around Xin Lie distorted as if ripples of flowing water. That meant the air around Xin Lie had heated up.


    Amon squinted his eyes, trying to get a better look without getting closer. He could see specks of aura slowly flowing up from the dead man and entering Xin Lie''s naked body.


    ''Can it be¡­ It''s a cultivation art?'' Amon deduced. However, he had never heard or read about such a peculiar art. This was simply like vampirism, she was sucking the aether out of the dead man''s body for herself.


    Amon stayed still atop the tree as he continued to observe. Xin Lie was in the position atop the corpse as she performed her art. It was almost an hour before Amon noticed the air around Xin Lie returned to normal. Not long after, she stood up. The dead man below her was like a dried corpse that had been dead for quite some time. All his nutrients and aether had been taken.


    Xin Lie stood there and admired her handiwork for a while, before looking up and saying, "Enjoy the show?"


    Amon was taken by surprise. He had chosen a secluded branch, slowed his breathing, and concealed his presence. How did she find out?


    But since he had been noticed, continuing to hide was pointless. Amon jumped down from the tree andnded not far from Xin Lie.


    "It''s you? I''m surprised!" Xin Lie uttered.


    "Are you a Martial realm cultivator?" Amon asked.


    Xin Lie gave him a coy smile. "What do you think?" She asked back.


    Amon had no intention to y her games. Her being martial realm could exin her ability to sense his presence, but Amon decided he could not jump to conclusions. After the event of thest assassination attempt on him, he had learned that there was an art that could artificially conceal one''s presence. In the same sense, there could be an art that allowed someone to sense others'' presence as well despite being in the Human realm.


    What Amon could trust, was his instinct. He did not sense any danger from her, which could mean two things. She was not that powerful enough to endanger him, or she had no intention of harming him. Hence, why Amon had dared toe down and converse with her. However, he stayed vignt. His hands were holding the small throwing knives with the ck ughter Poison.


    "Was he a cultivator?" Amon asked another question, referring to the dead man on the ground.


    "He was," Xin Lie answered.


    "Was that an art just now?"


    "So you noticed?" Xin Lie said. For a short instant, Amon felt a killing intent, but it was gone abruptly as if it was never there. Xin Lie continued, "You know. No one ever knows about this ritual of mine because anyone who has seen it has died."


    "By your hands?"


    Xin Lie giggled, "By my hands."


    "Is that a threat?" Amon asked.


    "I don''t think you will tell anyone, do you?"


    "That depends."


    "Depends on what?" Xin Lie asked with a seductive voice, her arms folded underneath her tworge breasts, taking a provocative pose. She didn''t mind at all that she was stillpletely naked.


    "Depends if I''m satisfied with my crossbow. You still owed me one," Amon said.


    Xin Lie gave a surprised expression before sheughed loudly. "So, that''s why youe? I almost forgot about it. Hahaha. Now that you mentioned it, know that I was in that market on our appointed day. You never showed up."


    "I know. I was tied up with something."


    Xin Lie gave him a meaningful look, as if trying to decide something.


    "So? Where is my crossbow?" Amon asked.


    "Heh," Xin Lie smirked, she then turned around and started walking. "Follow me," she said. Her round and firm ass moved around seductively as she walked away. Amon followed after her, maintaining a safe distance.


    They walked for a while, Amon wondered how these woods were unnaturally quiet. He had not encountered any spirit beast. He also found no animals as he walked. Not long after, they arrived at a small wooden hut next to the White Cloud river Amon had been following before.<sub> </sub>


    "Why are you staying out here? Aren''t you afraid of spirit beasts?" Amon asked.


    "I grew up here. I know these woods like the back of my hands. No spirit beast will get a jump on me," Xin Lie replied as he approached the door of the wooden hut. She opened it and gestured for Amon to follow inside.


    Amon hesitated for a brief second before walking towards the open door. Inside, Xin Lie was sitting on a chair. She was inspecting a small crossbow. She was still naked, she was not bothered at all and had no intention to get clothes to cover her body.


    "Sit," she said.


    Amon stayed standing beside the open door. Xin Lie did not ask again. She continued to check the crossbow in her hands. After a while, she seemed satisfied. She tossed the thing at Amon, who caught it deftly. His eyes, however, did not move away from the naked woman.


    "You are very alert for a boy your age," Xin Liemented.


    "It keeps me alive," Amon simply replied. He didn''t bother to check the crossbow, he stored it directly in his space ring. With someone like her which he was unsure of, he could not divert his attention. He took out the original crossbow he had taken from her stall and tossed it back to her.


    "Our transaction had beenpleted. I will take my leave now," Amon said.


    "Halt," Xin Lie said before Amon stepped out the door.


    Amon looked back as the woman stared at him in silence. "Do you still need something?" Amon asked after a long period of silence.


    "I am just trying to make up my mind if I can trust you to not say anything about what you have seen here," Xin Lie said.


    "Next time, do it behind closed doors where no passerby can stumble into what you are doing," Amon said.


    Xin Lie chuckled, "where is the fun in that?"


    "Have you made up your mind? I can''t stay here long. If you want to do something to me, then go ahead and try," Amon said and walked out the door.


    Amon continued walking normally away from the hut. Xin Lie came out onto the door opening and leaned herself by the side of the door as she watched Amon''s back that was getting further. After Amon disappeared between the trees of the woods, a small figure came out from within the hut.


    It was a small girl. "Why do you let him go? We risk everything if he told someone."


    "I don''t think he will," Xin Lie said.


    "But there is still a possibility. It is very unlike you to take a risk when such a risk can easily be eliminated by killing him."


    "He is not as simple as you think. If you treat him like a normal boy, you will be the one that gets burned. As for the reason why I spared him¡­ I think he is one of us."


    "What? How is that possible?"


    "I know, it''s weird. He is clearly not using any concealing technique like us. But I can sense him, although faintly. He had our scent."


    "Do you want me to follow him?" The little girl asked.


    Xin Lie was silent for a while before answering, "No, leave him be. We should just focus on our task. If my hunch is correct, we will meet him again."


    "If your hunch is wrong, we will have peopleing at us with torches and pitchforks."


    "He is not the type who tells one''s secrets to another person on a whim. More probable for him to use what he had seen to ckmail us rather than gossiped about it."


    "You act as if you know the boy very well."


    "Have only met him twice, including just now. But he carried a bearing that reminded me of our Lord."


    "Then it must be you imagining things. How can that little boypare to our mighty lord? If our Lord heard what you just said, he will feel insulted."


    "Are you threatening me, youngdy?" Xin Lie said to her yfully. "Anyway, we will not be staying in this ce any longer. We will depart tomorrow."


    The little girl nodded before she melded back into the shadow.

 56 Chapter 56

    Although he didn''t look back, Amon continued to pay attention to his rear after leaving the hut. He was on guard against Xin Lie. Although he didn''t feel danger from her, he knew for sure she was not a simple woman. He picked up his pace and ran towards the White Cloud City.


    He half expected himself to get intercepted on his way, but he safely arrived at the city edge. He didn''t let down his guard though, he wore back his disguise and picked the crowded area to travel through, as he made his way back to the Lin estate.


    Only after arriving behind Lin estate''s wall, did he feel a little sense of security. Although there was no guarantee he was a hundred percent safe inside this estate, it had be some sort of a safe zone for him here.


    Arriving back in the courtyard of his house, he took out his new crossbow for a look. It was not an engraved weapon but its craftsmanship was superb. He did not judge Xin Lie''s work wrongly. There was also a small bag tied together with the crossbow, it contained ten small wooden bolts.


    The material that formed the body of the crossbow was a sturdy white-colored material. Amon had a feeling that it was bone. It was unlike any bone he knew though, this one was as hard as steel, yet light. The string was also very sturdy and stic. Xin Lie was not kidding when she said she will be using the best materials. The material of the bolts, however, was simple wood.


    Amon tried handling the crossbow. Its size was small but was just right for his current body. It didn''t take long for him to familiarize himself with the weapon, it was customized for him after all.


    Amon took out an engraving knife from his space ring. It was a special engraving tool he had bought from the market, it cost him 100 Aer stones. Using this engraving knife provided him with better control when injecting aether during the engraving process. His probability of sess increased tremendously using this engraving knifepared to when he used amon kitchen knife.


    He had expected this new crossbow to not be an engraved weapon. He would have been charged much more expensive if so. So, he had to apply the engraving himself. He preferred this way, as it helped him improve his Aether control as well.


    Of course, he could not fail, as he only had one crossbow. He had chosen ahead of time the Word of Power he wanted to apply to his new crossbow and practiced it on mundane items. Histest statistic had him at over 90% sess chance.


    He went into his room and locked the door, as he did not want to be disturbed. He didn''t want to lose this crossbow before it even made the first shot.


    After meditating for a while and getting into a steady mental state, he started the engraving process. The Word of Power he had chosen was that of self-healing. Crossbow, like firearms, required maintenance, especially if it was shot often. Sometimes it even needed its parts to be exchanged. Amon could not afford the time to ce special care like that, with the self-healing engraving, the Word of Power would keep the weapon in top condition. Thus, maintaining its durability.


    The engraving process went smoothly. The process waspleted in half an hour. Amon''s expertise in the engraving process continued to improve with each application.


    With his new crossbow, he could continue practicing his bow martial art, Soul Searching Shot. Since he had studied its basics, it didn''t take long for him to enter Skilled mastery of the art. The art allowed him to maintain the shot arrow in a straight flight without losing power and prate deep into a tree at eighty meters away.


    The art didn''t look like much, only increasing the range and power of the shot. But like all other martial arts he had gotten from Hei Gong, he was sure this art would show its true power once he reached a higher mastery level.


    One good thing that came as a result of him being forced to ept the Wei n''s deathmatch challenge, was the n master granting him a free pass on the mandatory mission points. He no longer needed to fulfill a quota. Hence, he could concentrate fully on cultivation and training within these two and a half years.<sub> </sub>


    The n master''s purpose for relieving him from the mission obligation, apart to give Amon enough time to strengthen himself, was also to prevent the Wei n from doing anything to him before the deathmatch.


    Of course, this was the only leniency he was given. Except for the dagger martial art given by Lin Weida, the Endless Concealed sh, he didn''t get any other resources to aid with his cultivation and training. He had to make do with his own. Amon had no problem with that.


    Hence, he focused all the time avable to train and cultivate, sparing only a little time to entertain some chats with Madam Lin during her visit. She never missed her weekly visit. Her visit even increased to two or sometimes three times a week.


    Amon didn''t mind, her visit usually onlyst around half to one hour. It didn''t take much of his time. He still needed to put up the pretense of being a good son, after all. Madam Lin''s support of the ingredients and materials for him to experiment on his alchemy and poison art was significant, after all.


    *


    Near the end of the two-and-a-half-year promised time, Amon was still at the Intermediate Strength stage of the Human realm. But It did not mean that he was not improving, it was simply that slow without using cultivation pills. He only relied on his innate talent with assistance from the ck Aetherium Stone. He was close already to breaking through to the Peak Strength stage after these two and a half years.


    His martial arts and Arcane arts had gone through better improvements during the time. He had put his original four martial arts, Bone Shattering Shadow Fist, Hardened Bronze Body, Silent Swift Stab, and Hundred Shooting Stars, on hold. Those arts had reached Master level and the only way to improve was to the Grandmaster level.


    He had tried to poke at this mastery but theprehension needed was profound and would most likely require a very long time. He didn''t have the luxury of time considering the iing deathmatch. So he focused on his three new arts. The two martial arts, Soul Searching Shot and Endless Concealed sh, and the arcane art Water Slicing Ring.


    He managed to reach Master level also for the two martial arts within these two and a half years. As he expected, the Soul Searching Shot exhibited its true strength after reaching Master level. At this mastery level, the arrow shot could reach up to 150 meters away and still prate solid concrete. And not only that, the art could be used to mark someone in range. The arrow shot using this art then could have its flight path curved to reach the marked target.


    As for the Endless Concealed sh which he had gotten from the n master. It was simplerpared to the Hei n''s arts. The art allowed him to execute a very fast sh with his dagger. As the mastery increased, it only increased the number of shes. At the beginner level, he could only execute one swift sh. At his current Master level, he could send ten shes that hit at almost the same time. The Grandmaster level of the art described the number of shes to be endless after one reached that level.


    While the two martial arts managed to reach Master level, his arcane art only managed to reach Expert mastery. From this experience, it could be said that training arcane arts were harder than martial arts. Or it was simply because he was more used to martial arts. In his past life, he also trained martial arts. Though the martial arts in this new world were much more fantastical, it was still about the training and utilization of one''s body.


    The arcane arts, however, were much more mystical. It utilized the world''s elements. Something that was not tangible. Something that was more like the product of a wild imagination. Something that was magical. Therefore, it took him more time to familiarize himself with these arcane arts.


    His Water Slicing Ring, once reached Expert mastery, no longer required long seconds to form the ring of water. It could be formed instantaneously. Its sharpness at this level also allowed it to cut even stone. And the best thing was, that Amon no longer needed to concentrate to maintain the water. Once it was formed, it wouldst indefinitely until he dispersed the energy that hold the water element together.


    Although he was not allowed to use poison in the tournament, Amon did not ck off in his study on the 101 primal poison tome. Though he still could not experiment with most of the recipes described in the tome due to ack of avable ingredients, hisprehension of poison still underwent an upgrade. He could now utilize most of themon poison ingredients and extract their essences to bebined and modified into a stronger version. He applied the upgrade to strengthen his Poison Cloud Bullets. They could now greatly affect a Transformation stage cultivator.

 57 Chapter 57

    On the first day of the White Cloud Tournament, Madam Lin and Lin Guo came to pick Amon up.


    Lin Guo had aplicated expression when he met Amon. He could sense that the kid is close to the Peak Strength stage. Considering the kid''s age, this put him at the same cultivation speed as the best Lin n''s current younger generation, Lin Xiaolong, who had be a Peak Strength stage cultivator at age fifteen, four years ago. Not to forget Amon didn''t receive any cultivation resources from the n. If one looked at it this way, this put Amon''s base cultivation speed to be even faster than Lin Xiaolong''s.


    The two then brought Amon to the Lin n''s grand hall to meet with the others. There would be five Lin young generations who represented the Lin n in the tournament, Amon was one of them.


    When he came in, there were not many people in the grand hall, unlike the first day when he met the n master here. He also didn''t see Lin Weida amongst the people present. Lin Bubai was the one who was heading this meeting. Amon saw the four other kids there, three boys and one girl. They should be the ones that went with him to the tournament.


    He also saw another familiar face there, Lin Rong. She was talking with the lone girl who would be joining the tournament. From the way they talked, Amon surmised that they were siblings.


    When Lin Bubai saw Amon arrive, he called everybody to attention. He then addressed the five representatives. He introduced Amon as Lin Mo. The four others were Lin Cang, Lin Gai, Lin Anwen, and the girl was Lin Fen.


    "You five are the brightest of our young generation who were fifteen years of age, that is the age limit one is allowed in the tournament," Lin Bubai said. Of course, he didn''t know that Amon''s real age was actually thirteen at the moment.


    "As you know, the White Cloud Tournament is the most prominent tournament in this city. Every eye will be on you. You can''t afford to bring shame to our n''s name. This is also your chance to have your name be known throughout the city. Grab this chance for fame and glory!"


    "We will!" One of the participants, Lin Cang, dered with ardor.


    Lin Bubai nodded at the boy, "If you still have something to prepare, do it immediately. We will leave in half an hour."


    After Lin Bubai excused them, he took Madam Lin to one side for a talk. During this time, Lin Rong came to Amon.


    "Hmph, can''t expect a backwater kid like you is being asked to represent our n as well. You better not cause us to lose face out there," Lin Rong said to Amon.


    Lin Fen was following behind her, "Sister, is this that brat you told me about? Can''t believe I will be on a team with him. Hey, you! You better not drag us down."


    "Don''t worry, sister Fen. If he does. I will throw him out of the tournament myself so as to not let our n''s name be tarnished," one of the participant boys named Lin Gai, came as well to fawn on Lin Fen.


    The other two, Lin Cang and Lin Anwen approached when they saw the others were gathering.


    Lin Cang addressed Lin Rong, "Sister Lin Rong, unfortunately, the age limit is fifteen. If it was not, it should be you that represented our n. The other ns won''t have a chance if you did."


    "That''s right!" Lin Gai joined in the praise. "And the worse of it, we get a nobody instead. Such bad luck."


    "Don''t bother with him. He is just here to make up the number. Although of course, someone else could have made a better candidate. I wonder what he said to his mama that had made him get selected."


    Amon just wore an indifferent expression as they continued to ridicule him.


    "So rude! He is ignoring us," Lin Fen uttered.


    "You bastard! How dare you ignore sister Fen?" Lin Gai called. He made a threatening step toward Amon, but he didn''t make any move. He just stood before him with a menacing look. Amon was still treating it as if they were not there.


    "Perhaps he was just scared shitless," Lin Cang said.


    "Hmph, forget about him," Lin Rong said. "You four should do your best to make up for him in the tournament."


    "With me there, there is no need for you to worry," Lin Cang tapped his chest. "I will make the Lin n''s name be heard throughout the tournament."


    They then left, except for Lin Anwen who had not uttered a word. He came to Amon and said, "Don''t mind them. In my opinion, I think the n has made the right call in including you in the tournament. I have seen your fight in the training arena. I don''t think any within our age can fight the way you do. It is very enlightening watching you fight. Who trained you to fight like that?"


    Amon, who had been treating those kids as empty air, finally turned and looked at Lin Anwen. He stared coldly at the boy, grinned, and then said, "No one trained me. I learned by myself how to fight. You said you are inspired by my fight? Then let me give you a tip. Whenever I fight, I fight with the intention to kill."<sub> </sub>


    Lin Anwen didn''t know why, but he could feel his hair standing on end. He subconsciously took a step back. He felt as if he was standing before a ferocious beast that could pounce at him without notice.


    Lin Bubai came at this time with Madam Lin, Lin Anwen excused himself then.


    "I have something I need to say to you," Lin Bubai said. "This is about the arranged deathmatch with the Wei n. Although the White Cloud sect had agreed to host a deathmatch between you and the Wei representative within the tournament, they do not want the deathmatch to simply be a fight between two low-level cultivators. They had given the requirement that the participant of the deathmatch should reach at least the semi-final of the tournament. If you failed, then the deathmatch is canceled. We will then have to rearrange with the Wei n to settle our dispute elsewhere, but it would be a disgrace. I hope that will not happen."


    Amon sneered. "It won''t," he said.


    "Good," Lin Bubai said.


    "Do you know how the tournament''s fights are arranged?" Amon asked.


    "It will be exined by the White Cloud Sect''s people before the tournament. It usually changed in each tournament, only the final stays the same. There will be fifty people chosen to participate in the final."


    ''Fifty? Then the final is not a one on one fight,'' Amon thought. "What kind of fight is the final?" Amon asked.


    "That will be exined after you win the semi-final. Make your preparation, we will depart soon," Lin Bubai said and left.


    "Do you bring enough restoration pills and salve?" Madam Lin asked.


    "I do," Amon replied.


    Madam Lin nodded, "I won''t go to watch the tournament. Lin Guo will go in my ce. He will keep you safe if the Wei tries to do anything outside the tournament."


    She then used her hand to lift Amon''s chin up so she could stare at him directly. "Don''t you die," she said to him.


    "Don''t worry, mother. I won''t," Amon replied.


    Madam Lin maintained her gaze for a while before she nodded. She then left without further words.


    "I never saw her that obsessed about something. She really treats you as her child, you better not disappoint her," Lin Guo said after Madam Lin left.


    Amon didn''tment on that.


    *


    After half an hour passed, everyone gathered again. Seeing everyone was ready, Lin Bubai led them out of the estate. They went together to the tournament venue. Which was to be held at the White Cloud estate in the center part of the city.


    The city was especially lively at this time. Everyone was excited about this White Cloud tournament which was held every ten years. Many hawkers set up their stalls in the streets around the tournament venue. It was like everyone in the city hade to watch the tournament.


    As the tournament participants, the Lin n was given a special entrance, separated from the crowded main entrance. The White Cloud estate was evenrger than the Lin n''s one. It was almost a small town by itself. The tournament venue was a specially constructed ce that housed several arenas,rge and small.


    The arena had viewing tforms that could house a million people. For those that stood the furthest, some kind of projection screen was ced so the spectators there could also see the ongoing fights.


    At this time before the tournament started, these tforms were already almost filled to the brim.


    Amon was rather fascinated. So fightings were something the people of this world treated as exciting entertainment.

 58 Chapter 58

    The Lin n''s people were ushered by the people of the White Cloud Sect into arge waiting hall. Inside, there were several other groups. They seemed to be participants in the tournament as well.


    Once everyone settled in, Lin Bubai gave them a brief introduction to the tournament. "The number of young people joining this tournament is immense. Probably almost every young cultivator around age twelve to fifteen, who were without a n or from small ns, joined this tournament. Apart from getting rewards and making a name for themselves, they hoped to catch the eyes of the White Cloud Sect. If their talents were recognized, they might get an invitation to join."


    "So, what''s the benefit of joining this tournament for the big ns?" Amon asked. It was unlikely that any of the big ns wanted their members to join the sect.


    "A nobody should just shut up," Lin Cang said to Amon.


    Amon didn''t entertain the kid a nce. He continued to stare at Lin Bubai, awaiting an answer. This irked Lin Cang.


    "Good question. Unlike the small ns, we have no interest in joining the sect," Lin Bubai answered. "Apart from making a name for our n, there is actually not much incentive for us to trouble ourselves. The rewards provided by the sects for the winner are also nothing to write about for the big ns. However, for a purpose that I cannot disclose to you yet, we big ns have a target to be the top ten. It has something to do with the arrangement we have with the White n Sect."


    ''Top ten? Is that why the n master give me that condition?'' Amon thought back to his conversations with Lin Weida.


    "Top ten? No problem! I will take the top one for sure!" Lin Cang eximed.


    A burst ofughter was heard. Everyone turned to the source and saw a group of people approaching.


    "You Lin people are still as boastful as ever," arge muscr man in the lead said.


    "Lei Tong, you still like to meddle in people''s business," Lin Bubai uttered, clear displeasure in his voice. "Why don''t you just stay there in your corner and enjoy the time while you can? You won''t be able to enjoy it any longer once your Lei youth met ours in the tournament."


    "Ahaha¡­ As expected of the second man in the Lin n. Even when you insult people, you still do it in ss. However, I can assure you that you will be the one that won''t be able to enjoy your time here when our youths met in the tournament."


    "We will see," Lin Bubai said.


    "Which one is Lin Mo?" One of the people that came with Lei Tong suddenly asked. It was a middle-aged woman who disyed sumptuous bearing.


    "Let me introduce you, this is Wei Sui," Lei Tong said. "She oversees the youths from the Wei n."


    Wei Sui was eyeing the four boys that were representing the Lin n. She said, "Which one of you four is Lin Mo? Come on, are you afraid to show yourself?"


    "Granny, if you are targeting someone, you should learn how they look first. Are the Wei n all full of ipetents?" Amon said.


    Wei Sui''s eyes almost bulged out from the insult.


    "You must be the one then. Good! Very good!" Wei Sui hissed at Amon. "Know that Wei Feng and Wei Fan are my nephews. I won''t rest until I have their killer in the grave. I hope you don''t get disqualified before reaching the semi-final. I look forward to seeing you beg for your life before my Wei Lhosa crushed your head."


    Amon turned to the one Wei Sui was indicating. It was a boy with an arrogant look. He pointed at Amon and said, "You are mine! Don''t go losing on purpose to run away."


    Amon smirked at the threat.


    "Are you people done making insults and threats? Now go away! Or do you want me to call the White Cloud people to shoo you away?" Lin Bubai said to them.


    "Hehe. Okay, okay. Since brother Bubai does not wee us, we will wait at our corner. Enjoy your time here while itsts. Maybe we will send you all packing home before the Final," Lei Tong said. He turned around and left while continuing tough.


    "Hmph, such an irritating person. We will crush those Lei and Wei people and show them the Lin n is the best!" Lin Cang dered.


    "Yeah!" Lin Gai gave his support.<sub> </sub>


    "That''s a good spirit, but don''t go underestimating those two ns. They are also considered big ns for a reason," Lin Bubai said. "You all should pay attention to that long-haired youth in the white clothes. He is Lei San, he is one of the Lei n''s young talents. Our people believed that if he was of the same age, his cultivation might rival our Lin Xiaolong. He is currently at half-step into reaching the peak Strength stage."


    The Lin boys gave the youth in white clothes a serious stare. Lin Xiaolong was, after all, the current rising star amongst Lin n''s young generation.


    "That Wei Lhosa is also not simple. Our report mentioned that his cultivation is not lower than Lei San. In fact, you shouldn''t underestimate any of the representatives from the big ns. They were targeting the top ten. So they will obviously send the most talented youths they had who were still age fifteen and below."


    Lin Bubai then asked them all to sit and rest. They should conserve their strength for the preliminary round.


    Once they all settled in their seats, Amon asked Lin Guo who was sitting beside him, "What''s the cultivation level of that Wei Sui woman?"


    Lin Guo didn''t immediately answer. He was tasked to protect Amon outside of the tournament but didn''t mean that Amon was his master. Still, the question was not asking for sensitive information, so he answered, "peak Transformation stage of the Human realm." He was wondering though, why the kid asked about the woman''s cultivation. Didn''t he suppose to worry about the other youths who would be his opponents?


    Amon didn''t really see those kids as menaces. He didn''t underestimate them, but they simply didn''t give him enough pressure. They were still kids, after all. Even if they had a high cultivation level, their life and death experiences were insufficient.


    The woman Wei Sui, though, was different. He could feel her hatred for him. That Wei Feng and Wei Fan might have meant more to her than simple nephews. He was not sure if she would not try something outside the tournament. He preferred to know the limit of his enemy.


    *


    After waiting for almost an hour, two White Cloud followers finally came. One of them asked the five participants to follow him. While the other asked the rest to follow him, he will take them to a VIP viewing tform.


    "It''s beginning, try your best for the good name of the n," Lin Bubai encouraged.


    "I will bring glory to our n!" Lin Cang dered.


    "Me too!" Lin Gai followed suit.


    The other two also showed their enthusiasm. Only Amon remained indifferent.


    They then followed the White Cloud follower. They saw the youths from the other teams in this waiting hall also had someone fetching them.


    They were taken to a long hallway. After reaching an intersection, they were separated, three of them were ushered by other White Cloud people to different paths, leaving only Amon and Lin Gai, who was asked to resume forward. Amon looked back and saw the other n''s youths were also separated.


    As they continued walking, they could hear cheer and mor from the end of the hallway. Not long after, they came out to a veryrge circr arena. Around the arena were raised-up viewing steps. Amon saw the arena as simr to the colosseum of his past life, only much, muchrger.


    p The White Cloud follower left after bringing them there. There were already many youths standing around in the arena, with many more joining from different entrances. It appeared there were more waiting halls than the one they were in, Amon thought.</anda>


    The number of youths joining this tournament was staggering. Amon estimated that there were already around five hundred at the moment, and there were still more joining.


    After a while, thest youth arrived. The crowd was still noisy. Suddenly everyone felt heavy pressure from above. Their noise died down. Amon looked up and saw a man floating in the sky above.


    ''Flying¡­'' Amon thought with expectation after seeing the floating figure. He had read from the book that someone who had reached the Spirit stage of the Martial realm, could fly. It was a superhuman feat impossible to achieve without a machine in his past life. To know that such a thing was possible here, filled him with eagerness and anticipation. He knew it was just a matter of time for him to reach that stage.


    The flying person was wearing a white robe with the cloud symbol, as was the White Cloudmon uniform. But in addition to the robe was also a golden mantle. Considering his cultivation level, the flying man must not be anyone simple.


    The mannded in the middle of the arena. He had intentionally been releasing the pressure of his cultivation to capture the crowd''s attention. Now everyone was watching him and waiting for him to speak.


    When he spoke, his words were soft, but the voice was carried to the furthest of the seating tform. Everyone could hear him clearly as if he was speaking right next to them. "Thank you, everyone, to havee to this White Cloud Tournament. For those that don''t know me yet, my name is Pai Kuan. As for the participants, I will now exin about these tournament rounds."

 59 Chapter 59

    "Four thousand youths were joining this tournament. Theye from every walk of life. Noble''s sons,moner''s sons, merchant''s daughters, it doesn''t matter. As long as you are a cultivator of at least beginning Strength stage and at age fifteen years or lower, you can join," Pai Kuan uttered with his enhanced voice. "Our grand White Sectplex has five arenas that are used for this tournament. Four side arenas in which I am standing in one of them. This is the South arena. The other three, West, North, East, housed one thousand youths each."


    "The preliminary round will be carried out within these four arenas. Each arena will have a battle royal until the number of youth still standing is one hundred. This one hundred will then join the three hundred from the other arenas to move forward to the elimination round. These four hundred youths will thenpete to be the remaining fifty finalists for the final round."


    ''A Battle royale? So that''s why they separate the youths from the same n,'' Amon thought. The other three must have been brought to the other three arenas. It must be to prevent the youths from the same n to team up. Commoners would have more disadvantages if the n youths teamed up.


    Pai Kuan continued, "Let me tell you all that the numbers of youth that have applied were much more than the four thousand here. A qualification review has been carried out to determine the ones that are worthy enough to join. So, you should be proud to just stand in this arena, because you are the best four thousand youths currently residing in White Cloud city!"


    The youths in the arena cheered from the recognition.


    "Now, I willy out the ground rules," Pai Kuan dered. "No killing is permitted during this preliminary round. Any intentional killing will have the perpetrator disqualified and held for further penalty."


    ''Intentional killing, eh? Meaning if it is done identally, it is still eptable?'' Amon thought. He was no stranger to making a killing and made it look like an ident, but with that Spirit stage expert watching, Amon doubted he could fool him.


    "No weapons are allowed in this preliminary round. No defensive or recovery tools, nor engraved charms are permitted. You will have to rely on your own. Other than these rules I haveid out, there is not much else. You are free to group up during this battle royal. Conditions of losing are bing unconscious, surrender, being thrown out of the arena, unable to stand back up, or unable to continue the fight."


    ''Pretty simple,'' Amon thought.


    "As for the Elimination round. The no-killing, no weapon or tools are the same. Thepetition, however, is a one-on-one fight. Four hundred survivors from the Preliminary round will be divided into fifty groups. Each group will have an elimination fight, totaling seven fights. Winners will proceed and losers will lose their rights to continue. Only one fight, no do-over. You will have to win three times to be the champion in this elimination round. Fifty champions who win this elimination round will then proceed to the final round. As for the final, it will be exined to those who are strong or lucky enough to reach there."


    Pai Kuan''s body floated upward after he finished hisst sentence.


    "The battle royal of the preliminary begins¡­ NOW!!!"


    The youths standing in the arena were very much still in a daze. They were still expecting some kind of ceremony or preparation before the tournament started. So, they just stood there even after Pai Kuan''s announcement.


    There were others though, that were sharper and also eager for the tournament to start. They acted once Pai Kuan gave the go. Amon was amongst those ones. His body moved to the youths at his back and without hesitation executed Bone Shattering Shadow Fist.


    He didn''t use the master-level version but instead the skilled-level where it only delivered a strong punch on impact. This was so he could conserve his Aether consumption. It was impossible for him to fight the entire youth in this arena. He had to fight smart if he wanted to be amongst the surviving one hundred.


    Amon''s position was not that far from the edge. The two youths struck by him flew backward. Theynded outside of the arena and were immediately dered to have lost. Amon stayed by the edge. If he was to conserve energy, throwing his opponents out of the arena would be the best way to do it.


    p Lin Gai was nearest to Amon when the tournament started, but Amon decided to ignore him. If it was up to his whim, Lin Gai would have been the first person he had thrown out. But he suspected Lin Bubai would have something to say about that afterward, so Amon restrained himself.<sub> </sub></anda>


    There was no obligation for him to help the kid as well, though. Lin Gai was at the moment getting swarmed by a number of opponents. Those opponents were kids frommoners. They had been suppressed and bullied by n people all this time, so when they recognized one from a n, they ended up working together.


    It was all his own fault, Amon thought after seeing the scene. The kid came here wearing fancy clothes with the Lin symbol etched on them. Anybody would have known that he was from a wealthy n. An adult might have stepped back from offending the powerful n despite their discontent, but kids were less rational and more emotional. They simply saw this as a chance to pay back the bullies they had suffered. Hence, they targeted the n youths without hesitation.


    As Lin Gai was having trouble fending off his attackers, he looked over to Amon and called out, "You! Lin Mo! Why do you just stand there? Hurry up here and help your fellow nsman!"


    ''Hmph, trying to drag me down?'' Amon thought.


    Several of the youths turned to Amon. Four of them came over to him. "You are also from a n?" One of them asked. They spread out to cover Amon''s escape path. Amon''s back was facing the outside of the arena.


    "Die, n dog!" The lead boy shouted as he lunged.


    Amon jumped as his assant arrived. He could jump to a maximum of five meters but he did not do that at this time. He simply jumped over the boy''s head as he grabbed the back of his shirt. The boy was choked by his own shirt due to his forward momentum. Amon yanked as he somersaulted. The boy''s body was hauled into the air. Amon swatted the other three using the first boy''s body in a circr motion, before throwing him out of the arena.


    The other three lost their bnce when they were hit using theirrade. They didn''t dare to attack out of worry that they will hurt their friend. Amon took the chance and made a low roundhouse kick, swiping all the three''s legs. They were already unbnced to start with, this kick made them fall.


    Amon''s two hands grabbed the legs of two boys, he tugged the two and threw them out of the arena. For his Strength stage cultivation, throwing a heavy full adult was child y, not to mention these light-weight kids. The third one Amon kicked and he fell outside as well.


    All four that came at Amon were sent out of the arena in a very short time. They did not even have the chance to perform any arts, nor did Amon waste any aether for that. Amon felt a noticeable pressure. He looked to the source and saw Pai Kuan was watching him. Amon returned his attention to the participants around him.


    In the air, Pai Kuan was originally observing the battle royal below in boredom. He never really considered any youths outside of the White Cloud Sect to be noteworthy. But Amon''s fight had caught his attention. He had spread his consciousness to the entire arena. Although the battle royal down there was very much chaotic, no movements underneath could escape his notice. That''s how he took note of Amon''s fight.


    ''Who is that kid?'' Pai Kuan wondered. He had not bothered to look at the list of every participant, and Amon''s garb made him look like amoner. Yet, Pai Kuan noticed the precision of Amon''s movement. It was not something that normal kids possessed. It made the kid look like a veteranbatant, which was odd, considering his age. The kid was also very calm despite the chaotic battlefield as if he was unaffected by it.


    Pai Kuan continued to observe to make sure no one was breaking the rule, but a portion of his attention continued to linger on Amon. He could feel that there was something about the kid, something dangerous. Something only someone who had often gone through a life and death situation like him could detect, a very thick killing intent.


    Lin Gai himself managed to free himself after a portion of his opponents went to Amon. He executed a martial art that forced his other assants off. He then followed up with an arcane art of the water element. The art defeated one of his assants and scared the rest off. Amoner was, after all, still amoner. Although they were talented and had a decent cultivation level, they did not have a good enough art to support them like the n youths.


    Lin Gai looked over to Amon and found Amon to be staring back at him. Lin Gai was nning to ridicule him but Amon''s stare caused his words to be choked back. He did not know why, but the stare made him extremely ufortable. Lin Gai decided to distance himself from Amon. He could not admit that the ufortable feeling he felt just now was called fear.

 60 Chapter 60

    The battle royale continued haphazardly. Amon remained at the edge and threw anyone who came his way out of the arena. He saved a lot of energy by fighting this way. He also did not have to worry about his back.


    Amon watched the ongoing fights. Everything was in chaos. Those that fought honorably in the inner part of the arena, exhausting their energy to win a fight, only to be hit from the back by others who saw the perfect opportunity. Such a scene wasughable.


    Those that were unconscious, surrendered, or unable to fight anymore, were carried by an invisible energy up in the air before being sent to the outside of the arena. Although Amon could not see nor sense this invisible energy, he had no doubt it was Pai Kuan''s doing. This chaotic arena was getting less crowded as time passed.


    However, this chaotic condition slowly changed. Humans were orderly creatures. Despite their tendency to descend into chaos, they always somehow found a way to organize themselves. That''s how civilization started. And as it appeared, this order slowly took shape within this chaotic battlefield.


    Some people started to band together. Maybe because they know each other, or because of their simr backgrounds, or simply just because they stood next to each other and decided to work together.


    They realized that one hundred survivors would be picked. In other words, there were ny-nine participants who they didn''t need to fight. So, if they worked together, they could pass this preliminary round together.


    The most obvious were the ns'' youths. They had better influence, they also had a better circle of friends. Once they saw someone they knew from the other ns, they discussed and banded together. In retaliation, themoner youths also started to band together. The once chaotic battlefield turned into the battles between several hastily formed factions.


    Amon stayed at the edge, not joining any of these so-called groups. Still, being alone meant easy picking. A group of twelve youths came to him.


    Arge-sized youth who seemed to be the leader of this patched-up group bellowed, "You! I see you are still without a team. Follow me and we will battle ourselves to be amongst the one hundred winners of this preliminary round."


    Amon looked at this rag-tag group, they seemed to be a collection ofmoners, except for therge youth who imed to be the leader. His attire showed that he was amongst those of a higher ss, but not at the level of the Lin or Wei n.


    "I don''t mind joining your pathetic group," Amon said. "But you all have to listen to me and do exactly what I tell you."


    Therge youth seemed to be taken aback. He didn''t expect a lone youth dared to assert dominance when he was backed by so many others.


    "You seem to don''t understand your situation," he said. "I am Lau Kabun from the Lau n. I am the fittest to take charge. I offer you the chance to join because I pity you for being alone, while we could have easily beat you up. Is this how you repay my goodwill?"


    "No, this is how I repay your goodwill," Amon said as he disappeared. Before Lau Kabun registered anything, Amon had reappeared in front of him. Amon had applied the essence of Silence Swift Stab art without using a dagger. His arm thrust out and his fist buried deep into Lau Kabun''s belly. Lau Kabun''s body curled from the punch before a strong shockwave threw his body tens of meters back.


    Amon did not use the full strength of Bone Shattering Shadow Fist because he didn''t want to kill the boy and get disqualified. Still, the punch was enough to render Lau Kabun unconscious. He was lying on the floor not moving.


    The others that were with him only stared at Amon in fear.


    "Is there anyone else who thinks you are more fit to be the leader than me?" Amon asked as he stared at them.


    They didn''t respond.


    "Good, now follow me!"


    *


    Lin Gai had also found a team to hang around with. They consisted of twenty people with a leader named Xin Wuming. He was a youth from the Xin n, which was a subordinate n of the Lin n. Just like how the Wei n was subordinate to the Lei n.


    Lin Gai had used his status as a Lin youth to demand Xin Wuming ept him. Didn''t want to bring trouble to his n, Xin Wuming could onlyply.


    Under Xin Wuming''s leadership, they had managed to defeat several other groups that had tried to take their chances on them. However, after Lin Gai joined. He had irresponsibly asserted dominance and disrupted their cooperation, resulting in the loss of several members, which annoyed Xin Wuming greatly. Yet, he didn''t dare to show too much defiance. The other youths still chose to listen more to Xin Wuming though, as they could tell who was a better leader.


    "That''s Lin Mo!" Lin Gai uttered when he saw Amon some distance away. "Come!" He said to Xin Wuming. "We will increase our team numbers. Recing those useless ones who got knocked down."


    The others were irritated by Lin Gai''s insensitive words by calling the friends who had fought together with them useless. They turned to Xin Wuming, who unwillingly followed after Lin Gai.<sub> </sub>


    "Lin Mo!" Lin Gai called out. "Come. Have your team joined mine. With more people, we will defeat the others and pass this Preliminary round together."


    Amon replied, "Good. Then all of you have to listen to me."


    Lin Gai who heard, immediately yelled, "What do you mean?! I am more senior than you. Of course, I am the leader! You have to listen to me."


    "A leader needs to be the strongest one. Let''s fight then, we see who wins," Amon said.


    Lin Gai spat. "You are just like what I heard. A mad dog! If you are not of the Lin n, I would have dly taught you a lesson. If you don''t want to cooperate, then forget it. We are leaving!"


    Lin Gai had turned around but Amon''s shout stop him. "Hold! Those of you who hade, stand with me and I will bring you to pass this Preliminary round. Otherwise, I will put all of you down!"


    The youths were taken aback by Amon''s aggressiveness. Their team had slightly more numbers, but this boy was talking as if they were the ones at disadvantage.


    "Don''t be ridiculous! No need to entertain him. We are leaving," Lin Gai said.


    Xin Wuming however, was impressed by Amon''s character. Still, he won''t submit to one who only boasted but had no ability. He said to Amon, "Exchange one move with me. If youe out on top, I will join you and follow yourmand."


    "What are you doing? I said let''s leave!" Lin Gai eximed.


    Xin Wuming ignored him. The one in front of him was also from the Lin n. So, he would not be seen as disrespecting the Lin n by disobeying Lin Gai. He was rather annoyed by that kid, after all.


    "I''ll let you start first," Amon said as he put one arm in front pointing at Xin Wuming.


    The others gave them some room, as well as formed a defensive perimeter to take care of any lone youth that dared toe at them. Lin Gai was still shouting, but when he saw everyone was ignoring him, he felt embarrassed. He gritted his teeth and swore he would get Amon back for this.


    Xin Wuming assumed a stance. They were deciding winner and loser in one move, so he would use his strongest art from the get-go. He focused his mind on his art. Aether umted at the tip of his finger. His finger turned as hard as iron. When he was ready, he thrust out.


    His finger appeared to be elongating. Until it became long enough as if he was holding a very long needle. This needle thrust at Amon with high speed. Xin Wuming targeted Amon''s shoulder so as to not deal him with a fatal wound.


    When the sharp end of the needle was about to stab, Amon''s extended arm moved.


    *CLANG!*


    A sound of metallic impact was heard. Before he knew it, Xin Wuming''s found that half of his iron needle had disappeared. While right in front of his neck was a rotating ring of water held by Amon''s hand. If Amon drove the ring forward, his neck would have been sliced off, just like how his iron needle had been cut into two easily.


    "I¡­ I lost," Xin Wuming said.


    The ring of water disappeared from Amon''s hand.


    A cold sweat rolled down his forehead. Despite the tournament rule ensuring his safety, Amon''s move just now could have easily taken his life. He had never been defeated this swift and this utterly against an opponent of equal cultivation. Yet, his current opponent''s mastery of arcane art was extraordinary. That sharp ring of water had been formed instantly when he himself still needed time to focus on executing his arcane art.


    "You follow my words now?" Amon asked.


    "During this preliminary tournament, yes," Xin Wuming replied.


    "Good," Amon stared at the others. "The rest of you. Do you follow? Or do you want to be put down right here?"

 61 Chapter 61

    With a group of thirty-one youths under hismand, Amon thought he should be able to make a wave now. Lin Gai was still at the side, unsure of what he should do. He had openly opposed Amon takingmand, so it would be awkward to join now. Yet, he didn''t dare to venture away on his own again.


    Amon first asked them about their martial arts and arcane arts. Most of the youths here had simr cultivation level, so the ones that made a difference was their arts. He didn''t need the details, there was no time for that. he simply asked them about the arts they were most proud of, categorized into defensive, melee offense, and range offense. Some point out their art can be both melee offense and defense, others point out their best art was movement art. Amon simply categorized the former as defensive and thetter as melee offense.


    After gathering the information, he divided the team into three teams. The first was the vanguard team with defensive art, Amon allocated fifteen youths to this team. The second was eleven youths team for melee offense, they stayed behind the defensive team to strike when there was a chance. The remaining five formed the third team with range capability.


    Amon exined to them in short of the basic strategy they should be doing in a conflict. He stayed behind with the range team, while he had Xin Wuming at the front takingmand of the first and second teams.


    "Let''s go," Amon said. He slowly headed into the central part of the arena while observing the situation. The central part was where many groups were vying for supremacy.


    Lin Gai hesitated for a while before fear overcame his pride. He decided to follow Amon''s group.


    Before Amon came to the center, however, another group blocked his way. They had more people, close to fifty youths.


    "I''ve been looking for you. You Lin bastard truly knows how to hide!"


    Amon looked at the one who made the shout. He recalled the boy to be amongst the group who hade with Wei Sui, but he didn''t know his name.


    "Where is Wei Lhosa?" Amon asked.


    "He is at the other arena. Don''t worry, I will only bruise you a little. I will still let you pass this preliminary round. Brother Lhosa had been eager to mash your brain matter with his hands."


    "Heh, too bad. I thought I could just finish him right here."


    "Haha, you truly know how to brag. But this is thest time you smiled, know that I, Wei Lu¡­"


    "Get them!" Amon already gave the order while Wei Lu-whatever was still talking.


    The fifteen youths of the vanguard team activated their defensive arts. They had various arts, some had their skins hardened to stone-like surfaces, some to metal-like surfaces, and some didn''t show any apparent visual effect but one with keen eyes could see a thin membrane enveloping their bodies.


    These fifteen rammed their bodies into the opponent''s team. Their opponents were caught in surprise. They didn''t think that their opponent which was less than them would take the initiative to attack them first. While they were off-bnce and confused. The melee offense team swooped in and deliver crippling attacks.


    Amon had told them to target the opponents'' joints. They were not allowed to kill but Pai Kuan never said anything about crippling. With the opponents crippled, they would be unable to fight. Not to mention that all the ones here were still youths, they were not experienced yet dealing with the trauma of being disabled.


    As Amon had thought, those who had their arms or legs broken or cut, lost their will to fight and justid on the floor screaming, some even crying. Some youths in Amon''s team didn''t have the heart to cripple their opponents. Xin Wuming yelled at them as he set an example, crippling one youth after another.


    The five youths of the range team used their ranged attacks, which were mostly arcane arts. Range arts were more scarce, Amon suspected these five were from big ns as well. Amon joined them, sending attacks to where the opponents seemed to be retaliating. He was not allowed to use a weapon, so the only range attack he could use was Bone Shattering Shadow Fist. The energy of the fist flew and mmed onto unsuspecting enemies.


    "You¡­ You¡­ How dare you attack before we are ready! I, Wei Lumao, swear I will take you down!" The Wei n youth yelled.


    Wei Lumao''s group tried to mount a counter-attack. They activated their martial arts and sent their attacks as well. But their coordination was haphazard. It was clear that they simply gathered together without a clear n. When they attacked, Amon''s defensive team came forward and became a shield to the offense team. Once the opponents'' arts ended, the melee offense team quickly came back and delivered crippling attacks again.<sub> </sub>


    Within a short period, the fifty youth team was reduced to less than twenty. While Amon''s team only had a few youths with light wounds.


    The youths of Wei Lumao''s team were boggled by such a development. Were they much inferior to their opponents? Howe they got beaten so badly even when they outnumbered their opponents?


    While they were confused and shocked, they stopped moving. At this time, Amon rushed into their midst. He appeared in front of Wei Lumao. Before the boy could register what had happened, Amon swung his arm in a low position.


    Wei Lumao fell as he lost footing. When hended on the ground and looked at his legs, he screamed as he found that both of his legs stopped below the knee. He saw his two feet at another ce. Amon had used his Water Slicing Ring to cut Wei Lumao''s legs.


    The other youths instinctively moved back. They were just about to run away when they heard Amon''s loud words, "Follow me! I will bring you past this preliminary round!"


    The youths stopped and looked at each other. As if having a tacit understanding, they bowed to Amon.


    Amon reorganized these new recruits into his three teams. He also briefly exined their strategy. Since they themselves had experienced firsthand being the victims, they had no problem understanding. The ones who were wounded in the defensive team were retasked to the melee offensive.


    With a group of almost fifty youths, everyone had more confidence. Amon did not lead them directly into the central part though, he looked at the situation and decided to circle around. When he found a team with fewer people or one that had many wounded, he sent his team to strike them.


    When they were fighting, Amon observed the opponents. Once he identified the leader, he would swoop in and decisively incapacitate the person. Once the leader was down, he would throw the same offer to the rests, join him or face elimination.


    Some still resisted, but they were soon routed because the others who were considering the offer were no longer assisting. In the end, these ones who were on the fence no longer had any choice but to join, because their numbers were getting even smaller.


    In this way, Amon''s group continued to grow.


    From the groups they fought, many opposed even after being given the choice to join. These youths were mostly prominent n youths who think it was beneath them to listen to the order of an unknown person. Amon was simply not that well-known amongst themunity. Amon dly dispatched them. The majority, who were from independent families and lower ss youths, were more susceptible to joining his group.


    When they hit more than one hundred members, someone pointed out that they couldn''t add any more members, because thepetition only recognized one hundred survivors. Amon told him to shut up and just follow hismand. So they continued.


    When they slowly made their way to the central part, they had close to one hundred sixty members. The remaining teams at the center which were still fighting each other were only three teams. They instinctively stopped their fights when they noticed such arge group was approaching.


    The three teams had many wounded. Their numbers were also small after prolonged fights. The three of thembined didn''t reach one hundred youths.


    Amon gave his order to strike before the three could think about joining forces. He focused to strike at the team with more numbers. The two other teams would take some time before they realized they had no choice but to cooperate. Before that happened, Amon wanted to cull as many numbers as possible.


    Since these three were the remaining opponents, Amon no longer give them the option to join his group. His instruction was to cripple everyone or knock them unconscious. After fighting together for a while, his group''s coordination was getting better. The opponent''s team lost half of its members within a short time.


    Seeing the situation, the other two teams finally realized their disadvantaged situation. They promptly joined and attacked Amon''s group together. But Amon was already ready, he had taken care of most of the leaders from the first team. The rests were simply loose individuals who fought chaotically. Amon redirected most of his force to meet the remaining two teams.


    With their numbers outnumbering their opponents, the winner was soon decided.

 62 Chapter 62

    After the battle ended, there were still around one hundred thirty members in Amon''s group. They looked at each other with disquiet. How should they proceed from here? Only until the surviving youths were one hundred in number that Pai Kuan would dere this preliminary round over.


    At the moment, Pai Kuan simply observed these remaining youths in silence as he moved those who are unconscious or no longer able to fight away from the arena.


    Everyone looked at Amon. He was their leader, so they would let him decide.


    Amon was studying the group as well. After walking around observing everyone, he started picking people.


    "You¡­ you¡­ you¡­ move over here."


    After a while, there became two groups.


    ''What''s wrong? Does he want us to fight each other?'' They thought.


    But after careful observation, they noticed there was a simrity in the ones Amon had chosen. The youth which Amon had picked, were all middlingly wounded.


    Those who were heavily wounded had been deemed as unable to continue to fight and were taken away by Pai Kuan. The remaining were those middlingly wounded, lightly wounded, or without a scratch.


    Currently, Amon had separated his group into two. One with the middlingly wounded, while the remaining others were lightly wounded or without a wound.


    The group who was middlingly wounded looked at each other in trepidation. Were they going to be sacrificed? Their number was less than the other group. They numbered less than forty. The other group had more numbers and was still healthy. If Amon decided to discard them, they would have no power to resist.


    They gritted their teeth. They had sacrificed themselves to achieve victory and this was their reward? Screw this, if the other group wanted them gone, they would have to fight for it. They prepared themselves for a bitter fight.


    Lin Gai, who had been hiding in the back all this time, hence he suffered no injury, pped his hands. "Bravo, brother Lin Mo! Once we discarded this lot, we are officially the winners of the preliminary round."


    "Fuck you! You want a piece of me? Come and try me!" One of the youth from the wounded group yelled.


    "Yeah, you think we are pushovers?!" Another joined.


    The wounded group was very riled up. They were very angry at how unfair they had been treated. They were ready to lunge and die together with the opposite group. They swore to at least take down one person with them.


    "Halt!" Xin Wuming stopped their advance. He was amongst the wounded group. He had been fighting fiercely and thus had suffered quite an assortment of wounds. Despite that, he still stood straight and maintained his dignity. He turned to Amon and asked, "Is this what you want? You want to discard us?"


    Amon looked at him and sneered, "I never say that."


    He then turned to therger group and uttered. "Each one of you picks one person."


    "What?" Lin Gai was confused. "What do you mean?"


    "You pick one person, then you fight. I''m giving you a chance for a fair fight. Those who win, stay. Those who lose, well, you know what will happen."


    "What''s the point? We should just beat those people up. We outnumber them and they are already wounded. It will be a piece of cake!"


    "How dare you!" Amon''s voice thundered out. "These people fought fiercely and that''s how they get their wounds. They earned their ces. You who are still unscathed, still have to prove that you deserve to win!"


    The unwounded group was silenced by Amon''s admonishment. They did hold back to avoid injury. They were all still youths, they were not that shameless enough to deny that.


    Xin Wuming who heard Amon''s words, felt admiration and appreciation as he watched Amon''s back.


    There were, of course, some that were unwilling to relinquish an easy win. One such youth eximed, "why should we do that? Lin Gai is right. We should just dispose of¡­"


    His words were cut short as Amon blurred to his front. Amon had again used Silent Swift Stab advancing technique without the dagger, his fist instead buried deep into the youth''s stomach. The youth bent over as all the air inside him was forcefully pushed out. Before he could react, Amon''s other fist dove onto his head. His head mmed onto the floor below. He lost consciousness at once.


    "This is not a discussion!" Amon dered.


    These youths, both intimidated by Amon''s disy and acknowledging his fair treatment, started to ept his instruction. They looked at each other and started pointing.


    "You."<sub> </sub>


    "You."


    Those that had picked their opponents went further apart to have their duel.


    "No ganging up. You will be thrown out if you do," Amon reminded.


    Lin Gai, who watched what was happening, yelled out in disbelief, "What are you people doing? We have more numbers than them. Why should we listen to him? We should¡­"


    Amon had appeared in front of him.


    "You¡­ what do you intend to do? We are one n. If you dare toy your hands on me¡­"


    "Oh, I do," Amon said. "I pick you."


    "Wh¨CWhat¡­?"


    "I pick you. I am amongst those who have no wounds. It''s only fair I should fight someone as well," Amon said.


    "You¡­ you lunatic!"


    "You better move. I will count to three. If you are still not ready, don''t me me. One¡­"


    Lin Gai couldn''t believe this. He looked around. There were still a few youths who were undecided. They were probably like him, who agreed to dispose of those wounded ones and had themselves an easy win.


    "Two¡­"


    "Damn you¡­!!" Lin Gai screamed as he lunged at Amon. He wed out. The nail on his fingers elongated and hardened. Amon could feel the sharp aether projected from those nails.


    Amon shifted his body as Lin Gai w arrived. His fist shot out and punched urately into Lin Gai''s elbow. Amon had used Bone Shattering Shadow Fist in his punch. The sound of bone snapping could be heard. Lin Gai screamed painfully.


    While Lin Gai lost all semnce of thoughts, Amon grabbed him and judo-threw him onto the floor. His fist then mmed onto Lin Gai''s face. Amon controlled his power to not give the kid a permanent injury. He was still not ready to face the Lin n out in the open. His punch instead caused Lin Gai to ckout.


    He stood and watched the others that were still undecided.


    "You people have three seconds to pick an opponent. If by the time I count to three, you are still hesitating. We will treat you as enemies."


    When Amon said this, the number of youths that were still undecided was only around twenty. The others had moved away and had their duels. The forty wounded youths came to Amon''s back to show that they supported him.


    The twenty remaining youths looked at each other. Though reluctant, they finally pick one another for a duel.


    Pai Kuan and the spectators who were watching were bbergasted by the turns of events. This should be a battle royale where chaotic fights were waged until a handful remained. Howe it became this kind of organized fighting?


    Pai Kuan was especially amazed. This was the first time the battle royale event had turned out like this. He was especially amazed by Amon''s ability to control the situation. Amon was just a kid, but his ability to influence others was shocking. Given a chance, this kid would have huge potential.


    Pai Kuan tried to remember Amon''s info. He knew nothing of Amon aside from him being part of the Lin n and was named Lin Mo. Pai Kuan reminded himself to have his people find out more about Amon''s background.


    While Pai Kuan was contemting, the duels below continued.


    Once all the winners were decided, there were still fifteen spots left. Amongst the losers, some had been knocked unconscious and some were heavily wounded, so they had been automatically removed by Pai Kuan.


    <o>,m There were coincidentally thirty youths left amongst the losers who could still fight. So Amon arranged for these thirty losers to do another picking and duel each other again. The fifteen winners amongst them would join the winning team.</o>


    Seeing no other choice, theyplied. Once the duelings ended. The one hundred winners of the preliminary round were decided.


    Pai Kuan came down to the arena and watched these one hundred youths. He was conflicted. So did the spectators. There was no cheering as usually happened at the end of the round. These one hundred could not be said as the best amongst the rest who had lost. They simply had cooperated better and seized the victory.


    Pai Kuan, who had watched the entire proceedings from close by, did not doubt the reason for their cooperation. It was the Lin n''s kid, who now stood at the front, facing him. The others stood behind him, perfectly acknowledging their inferiority to this Lin kid. Although all of them were kids, he had never seen someone subjugating others so easily.

 63 Chapter 63

    Once the one hundred winners in an arena were announced, they were taken back to the resting rooms. They were given recovery pills and salves to treat their wounds. They were told to rest for the remainder of the day. The next round would start the morning of the next day.


    Each youth was given his or her own room. Although it was a small and simple room, there would need to be four hundred rooms to amodate all the winners from the four arenas. It was a huge scale considering the quantity. From the outside, the rooms appeared more like prison cells. They were also stacked up with one another, with four floors in total.


    All the ones from their arena were taken to the second floor. The arena that firstpleted the preliminary round got the first floor. Amon''s group was the second to finish the preliminary round.


    Before Amon took the stairs up to the second floor, he recognized the youth inside the room next to the stairs. The youth with white clothes and long hair was also staring at him without any expression. The youth was Lei San, the supposed top talent of the Lei n.


    Amon only gave Lei San a short nce before he went up to the second floor.


    Amon went inside the room allocated for him and sat cross-legged. He consumed the recovery pill and applied the recovery salve. He didn''t receive many wounds but he still treated the ones he got. He needed to be in top shape tomorrow.


    He then spent the rest of the day in cultivation.


    *


    The next morning, the four hundred youths were taken to the central arena. It was called the central arena, but the fact was it was not only one arena there. There were eleven of them. Ten were arranged circrly, with a number allocated to each arena. The eleventh one, which was thergest arena amongst the eleven, was situated at the center inside the other ten arenas.


    The arenas here were much smaller than the four arenas the youths fought in the day before. The previous ones were used for arge number of participants. The ones here were meant for a more personal bout, a one-on-one duel.


    The four hundred youths were instructed to pick one folded paper out from multiple jars provided by the organizer. Each of the papers in the jar had a number, one to fifty.


    The youths would be divided into fifty groups. Each group would have three matches until one winner was determined from this group, so the total would have fifty winners for the final.


    Amon picked a paper with the number thirteen written on it.


    He was with group thirteen, which would have a match in arena no.3. He was ushered to that side, as with the groups that had received numbers three, twenty-three, thirty-three, and forty-three. A total of forty youths stood by the side of each arena.


    A referee from the White Cloud sect stood in the middle of each arena. The one on arena no.3 currently called out, "Those that picked number three,e up!"


    Eight youths came out from the group. In front of the referee was a table with four jars. The eight youths were asked to again take a paper out of the first jar. After they all took the paper, they found out that this time, the paper was marked with colors.


    There were eight pieces of paper but four colors, red, blue, yellow, and green. Every two youths had the same color. The referee exined that those with the same colors will fight with one another first. Red would go first. Afterward, the red winner will go against the blue winner. Then the victor would meet whoever won between yellow and green in the semifinal round.


    The referee then announced. "Next, those that picked up number thirteen,e up!"


    Another eight youths, including Amon, came up the stage. Interestingly, there was Wei Lhosa. He looked at Amon just as Amon nced at him.


    "Enjoy your remaining time. Your life is mine when we meet at the semifinal," Wei Lhosa said to Amon. "Of course, you can surrender or intentionally lose before that. We will settle our deathmatch another way then."


    Amon ignored him, but he wondered why the guy was so sure that they will meet at the semifinal. If they both pulled the same color, then they would fight in the first round of their group.


    When Amon was about to take a paper from the jar, the referee stopped him. "Not you. The two of you have special arrangements. This is your color."


    The referee gave Amon a yellow color paper, while Wei Lhosa was given red paper.<sub> </sub>


    ''I see,'' Amon thought. This way it would guarantee that they only met in the semifinal round, considering if they won their first two bouts.


    The other six youths took random color papers from the second jar.


    After all forty youths got their colors, the referee instructed those with the red paper to standby beside the arena. The others sit further away near the audience. Amongst the red candidates, he then asked for the ones that held number three.


    Two youths came up to the arena.


    The referee thenid out the ground rules, "no weapon, no charms, pills, nor artifacts. You fight only with your arts. No intentional killing. Anyone breaking the rules will be disqualified. Heavy offenses like intentional killing will face further punishment. The time limit is ten minutes. One is considered lost if one loses consciousness, step outside the arena, is unable to fight anymore, or surrender. If no conclusive winner after ten minutes, I will decide who is the winner. My words are final, I will entertain no disagreement."


    The two youths nodded their understanding. They then took their positions at each end of the arena.


    "Begin!" The referee announced.


    The two youths seemed to be rather cautious of each other. Amon surmised that the two probably knew each other and their levels were rather simr, hence their wariness.


    After a boring amount of time, the two finally met at the center and started exchanging blows.


    ''Kids,'' Amon scoffed in his mind.


    The two were not exactly bad, their cultivation ensured that they had above-average strength and speed, but the way they fought is too reserved. They fought as if those sparring in a training session. Every attack purposefully avoided vital parts. It was true that if they wound their opponents too severely, they might end up killing them and face possible disqualification, but they held back their offensive too much. Amon surmised these two must be amongst those that simply joined a winning group during the battle royale and did minimal effort.


    The bout ended up having no clear winner even after the ten-minute time limit was reached. The referee looked disappointed. He then announced one of the youths as a winner.


    In the next round, Wei Lhosa who held a red paper came up to the arena. While he and his opponent took their positions, he looked at Amon and gave a cutthroat gesture.


    Amon sneered at the theatrics.


    This time, unlike in the first match, Wei Lhosa dashed toward his opponent once the referee announced the start of the match. His skin turned grey and hard, like metal.


    His opponent didn''t panic. He unleashed his arcane art in the form of earth spikes. He punched the ground and multiple earth spikes jutted out along one line. Wei Lhosa skipped to the side to evade the spikes.


    His opponent punched the ground again and a second line of earth spikes arose. This time, Wei Lhosa couldn''t evade the spikes entirely. Some of the earth spikes stabbed his legs. However, instead of injuring the legs, the spikes broke.


    This surprised Wei Lhosa''s opponent, causing him to pause. Amon, however, knew the reason. It was due to Wei Lhosa''s wooden skin art. Apart from Wei Lhosa''s mastery of the art being superb, the earth elemental attack was weak against metal. Each element had weaknesses and strengths against the other elements. Although no one had taught Amon about this, he had read enough books to understand this basic principle.


    Wei Lhosa took the chance to arrive before him. Before his opponent could react, Wei Lhosa''s legs kicked out and spun, appearing as if three kicks wereing at the same time. His opponent only manage to block one kick while the other twonded on his abdomen and waist. He was thrown back while vomiting blood.


    He fell on his knees to the floor. Wei Lhosa was about to attack again but he was stopped by the referee. The referee observed Wei Lhosa''s opponent who was not getting up and announced Wei Lhosa as the winner.


    p When Wei Lhosa was walking down the stairs. He called out to Amon, "you are next!"</anda>


    Amon simply looked at him and smirked. ''Such a retard. You will have another match again before you fight against me,'' Amon scoffed in his mind.

 64 Chapter 64

    The elimination rounds continued. After the red, then the blue group was called. After several more rounds, finally, it was the yellow group. Amon was the second to fight during the yellow group. Amon went up for his first match when his name was called.


    When he stood atop the arena, he looked around. The other arenas were having youths fighting on them as well. He also looked around at the countless spectators.


    ''A tournament, this is a new experience,'' he thought. He had never bothered with sports in his past life. His sport was always a life-and-death battle. The hectic battle royale from the preliminary round was more his style. This one-on-one bout with rules was too exhibitive for him.


    "Did you listen? Are you clear on the rules?" The referee said to Amon. He was dissatisfied because Amon had been gazing around while he was talking.


    "You have been saying the same rules every time the match start. I can recite them back to you by now," Amon replied.


    The referee was fuming. Such a disrespectful kid! But Amon didn''t vite any rule, so he couldn''t do anything. He hoped this round ended without a clear winner, so he could use his authority as a referee to dere Amon the loser.


    "Begin!" The referee yelled.


    Now only Amon looked at his opponent.


    ''Hm?'' He was about to dash over but he recognized the youth opposite him. The boy was one of the youths that had followed his team during the preliminary round. The boy''s expression seemed to be contemting something.


    Amon could more or less guess what the boy was thinking. So instead of rushing over, he just stood there with his arms folded and stared at the boy with a smile.


    "Hey! What are you two doing? The bout has started already!" The referee called.


    Some participants and nearest spectators had even started booing. Amon retained his pose.


    His opponent finally crossed eyes with Amon. He saw Amon''s confident smile and sharp stare. His expression showed that he had made up his mind.


    "I¡­ I surrender¡­" The youth said.


    "What?" The referee was baffled. They hadn''t even exchanged one move, why surrender already? "What did you say?" The referee asked to make sure.


    "I surrender!" The youth repeated with a more firm voice this time. He then turned around and left the arena.


    Since a contender had left, the referee had no choice but to dere Amon to be the winner.


    The spectators were also taken aback by this oue. They booed louder and jeered, saying that the match was fixed. That Amon must have paid that youth to give up so he could advance without fighting. The other participants also started to speak badly of Amon. The loudest one was Wei Lhosa, saying that Amon could only win using such an underhanded trick.


    There were, however, a couple of participants in that same arena who didn''t join the bad-mouthing. Because they knew the reason that youth had surrendered, they were also amongst those on Amon''s team during the preliminary round. If it was them that came up just now, they would also have surrendered.


    *


    On an elevated section overlooking the arena. Two people were looking at arena no.3. They were very high up but they could still see everything down there clearly.


    One of these persons was Pai Kuan, the referee of the South arena during the preliminary round. The other one was an old man with a half-bald head. The hair that he still had was white, straight, and long. So long that it almost touched the floor. His white beard was also long and almost reached his feet. Despite his obvious old age, his face and body showed a very vigorous disposition.


    "Is that the boy you mentioned?" The old man asked.


    "Yes. That one that gave up just now has been amongst those that follow his orders during the preliminary round," Pai Kuan answered.


    "Hm¡­ Rarely do kids their age care about such a chain ofmand. To be able to instill such fear or respect in the ones that served under him, he is indeed special."


    "His fighting ability is also uncanny. He doesn''t fight as if a little boy who only ever spars. He fights as if a veteran who has gone through much bloodshed."<sub> </sub>


    <o>,m "Have you found out about his background?"</o>


    "His name is Lin Mo. He is the adopted son of Lin Xi, otherwise known as Madam Lin, the daughter of the Lin n''s patriarch."


    "Adopted? So he is not originally of Lin blood?"


    "No, he is originally named Hei Mo. Hees from the Hei n, a small fallen n that lived outside this city. Hei n has been reportedly massacred by the Wei n many years ago. The detail of the events was sketchy at best. The report also said that the perpetrator of the Wei n had been executed by Madam Lin, who acted out of the testimony of the sole survivor of the massacre. That boy, Hei Mo. He was then adopted by Madam Lin and had his name changed to Lin Mo."


    "Hm, is that how his feud with the Wei n started? That''s why they have requested for the deathmatch?"


    "Yes. There is also gossip that this Lin Mo is responsible for the disappearance of a Wei young master. This Lin Mo is probably still carrying the desire to avenge his past Hei n''s massacre. That''s why he goes up against the Wei n."


    "If he is, then there is no need to worry about him. A man who can''t control his emotion and let his desire dictate his course of life won''t be able to do great things."


    "But isn''t it also this desire that can spur someone to strive further than a normal man can, to achieve great things?"


    "Hahaha," the old manughed. "I always enjoy talking to you because you have no reservation in disagreeing with me, unlike those others."


    "I don''t dare, I simply am used to speaking what is in my mind," Pai Kuan bowed.


    "About this boy¡­ If he is as you said. Then he is a one-in-a-million talent. What do we do with such a find?"


    "We recruit him. If we can''t¡­ then we eliminate him!"


    "Hm¡­ I will leave this matter to you then."


    *


    Each youth only fought once a day. The second match was to be conducted tomorrow. The third match which was the semi-final would be the next day after. This was so the participant had one day to rest and heal their wounds after each fight.


    Amon, who had won without a fight, had no reason to rest but he had to follow the rules like all others. The participants who had won were taken back to their resting rooms.


    Despite now only half the rooms that were upiedpared to yesterday, they were still instructed to go to the room they used yesterday. Amon again saw Lei San before he walked up the stairs to the second floor. The long-haired boy looked back at him without any words.


    ''So he has won his first match as well. Well, that is to be expected. He won''t be a top n''s prodigy if he already lost at the first match,'' Amon thought.


    Inside his room, he didn''t go into cultivation. He had been thinking. He had been using Silent Swift Stab art several times to deliver a non-lethal punch instead of a dagger, which the art was meant for. He couldbine it with Bone Shattering Shadow Fist after that move, but there was a pause in between the two arts. The way the aether was articted was different between the two arts, hence the pause. Against an expert, such a pause could be fatal.


    He was wondering if he could synchronize the two arts to make it one whole art. A punch that was delivered at high speed from a distance. One smooth motion without any pause. If he could perform it, that would give him an edge in this tournament that didn''t allow the usage of weapons.


    There was no courtyard outside for practice. Additionally, they were also prohibited from going outside until the time of their match. But the room was not too small, the distance from one side of the wall to the other side was wide enough for him to test his art.


    He proceeded to stand on one side and took his stance. He circted his aether and executed the Silent Swift Stab forward motion, his body turned invisible as he rushed forward, he punched out once arriving at the other side. His Bone Shattering Shadow Fist hit the wall with a hard sound. The wall, however, was fine. Words of Power shed on the surface of the wall when Amon''s fist struck.


    ''So, this room is enhanced by engraving. No wonder it is so sturdy. This is good. This means I''m free to test my art here,'' Amon thought.


    Amon didn''t waste any time. He immediately readied himself and then used the art to dash back to the other side again, then he punched once arriving there.


    ''No¡­ This is still two different arts,'' he thought, unsatisfied.

 65 Chapter 65

    During the rest of the day, the other youths kept on hearing loud banging sounds from one of the rooms. They thought it was only temporary, but it then went on for hours without stopping.


    Those that stayed near Amon''s quarter had it the worst, as the noise was the loudest. They couldn''t rest nor cultivate with such disturbing sounds. The nearest ones started to call out to whoever was making the noise to stop, but Amon ignored them.


    When their requests were ignored, they started calling for the White Cloud people who oversaw the resting rooms. They were not allowed toe out of their rooms. In fact, their rooms were even locked, to prevent these inquisitive youths from roaming around where they shouldn''t be. So, they could only yell to attract attention.


    Soon, the entireplex was full of noise. The White Cloud staff could finally not ignore them any longer and came to see what exactly was going on.


    After hearing the exnation from one of theining youths, the White Cloud staff paid attention to the voices of the other youths that were still calling for them. There were indeed some banging sounds amongst those chaotic voices. The staff followed the sound and arrived in front of Amon''s room.


    They unlocked the door and went in to look. They saw Amon, shirtless, with a body full of sweat, dashing from one side of the room to the other as he punched the wall. Every punch was so hard it made the engraving on the wall flicker.


    "Hey! What the hell are you doing?" The White Cloud staff called out.


    Amon finally stopped. "I''m training martial arts," Amon replied. "Is that not allowed?"


    "Training is fine, but you have been disturbing the others with loud noises. You should train without punching the wall!"


    "Do you have a training room that I can use? If I train there, I won''t disturb the others," Amon asked.


    "No! The rule is for you all to stay in these rooms until your next match. So, stay in your room! No special privilege. And stop disturbing the others! Otherwise, I have the right to disqualify you from the tournament for disturbing public peace or breaking the rules."


    With that threat, the White Cloud staff left. Amon looked at his fist. He almost got the feeling. There was still a slight pause, but the way the aether flowed from his movement to his fist had be more fluid. He should be able to perfect this move if he could do it a few more times.


    But he decided to not tempt the staff. He couldn''t get disqualified just for this small matter. So, Amon sat cross-legged to rest and cultivate.


    While cultivating, he wondered. With the move ofbining those two arts, Amon could feel the art''s nature had changed. There was a fundamental change to the energy at the tip of his fist when he punched out. It had somehow be apletely new art. Perhaps unintentionally, he had created a new art. He wondered if he should give the art a name.


    Since this art wasbined from Silent Swift Stab and Bone Shattering Shadow Fist, perhaps he should call this new art, Silent Swift Shadow Fist.


    He cultivated while contemting his new art. Since he was not allowed to do actual training, he did shadow training in his mind. He had no problem multitasking his mind to both cultivate and study this new art. He pondered about how he distributed his aether when performing the art. Where went wrong and what could be improved. He did several simtions and prepared several methods to test his theory when he had the chance to practice again.


    He continued doing this until the next morning when everyone was called for the second match.


    *


    On the third day after the tournament started, the second match began. Everyone was brought to the same arena that they had used the previous day.


    Amon waited his turn while continuing to mull over the art he had created. The other youths came and went from the arena. After a while, Amon''s name was finally called.


    His opponent was a big-sized youth who coincidentally sat beside Wei Lhosa. The two knew each other before the tournament. They were from the same gang where Wei Lhosa was the leader. The big-sized youth was called Ta Niu.


    Ta Niu was getting ready to head up the arena when Wei Lhosa stopped him. "Hey, he is mine," Wei Lhosa said.<sub> </sub>


    "What? Big bro, you can''t ask me to surrender, right?" Ta Niu said.


    "You can rough him up a bit, but you need to let him win so I can crush him with my hands," Wei Lhosa said.


    "Bro¡­ This tournament is important to me. You know how we non-n boys are. If I can perform well, I might get recruited by the White Cloud sect. If that happens, my family will live well for the rest of their lives."


    "What''s so good about joining the sect? You do this for me, I will take care of you. I will find a way to make you join my Wei n."


    Ta Niu was hesitant. The White Cloud sect''s prestige was better than the Wei n. If it was the Lin or Lei n, then they could be said to still be at the same level as the sect. If it was only the Wei n¡­


    "Why are you hesitating? Are you looking down on my Wei n? Are you asking for a beating?" Wei Lhosa said threateningly.


    "No, big bro. Of course not! How do I dare to underestimate the great Wei n? All right¡­ I will do as you ask," Ta Niu finally relented.


    "Good bro! I will remember this favor," Wei Lhosa dered.


    Ta Niu came up the arena with a scowl as he grumbled all the way. His back was to Wei Lhosa so the Wei youth couldn''t see.


    Amon was already up there waiting for him. But Ta Niu noticed that his opponent appeared to not look at him. Amon was staring down at the floor as if thinking about something. Or was his opponent so scared and dared not look directly at him? When he thought about this guy''s match yesterday, Amon had won without fighting. The other side had strangely surrendered.


    Never mind, whatever the reason, he would beat this guy up to alleviate his frustration. Wei Lhosa only said to let Amon win, didn''t say Amon had to win in one piece. Ta Niu nned to beat this guy until he was satisfied before he announced his surrender. Even if he was dered lost, probably the White Cloud sect would still recruit him if he showed enough of his prowess in this bout.


    With that frame of mind, he readied himself. He looked at Amon as he prepared to rush ahead and beat the guy up once the referee started the match.


    "Begin!" The referee shouted.


    Ta Niu was about to head over, but his opponent suddenly became blurry. He thought there was something wrong with his eyes. He was about to lift his hands to wipe his eyes when suddenly his opponent was already in front of him.


    Before he could register anything. He felt a sharp pain in his chest. His eyes also picked up numerous shadows of fists that rushed over from behind his opponent. Every time this fist arrive, he felt a strong impact on his chest. He heard some cracking sounds from inside his chest. Before he knew it, he was several feet away and on the floor.


    Everyone was bbergasted by the scene. No voice was heard. Even the spectators were silent. The referee was still standing there watching while Amon studied his fist. He didn''t even pay attention to Ta Niu who was already on the floor several feet away.


    Throughoutst night, Amon had never stopped thinking and shadow training his new art. He had isted the points where he could improve and how the aether should be circted. He didn''t have a chance to test his theory until now.


    He felt that there were still parts that he didn''t do right. He looked at Ta Niu who wasying on the floor and wished the guy could stand up again so he could perform another test. Ta Niu, on the other hand, was whimpering on the floor in pain.


    The referee finally snapped out of his daze. "Li¡­ Lin Mo is the victor!" He announced.


    It was not like there was never a short bout. But this was the shortest and most abrupt win in the tournament''s history, performed by some unknown youth so to say. Although Lin Mo was from a renowned n, he was not someone who had made his name known to the public. Unlike Lin Xiaolong, Lei San from the Lei n, or even Wei Lhosa who had been renowned in White Cloud city as one of the prodigies.


    Everyone watched Amon as he walked down from the arena and returned to the waiting seat. The thought on everyone''s mind from yesterday that he had won using an underhanded trick, was no more.

 66 Chapter 66

    It was finally the day of the third match, which would be the deathmatch between Amon and Wei Lhosa.


    The third match for everyone was no longer held in the outer arenas, but instead in thergest arena at the center. The number of participants had declined after two days of the elimination match to one hundred youths. There would be fifty matches today to decide the fifty finalists.


    Due to the bout between Amon and Wei Lhosa being special, theirs were put as thest match. The two waited in opposite waiting areas as they watched the matches.


    In being able to reach these semi-final rounds, none of the participants were weak. However, the deciding factors of their winning were more on the level of their cultivation and the strength of their arts. Very few actually gave Amon the reason to pay attention.


    Some, however, had genuine talent and seemed to have a little real-life and death battle experience. Xin Wuming who followed Amon during the preliminary round was one of them. He had managed to beat his opponent despite his opponent''s arts being a level better.


    Another one worth noting was Lei San. Everyone had expected him toe out on top, so there was no surprise there. However, he had done it by only using a single martial art. He didn''t use any arcane art or other martial arts.


    Amon was slightly impressed when he saw this prodigy fight. Lei San was able to read his opponent''s movement and dodge all the attacksing his way with ease. He then used his martial art to counterattack. A simple palm strike. The strike seemed soft but it hit a fatal spot and his opponent was having difficulty moving afterward. A second palm caused his opponent to unable to stand anymore.


    From the disy, Amon discerned that the palm strike was a martial art that used the aether to intrude into the opponent''s inner organ and cause harm inside. The strike might look as soft as a touch, but the damage it caused is not something to be looked down on.


    There was another notable one, a girl whose arts were nothing to speak of. But her ferocity and determination carried her to victory against an opponent who was clearly better in terms of cultivation and arts. Her name was Yang Li. She didn''t seem to be affiliated with any ns. Everyone was surprised a true independent participant had managed to make it into the final. Such an incident rarely happened.


    Out of the Lin n, Lin Fen and Lin Cang managed to win and be finalists. However, in Amon''s opinion, they were simply lucky. Their opponents happened to be those of no particr quality and could be said to be the worse amongst the semi-finalists.


    Another of the Lei n''s youth, Lei Muyin, also won. She was not as good as Lei San but in Amon''s opinion, she was better than the Lin candidates, Lin Fen and Lin Cang.


    Wei n also produced one winner, Wei Lun. He seemed to win with difficulty but Amon felt something was off about him. The guy was pretending to be weak. Amon could see from his movement that he could have won easily if he wanted. Why this guy concealed his ability, Amon didn''t know and didn''t care.


    After forty-nine matches werepleted, forty-nine finalists were made clear. It was finally thest match.


    The referee that had overseen the previous matches left the arena. Another person floated down to the main arena to take his ce. It was the referee that had overseen the South Arena, Pai Kuan. Everyone knew then that thest match was something special.


    After his feetnded on the arena, his voice boomed out, "First, I would like to congratte the forty-nine youths that had won the rights to join the final round! You have fought well and won the honor for your families and ns. The details of thest round will be exined to you once we have our fiftieth finalist. As for thisst match, it will be different from the previous one. Why? Because in thisst match, the loser will die."


    The crowd started to murmur. There had been matches arranged by White Cloud that were fought to the death, but never during a White Cloud tournament. Because the participants of the White Cloud Tournament were always youths who rarely understood the concept of a fight to the death. That''s why the current announcement took the spectators by surprise.


    *


    Around the arena, above where the spectators were seated, were elevated podiums. These were the viewing tforms provided for the well-known ns. Each podium housed the most prominent ns in White Cloud City.


    "Is that the bastard that had crippled my son?!" One of the men inside the podium reserved for the Wei n uttered.


    "Uncle Lusiong, don''t worry. Brother Lhosa will take revenge for Lumao," a teenage girl with a sweet voice said.


    The angry man was Wei Lusiong, the father of Wei Lumao whose legs had been cut by Amon during the preliminary round.


    "That''s right. We will have the front seat row when my Lhosa takes care of that mongrel," Wei Sui, who was sitting close to the edge, said. "I''ve asked him to make the boy''s death as miserable as possible. I''ve specifically asked him to have the boy''s head crushed, so he will die without a head or face that anyone can recognize. We will have this exciting spectacle soon."


    "Oh¡­ I''ve never seen someone''s head getting crushed. I look forward to it!" The girl with the sweet voice said.


    "Watch your manner, Yunning. It is unbing of a little girl," Wei Linkun, who was also there, chided the girl.


    "I''m just excited, brother. All you let me do is just beat the servant boys. I''ve long wanted to see brain matter being smashed out, guts being pulled out. I can''t wait when I am allowed to do it myself."


    Wei Linkun shook his head. This sister of his was rather unusual. Their age gap was veryrge, but he always dotted her. However, her hobby seemed to be developing in a direction that is unlike any other girl. Her talents in cultivation and arts are top-notch though. But she was already sixteen, otherwise, she would have been amongst the ones representing the Wei n fighting down there.<sub> </sub>


    "But we are rather lucky, we have two candidates who managed to reach the final. That Wei Lun boy does not disappoint. Why have I never heard of him before?"


    "He is good but does not stand out," Wei Sui informed. "I''m also rather surprised that he bes a finalist. This is good, that means Wei Lhosa will have someone he can count on during the finals."


    "The Lin people also have two youths who managed to reach the final," Wei Linkun reminded.


    Wei Suiughed. "Did you not see their fights? They are just lucky. They are no threat to Wei Lhosa."


    Wei Linkun nodded. "The one that I think was the better amongst the Lin n was unexpected this Lin Mo. I hope Wei Lhosa isn''t careless and underestimates his opponent."


    "You give a too high opinion of this boy," Wei Sui said. "Yes, hisst match was indeed surprising, but he is just using a trick to catch his opponent unaware andnded a cheap shot. Wei Lhosa already saw his trick, he won''t fall for it."


    "Nevertheless, he managed to win through the battle royale. I didn''t watch that round. Did any of you do?"


    "I don''t. Why should we spend time watching that boy''s fights?" Wei Sui said with disgust. "I am of course watching the West arena where my Lhosa was at."


    "I''m at the North Arena watching Lei San''s fights," Wei Yunning said cheerily. "Oh¡­ he is so cool and talented. If only I can get my hands on him and torment him until he begs for death, that will be a dreame true."


    Wei Linkun nced at this sister of his. He admitted that she gave him the creeps once in a while. He then turned to Wei Lusiong. "What about you? Your son is fighting in the arena that Lin Mo brat was at. Did you see his fights?"


    "I did, but that boy was just using numbers to bully the others. He sneaked a cheap shot when my boy was not looking."


    "See? That is the only way that boy cheats his victory," Wei Sui said. "But now that he meets my Lhosa, his tricks won''t work anymore. He will see that no amount of ploy will work when he meets true talent."


    "Hm. Then we should prepare for the final. Have Wei Lun and Wei Lhosae see me once the match ends. I will give them pointers on what to do during the final," Wei Linkun said.


    "That won''t be long," Wei Sui said with confidence.


    *


    Down there at the main arena. Pai Kuan had finished exining the rules. It was basically the same as before, with no weapon nor poison despite this bout being a deathmatch. However, the referee would not stop the fight even when one of them called for surrender. A forcefield had been erected around the arena, so the two couldn''t leave the arena even if they wanted to. The match would only end when one of them died.


    "Are you two ready?" Pai Kuan asked as he floated above the twobatants.


    "Ready," Wei Lhosa said with confidence.


    "I have a question," Amon said.


    "Hm? What''s your question?" Pai Kuan asked.


    Wei Lhosa mocked after hearing, "Are you going to make excuses to dy the fight?"


    Amon ignored Wei Lhosa and gave his question to Pai Kuan, "which one of those viewing tforms houses the Wei n?"


    Pai Kuan was about to ask why? But decided he didn''t care. "That one," he said as he pointed.


    "All right, let''s get this over with," Amon said.


    Pai Kuan nodded, then he uttered, "begin!"

 67 Chapter 67

    Wei Lhosa was rather confused as to why Amon asked the question, but he didn''t let himself be careless. He had seen Amon''s art which delivered a sudden attack from a long-range. Perhaps Amon was simply making a non-sensical question to misdirect him, causing his concentration to falter. Wei Lhosa snickered, such a petty trick.


    He immediately activated his metal skin arcane art to counter Amon''s sudden attack. He didn''t believe Amon''s punch could break his hardened skin''s defense.


    But contrary to expectation, Amon simply stood at his ce with folded arms. Amon was smiling as he gave his opponent a condescending stare.


    Wei Lhosa who considered himself superior to Amon was infuriated by such a disy.


    "I will wipe that smug smile from your face!" He uttered by lunging forward.


    Amon did not show any hastiness. He waited for his opponent to approach. In the end, his opponent was still a kid. Too easy to provoke. The guy might have had a lot of dueling experience inside his n, but considering Wei Lhosa''s high station in the Wei n, Amon doubted Wei Lhosa''s dueling partners ever disrespected Wei Lhosa in the duels. By disrupting Wei Lhosa''s calmness, Amon had imed half the victory.


    Wei Lhosa''s right arm bulged as he prepared to punch, Amon deduced that must be his martial art. When he punched, Amon could feel its powerful force from the wind it produced. It was not something that Amon could afford to receive lightly. However, due to Wei Lhosa''s disordered state of mind, it was easy for Amon to predict his aim and timing. Amon was already out of the way when the deformedly oversized fist punched through where Amon stood a second ago.


    After the sidestep, Amon sent a lightning-fast Bone Shattering Shadow Fist right at Wei Lhosa''s side abdomen. The strong impact created a loud nging sound. Amon was astonished. Wei Lhosa''s defensive arcane art was harder than he thought. He felt like he had just punched a solid steel object.


    Even though Wei Lhosa was unhurt, the punch still pushed him several steps away.


    Wei Lhosa looked at the part where he was punched. Though not wounded, he still felt the pain. His face scowled into an ugly expression with a deathly stare at Amon. "I¡­ will¡­ TEAR YOU APART¡­!!!" He bellowed.


    He jumped and spun, his legs appeared as if they became three, each of them kicked out from a different angle. It was the martial art that Wei Lhosa had used before in the first match.


    Amon had seen this move before, so he was prepared for it. Once Wei Lhosa''s seemingly three legs came shing at him, he also punched out. His Bone Shattering Shadow Fist shot out three energy fists, which urately hit all three of Wei Lhosa''s kicks at their thighs, close to their pivoting points. The punch eliminated the energy carried by the kicks before they were even delivered.


    Wei Lhosa was dumbfounded that his martial art was so easily nullified. To his consternation, he suddenly found Amon was already right in front of him, Amon''s fist punched hard into his chest. Amon again executed his newly created Silent Swift Shadow Fist for the second time in the tournament. Multiple fist shadows came following Amon''s wake before they mmed consecutively following that first punch.


    *CLANG*CLANG*CLANG*CLANG*


    Wei Lhosa''s body, which was as hard as metal, got pushed back with each loud impact. He only stopped after skidding for almost ten meters. The chest where he had been punched had several slight indentations. He felt a little difficulty in breathing as he tasted iron in his mouth. He touched the side of his mouth and saw there was blood on his fingers.


    ''He gets through my defense?'' Wei Lhosa thought with rm.


    Amon, in the meantime, had rushed over again. He was not going to let his opponent take a rest. He was not using the Silent Swift Shadow Fist again, that art wasted a lot of aether as it was still unstable. He needed a lot more practice to perfect it.


    Wei Lhosa, who saw Amon''s approach, pumped his aether into his two arms. The two arms bulged like balloons. It was his previous martial art, now executed with both arms.


    "Your punch might be strong, but it won''t be stronger than my Strong Arm Punch!" Wei Lhosa bellowed.


    He punched forward, Amon swayed to the side and sent his punch as a counter. Amon''s punch hit underneath Wei Lhosa''s armpit. Wei Lhosa ignored that punch, it was not enough to prate his metal skin. He punched again with his other arm. Amon dodged it and returned the punch again.


    The two exchanged punches at close range. Both were not willing to retreat. But there was one main difference between the two, Wei Lhosa''s punches never managed to hit Amon, while Amon''s ones always hit urately.


    ''Too easy. His movements are too easy to read,'' Amon thought as he continued the fistfight. Wei Lhosa''s eyes, shoulder, and leg movements all revealed his intent.


    Amon only counterattacked with a light version of Bone Shattering Shadow Fist to converse energy and also to be able to react fast enough to his opponent''s next punch. Even though each punch was not as strong as when he executed the Silent Swift Shadow Fist, the damage still built up.<sub> </sub>


    Each of Amon''s punches sent a vibration that shook Wei Lhosa''s internal organ. Even though he was still confident in his defensive art, Wei Lhosa was feeling extreme difort after the long fistfight. Not to mention none of his punches hit. He was tormented both physically and mentally.


    *


    "What''s wrong? Why can''t Wei Lhosa hit that bastard?" Wei Sui, who was watching from the above tform, was getting restless.


    "That kid is better than we thought¡­," Wei Linkun said. "He is very good at closebat fight."


    "Hmph! In that case, Lhosa should still win," Wei Sui said. "He has a good ranged arcane art. He has not used it yet probably because he is not willing to admit that he is inferior in closebat."


    "Who is that kid''s name again?" Wei Yunning who was propping herself on the railing asked.


    "His name is Lin Mo. Why?" Wei Linkun asked.


    "Hm¡­ I want to fight him," Wei Yunning said. "And then tortured him until he can''t speak."


    "You won''t have the chance. Lhosa will kill this brat soon!" Wei Sui dered.


    *


    Wei Lhosa, who was fighting down there, finally couldn''t let his pride make him continue being Amon''s punching bag. He jumped away. His two arms had returned to their normal sizes.


    "You asshole! I will end you now!" Wei Lhosa yelled as stretched his one arm at Amon.


    Amon, who was about to chase, felt peculiar about Wei Lhosa''s stance. He then sensed danger from Wei Lhosa''s outstretched arm. A small rock suddenly shot out from Wei Lhosa''s hand at high speed towards Amon. It''s a good thing Amon followed his instinct and jumped sideways just as the rock passed through.


    Wei Lhosa shot the rock slightly downward, so the rock hit the floor further back. Amon looked back and was surprised to see the rock bored deep into the floor. That kind of force could easily punch through his body. It was even stronger than a gunshot. Even if he activated Hardened Bronze Body, Amon doubted it was enough to defend against that rock.


    "You are pretty good to dodge my Stone Pellet. Let''s see how long you can continue to dodge!" Wei Lhosa hollered as he shot another Stone Pellet, then another.


    Amon continued running in a zig-zag pattern. The Stone Pellets'' speed was very fast. He was not sure if he could evade them if he only moved after the stone was fired. But he could predict their trajectories by paying attention to his opponent''s aim.


    He had plenty of experience dodging gunshots in his past life. However, usually, in those conditions, he would have looked for a cover while dodging. This time, though, it was a t arena. There was no cover. He couldn''t risk rushing to his opponent as well. The closer he was, the harder it was to dodge because the interval between him reading the opponent''s aim and the shot would be shorter.


    He continued to dodge as his opponents continued to shoot. This became a battle of endurance to see who got tired first.


    Although Amon moved a lot, he didn''t expand much aether. While for Wei Lhosa, although he didn''t move, every time he fired a Stone Pellet, he consumed arge amount of aether. This situation again caused Wei Lhosa to feel uneasy.


    ''Why can''t I hit him¡­?!!" He screamed in his mind. His n who was watching from above shared his frustration. This fight was supposed to be a short one. The opponent was a nobody, so why did it turn out into such a difficult battle?


    Whether close-range or long-range, Wei Lhosa had not hit Amon even once.

 68 Chapter 68

    Amon''s body was soaked in sweat since he had been moving at high speed non-stop. Yet, he was grinning. In this world, aether reserve was more important than stamina. He could use his aether to recharge his stamina, allowing him to persist on this high-speed dodge indefinitely as long as he still had aether.


    His opponent, on the other hand, had been executing arcane art continuously. Wei Lhosa''s face was starting to be pale.


    Wei Lhosa himself could feel his aether reserve drained. He couldn''t afford to continue shooting the Stone Pellet. He had been hoping Amon to make a mistake or hoping his shot to score a lucky hit. But after this long, he had to ept the bitter fact. His opponent was not someone that could be defeated by simply hoping.


    Yet, his pride couldn''t ept that his opponent was a better fighter. He gritted his teeth. This was a do-or-die situation, he decided to throw caution to the wind.


    "You think you are good? I have said before that I will wipe that smug smile off your face! And I will!!" Wei Lhosa yelled as his aura rose.


    Amon stopped running. Wei Lhosa had stopped shooting his Stone Pellet, this should be the ideal time to rush over and finish him. Yet, Amon didn''t do so. He felt a clear sense of danger from the kid.


    The air around Wei Lhosa stirred as if getting boiled by high temperature. Even his hair was lifted as if a huge gush of wind was blown from under. Yet, there was no wind. Wei Lhosa''s skin started to turn red.


    *


    "No! Don''t use it!" Wei Sui screamed from the tform above. "Your body can''t withstand that art yet!"


    Wei Linkun frowned seeing the scene. "You taught him full transformation art?" He asked the woman.


    "He¡­ he is not supposed to use it," Wei Sui said defensively.


    "What the hell are you thinking? He is too young for that kind of art."


    Wei Sui was silent.


    "Hmph, but at least his victory is assured," Wei Linkun said. "You just have to prepare to spend lots of recovery and enhancing pills on him after this. Even then, his body might still carry permanent damage."


    *


    In the arena, clear change was seen in Wei Lhosa''s physique. His body bulged unnaturally. His clothes had be too tiny for his inted body that they were torn apart. Red hair grew all over his skin covering his body. His hair also turned red and was getting longer. His eyes had be all white, his pupil gone. His mouth was filled with sharp teeth.


    "RAARRRRR¡­!!!" Wei Lhosa roared. The appearance of an arrogant and high-standing noble was no more, reced by the look of a wild beast.


    "You¡­.! I will rip you to shred¡­!!!" Wei Lhosa could still talk, but his voice waspletely inhuman.


    Wei Lhosa dashed forward. His speed took Amon by surprise. Amon activated Hardened Bronze Body just as Wei Lhosa''s fist hit his stomach. Amon was thrown far away, his back hit the boundary field and he bounced back into the arena. Hended on all four as he spat a mouthful of blood.


    ''Even with the defensive art, the punch was still so destructive,'' Amon thought pensively.


    "Hehe, this is the first time I hit you," Wei Lhosa said mockingly. He felt much better after that one hit. He walked over leisurely to Amon.


    Amon controlled his breathing. That one hit was damaging, but he could still move. He stayed low on the ground on his four, pretending to be weak. He didn''t look up. He was estimating Wei Lhosa''s distance from his aura and footsteps.


    "Haha, I didn''t think transformative art will be this powerful," Wei Lhosa said as he walked. "Why did they forbid me to use it until my cultivation reaches the Transformation stage? No matter, I''m sure will win now. Even though my aether is depleted, my physical strength alone is enough to finish you. With this Brute Ape body, I need no martial nor arcane art!"


    He hade close to Amon by then.<sub> </sub>


    "Heh, it seems that my one punch is too strong for you. Come, I''ve promised to crush your head in front of everybody," he said as he bent down with his one hand about to grab Amon''s head.


    Suddenly Amon jumped to the side when Wei Lhosa was about to grab him. At the same time, two rings of water materialized on both his hands. Amon put both hands together,bining the two rings, and swung it at Wei Lhosa''s arm. Wei Lhosa felt a stinging pain once the ring passed through. Arge amount of blood spurt out.


    "AARRGGHHH¡­!!!" Wei Lhosa screamed in pain.


    ''It only managed to cut half?'' Amon thought in surprise. He had learned that he was able to create two Water Slicing Rings and then merge them into one, effectively doubling the cutting power. But even then, it only managed to cut half of Wei Lhosa''s arm.


    If it was any other element, Wei Lhosa wouldn''t even receive any damage. His defense after using the Beast Ape form was even sturdier than his Metal Skin art. Unfortunately, the Beast Ape form was of the fire element. Amon''s water element was most strong when used against the fire element.


    Amon didn''t stop. Once he learned that his attack failed to fully cut his opponent''s arm off, he immediately followed with another swing. Luckily his opponent was still a kid. Their mentality was not yet forged to think fast under pressure. Once the pain sunk in, Wei Lhosa was unable to form any coherent thoughts.


    Amon''s Water Slicing Ring cut through the same wound. The arm, which was still half intact a moment ago, was now cleanly cut off. Wei Lhosa thrashed about as more blood gushed out. His pain had now turned into fear as he moved away trying to put as much distance as possible from Amon.


    Wei Lhosa crawled pathetically away with one hand. He turned back after crawling some distance, only to find that Amon was nowhere to be seen. He looked around frantically before feeling a sharp pain in his one remaining arm from behind.


    He looked back just in time when Amon''s two hands were lifted high, the Water Slicing Ring was spinning rapidly around his two pressed palms, before being brought down. He watched in horror as the blue energy ring shed at the same spot that was hit a second ago. His one remaining arm was now also gone.


    He wailed in agony. Blood continued to gush out. He no longer had any hands to support his body so he fell with his face hitting the floor.


    The pain and instability of his mind caused his body to revert to its original state. His skin was broken and bloody from the transformation, a side effect of the premature use of the full transformation art. Wei Lhosa tried to move but was unable. He floundered on the floor helplessly.


    While he was trying to move his legs to push himself away, he felt a strong hand grabbing the back of his neck. He was soon lifted by that strong hand. His body, which was now naked and crippled was exposed for all to see. Yet, it was no shame that was in his mind. It was the ultimate fear. The fear of impending doom.


    "Ple¡­ Please¡­ Spare me¡­," he uttered with difficulty. He felt his throat was very sore. His entire body was hurting after reverting to human form. Not just the arm parts that were cut.


    Amon didn''t respond. He brought Wei Lhosa to one side of the arena, facing the audience. Pai Kuan was intrigued by Amon''s act. But when he realized the direction Amon was facing, a cold chill was felt on his back.


    Amon was holding Wei Lhosa and showed his pitiful condition facing the tform that housed the Wei n.


    Wei Lhosa never stopped begging, but when he saw no reaction from Amon, he changed to threatening. "You¡­ You can''t kill me¡­ My n won''t¡­ let you go¡­ Release me¡­ My n will¡­ re¡­ reward you well¡­"


    Amon stayed silent.


    Not long after, an energy-filled voice was heard from the Wei n''s tform. It was the voice of Wei Linkun, "Lin brat. Let him live and we will consider our dispute settled. If you harm him again, we will have an unreconcble blood feud between us. We will stop at nothing till we im your head."


    Amon grinned. He pulled his one free hand back, that hand was clenched into a fist.


    "Stop! Do you truly want to be our sworn enemy?!" Wei Linkun''s voice was heard again, with more urgency.


    But Amon acted as if he didn''t hear at all. His fist shot forward. The full force of Bone Shattering Shadow Fist crashed onto the back of Wei Lhosa''s skull. Wei Lhosa''s head exploded like a crushed watermelon.


    All the audience gasped at this disy of cruelty.

 69 Chapter 69

    "NOOOOO¡­..!!!" Wei Sui wailed hysterically.


    Amon released his grip and Wei Lhosa''s headless body fell limply to the ground.


    "NOOO¡­.! NOOOO¡­.!!" Wei Sui continued to scream as if losing her mind.


    Wei Linkun''s face was as ugly as it could be. The Lin brat hadpletely ignored his plead and warning. Executing a prominent member of his n in such a humiliating way in front of everyone. He had utterly crushed the Wei n''s dignity. The sound of his gritting teeth was so loud that everyone in that room could hear it despite Wei Sui''s wailing.


    But he quickly controlled himself. He took a deep breath and said to Wei Sui, "Calm yourself. We will definitely take our revenge. There is no¡­ Wait! Stop¡­!"


    He didn''t finish his sentence because, at the time, Wei Sui had dashed out of the viewing tform. She couldn''t fly, but her cultivation allowed her to glide. She zoomed past above the audience and headed straight towards the arena.


    After Wei Lhosa died. The deathmatch ended, so Pai Kuan opened the confining energy field around the arena. Once he did that, Wei Sui immediately jumped out and rushed to Amon.


    Amon saw the iing Wei Sui. But instead of worrying, he simply stood there with his arms folded. The grin on his face never disappear.


    When Wei Sui almost reach him, she threw a w that was filled with cold energy. But before this w reached Amon, another hand arrived and caught her wrist. The cold energy on her w vanished as if falling into a deep sea.


    It was Pai Kuan who came to interfere. Wei Sui could not move an inch.


    "Missus Wei, please refrain yourself," Pai Kuan said.


    "MOVE ASIDE!" Wei Sui bellowed.


    Pai Kuan frowned. Did this woman lose her mind?


    Wei LinKun had arrived as well. He hurriedlymanded, "Wei Sui! Stop this! Come here!"


    But Wei Sui was too hysterical. "I SAID MOVE ASIDEEE¡­!!!" Wei Sui screamed as her other hand wed at Pai Kuan.


    Pai Kuan was surprised. How dare this woman attacked an elder of the White Cloud Sect on their turf? Violent energy exploded out of Pai Kuan. Wei Sui was thrown away as if a kite with a severed string being blown away by a strong gust of wind.


    Wei Linkun hurriedly flew up and caught her body. She was vomiting blood due to the force exerted by Pai Kuan. Theynded back safely on the ground. Wei Linkun transferred his aether into her body to help stabilize the turmoil energy inside her.


    At the same time, he said to Pai Kuan, "Thank you, elder Pai Kuan, for sparing her life."


    Wei Sui''s face was pale. She was unable to move or speak. Yet her eyes continued to stare at Amon with hatred.


    "Tsk," Amon uttered disappointingly. He turned around and moved away.


    Pai Kuan who heard it looked at Amon, who was now walking away. ''Was he trying to kill with a borrowed knife?'' Pai Kuan thought. He again felt the chill on his back.


    "Elder Pai Kuan, please excuse us. I will take her back to our n. I apologize again for what she had done," Wei Linkun said.


    Pai Kuan simply waved his hand, indicating for them to go. Wei Linkun hurriedly carried Wei Sui and go. In his mind, they had dodged the bullet. But he doubted the White Cloud Sect would simply let this go. They might need to send an official representative for another apology. He gave Amon onest nce before leaving. Amon had walked away without even giving them any attention. The fire of rage burnt strongly in his heart. Wei Linkun swore he would get his pound of flesh from that kid.


    Amon took a seat amongst the other finalist. He ate a recovery pill before focusing on meditation to heal his wound. The others now saw him in a different light. After the fight just now, no one was going to question his ability. Not to mention his ruthlessness. The way he executed the helpless Wei Lhosa was not something anyone of their age could carry out.


    After Wei Linkun''s people took away Wei Lhosa''s corpse, Pai Kuan took center stage. His enhanced voice boomed, "Thank you everyone for having watched this White Cloud Tournament. As any of you who have spectated thest tournament should know, this tournament is only shown to the public until the semifinal. The final round will be held privately. Thanks again for havinge, we will see you again in the next tournament."


    Some of the spectators showed disappointed expressions. Those should be the ones that came to watch this tournament for the first time. However, no one dared to utter a protest. White Cloud Sect''s standing in the city was unquestionable.<sub> </sub>


    Pai Kuan ignored the crowd and flew towards where the fifty finalists were sitting. "Come with me," he said.


    The finalists stood up and followed after Pai Kuan. Amon stood up reluctantly, his stomach was still reeling. The damage from Wei Lhosa''s punch was not light. He walked at the back of the group that was following Pai Kuan.


    Pai Kuan took them to a closed hall. Inside there, five staff in White Cloud uniforms were already waiting. Each of them carried a basket.


    "Arrange yourself into five lines, please," Pai Kuan announced.


    The fifty youths shuffled themselves. Haphazardly at first, until they got a semnce of order and formed five lines. Amon stood in his ce, waiting until everyone finished getting into line, before going to the one that was one person short.


    The five staff then came to each of the lines. They asked some questions to the first youth in line, before giving them something to touch. Afterward, they went to the youth behind and did the same thing. Amon was at the back of the line, so he waited for a while before the staff arrived at his ce.


    When it was Amon''s turn, the staff asked him his name and affiliation.


    "Lin Mo, Lin n," Amon replied.


    The staff then gave Amon a small te with runic letters on it. Amon sensed aether from the te. The runic letters were a word of power. When Amon touched the te, he felt the aether in his body interacting with the te. The te also glowed. After a while, the glow died down. The staff took the te back.


    After all five staff returned to Pai Kuan''s side, he said, "those were a te that records your unique energy signature. That will make sure that only you will be allowed entry on the day of the final. You can go back to your home or your n. Heal yourselves and be prepared. Come back here again after ten days. The final round will be held then."


    When it seemed that Pai Kuan wasn''t going to talk further, one of the finalists asked, "What kind of tournament is this final? Is it a duel fight again?"


    Pai Kuan looked at the youth. He turned to one of the staff, who showed him a te.


    "Lin Cang from Lin n," Pai Kuan read.


    Lin Cang became anxious when his name was called. Were they not allowed to ask?


    "Your Lin n had participated in this final before. You can go back and ask the senior in your n. As for those who are unaffiliated. You will have to wait until the day of the final before we exin the final to you¡­ Oh, one more thing for the unaffiliated. You are wee to stay here. Since you have managed to be finalists, you have the chance to join our sect if you are interested. You can let the staff knows if so. However, whether you will be epted or not will be decided after the final. That''s all. All of you are dismissed."


    Pai Kuan then walked out of the room. He threw Amon a quick nce when he passed Amon by, only to be surprised to see Amon was staring at him as well. He didn''t stop though, he continued walking at his pace and went out of the room.


    Most of the youths were still unsure about the final, so they bombarded the staff with questions. Amon decided to just leave, but someone called after him.


    "Brother Lin Mo!"


    Amon turned and saw Xin Wuminging to him.


    "I know you will be one of the finalists. Your fight is amazing. I truly admire you, brother Lin Mo," Xin Wuming said.


    "You managed to be one as well," Amon said. "Is there anything else you need?"


    "I just want to say. If I have to face you in the final, please give me some ck."


    "I won''t," Amon replied curtly. "If you are unsure, just surrender. Furthermore, I don''t think the final is something as simple as we dueling against each other."


    "You think so?" Xin Wuming asked. He was not bothered by Amon''s rudeness.


    "Doesn''t matter. We will find out ten days from now," Amon said then turned around and left.

 70 Chapter 70

    Amon left and headed directly back to the Lin Estate. He saw Lin Guoe to his side when he left the White Cloud Estate. Amon let the man apany him. Lin Guo only left after seeing Amon entering the Lin Estate.


    When Amon came near where his housingplex was located. There seemed to be a crowd by the entrance. One of the people in the crowd saw Amon and immediately shouted, "There you are! You ungrateful Lin backstabber. You still have the face to return to the Lin n? This ce does not wee you. Begone from here!"


    The speaker was a middle-aged auntie with thick make-up. Amon had no idea what the bitch was spouting. Amon stood there with folded arms and waited for them to exin.


    "Oh? Look at him! He still dares to act as if he owns the ce? How about we teach him a lesson and show him that the Lin n is not a ce he can do as he wishes?" The auntie eximed.


    The others voiced their agreement and surrounded him in an intimidating manner.


    Amon did not move. Although he sensed danger from some of them, it was not in a capacity that he couldn''t handle. Also, they were still inside the Lin Estate, he didn''t believe that thismotion would be unnoticed for long.


    As expected, someone came and eximed, "Who is making amotion here?"


    Everyone turned and saw Lin Fong and Madam Line out from inside the housingplex.


    The auntie who had scolded Amon immediately greeted Lin Fong, "Mister Fong, it''s great that you are here. I came to demand an exnation from Madam Lin about her adopted son. You must be aware of what happened during the tournament. Our Lin n should be working together for the glory of our n. Instead this bast¡­ I mean, this adopted member of our n did a taboo and attacked his own n. He not only wounded my son Lin Gai with petty tricks but also caused him to fail the preliminary round. If not for his act, my talented son will surely have be one of the finalists and brought honor to our n."


    Amon scoffed at the words. Some people were just blinded or chose to be blinded to think that their offsprings were better than they actually were.


    "How dare youugh at me! Mister Fong, see how uncultured this backwater kid is! I demand him to be expelled from our n!"


    Before Lin Fong could say anything, Madam Lin came forward.


    The auntie who saw Madam Lin approach, hurriedly said, "Madam Lin, I meant no disrespect. But you really shouldn''t have casually taken any child to be adopted. There are plenty of¨C"


    *SLAP*


    The auntie didn''t have the chance to finish her words as Madam Lin''s palm pped her cheek hard. Everyone was dumbfounded by the scene.


    "Ma¡­ madam Lin, why did you¨C"


    *SLAP*


    Another pnded on her other cheek. The p was hard enough that the auntie fell to the ground. The others hurriedly huddled around the woman as they plead for Madam Lin''s mercy.


    Lin Fong had alsoe forward and held her sister. "Xi, that''s enough," he said.


    Madam Lin didn''t continue, but her eyes red at the crowd in front of her. "Any of you dare say anything bad about my son will face my wrath! My son is the pride of our Lin n for having be one of the finalists. Any of you dare to disrespect him will smear our n''s honor!"


    The crowd turned to Amon with wide eyes. They didn''t know yet that Amon had won. The tournament had just ended and Amon had returned here immediately, so the news had not yet widely spread. It didn''t even register to them that if Amon came back here alive, that means he had won the deathmatch which was the semifinal round.


    Madam Lin, however, had Lin Guo watch Amon''s every match and he used the jademunication device to report the match''s result. Thus, Madam Lin had already known of Amon''s victory when it happened. Lin Fong was coincidentally visiting Madam Lin at this time. He had been trying to repair the rtionship between them.


    "Now begone!" Madam Lin dered. The crowd didn''t dare to tarry any longer. They hurriedly scurried away.


    Amon was amused seeing how they left pathetically. That auntie should have been grateful. If Amon didn''t restrain himself, she wouldn''t even have a son anymore.<sub> </sub>


    After they left, Madam Lin hugged Amon. Amon felt weird by the hug. Whether in this life or the previous, he rarely let anyone hug him. Even when he was having sex, he didn''t. He preferred his partner bound so there was no chance for him to be assaulted during intercourse.


    "I''m d that you are safe," Madam Lin said softly.


    Lin Fong eyed the two. Amon could see the jealousy in Lin Fong''s eyes. Amon make voiceless mouth movements that said, "two more years." Indicating their deal that Amon would go to the academy and leave the Lin n for good.


    Lin Fong gave him a silent nod. He then said to Madam Lin. "Xi, I will leave first. It''s nice chatting with you."


    Madam Lin let go of her hug and nodded at Lin Fong. She then said to Amon, e, tell me everything about the tournament."


    The two entered their housingplex and sat underneath the gazebo in their courtyard. As requested, Amon recounted the tournament like a good son. Madam Lin had proven again and again as a valuable protector, so Amon had to entertain her in return.


    After finishing his tale, Amon asked, "Does mother know about the final? How is the final being run? The White Cloud people said that the Lin n had joined the finals in the past and should know about it."


    "I am not aware of this final. But my brother, Bubai, should know about it. Come, let us go and ask him," Madam Lin said.


    Amon followed his stepmother to Lin Bubai''s housingplex. This was the first time Amon came to the ce. It was much more luxurious andrger than Madam Lin''s one. When they entered the courtyard, Amon saw several women chatting by an artificial pond.


    "Those are my brother''s wives," Madam Lin exined.


    One of those wives came over and greeted Madam Lin. Madam Lin exined her wish to meet his brother. The wife then led them to another side of the courtyard. They heard melodious music as they followed her.


    After turning the corner, they saw Lin Bubai sit under a beech tree. He was reading a scroll while not far away a woman was ying a zither. The melodious music they heard was from that zither.


    Lin Bubai noticed her sister approaching. He stood up and gave a signal to the woman with the zither to stop ying.


    "Xi, What brings you here?" Lin Bubai stood and gestured for Madam Lin and Amon to sit on the wooden chairs by the side of the garden. The woman with the zither picked up the instrument and excused herself.


    After the three sat, Madam Lin informed the purpose of her visit, "Brother, you should have heard about Lin Mo sessfully bing one of the finalists. He wishes to learn about the nature of the final round."


    Lin Bubai nodded. "It''s natural. I originally wished to gather you and the other two Lin descendants who had managed to reach the final, so I only need to exin once. But since you are here already, fine, I will inform you first.


    "To understand the final round, I might need to rte one of our town''s history. The White Cloud Sect is not originally the hegemon of this city. The sect came into prominence around one thousand years ago. The funny thing is, their status rose exponentially within a single decade, overthrowing the then ruler of the city before recing them and changing the name of the city to reflect their status. Many otherrge ns, including us of the Lin n, came to suspect that they harbored a great secret.


    "Therge ns started to band together and investigate. After a long investigation, they finally found the secret. The White Cloud Sect had discovered a secret entrance to a secluded dimension. This dimension contained many ancient secrets and treasures. The White Cloud Sect had used the treasures they acquired from this dimension to boost their development and be the supreme ruler of this city.


    "Of course, even though they had be the strongest organization in the city, they only came into power not long ago. Their influence and power were not yet solidified. If all the prominent ns band together against them, they would still lose. Hence, they struck a bargain with the ns.


    "The ns, not willing to go into full confrontation with the sect, decided to take up the bargain."


    "Why didn''t they just fight the White Cloud Sect?" Madam Lin asked. "As you said, they are still in their infancy, that should be the best time to strike."


    Her question showed that she wasn''t aware of this history. Amon surmised in that case, many should not know as well. Perhaps the White Cloud Sect and therge ns had decided to keep all this a secret so that the existence of the secret dimension was not exposed to the public.

 71 Chapter 71

    "Despite their power has not yet consolidated, the fact that they managed to overthrow the previous ruler showed that they couldn''t be underestimated," Lin Bubai answered Madam Lin''s question. "If the ns insisted on fighting against the sect, they might win, but they will also suffer major casualties. Not to mention, the ns were not exactly trusting of each other. Their cooperation wouldn''t be smooth. They might end up fighting against each other instead. The White Cloud sect understood that fact as well, that''s why they offer a bargain instead of forcefully monopolizing the secret dimension."


    "What is the bargain?" Madam Lin asked.


    "The entry to the secret dimension will be shared. There is a limit as to how many people can enter. And not only that, the entrance only opens every ten years for a limited time and only youths of fifteen years of age or below can enter."


    Hearing that, Amon could roughly guess the nature of this White Cloud Tournament.


    "Only one hundred youths can enter the dimension every ten years. The White Cloud Sect had the right for half of the entry slots, while the remaining half was given to the band of ns."


    Amon spoke up at this time. "Then why open the tournament to the public? Why didn''t they just invite the ns'' representatives topete for the fifty slots?"


    "Because after one thousand years of ruling, the White Cloud Sect has turned into something of a giant that no one can offend. At first, these fifty slots were indeed only given to the powerful ns. Over time, manyrge ns went into decline or were destroyed outright for one reason or another. The onlyrge ns remaining from that era when the bargain was struck are only the Lin and the Lei ns. The White Sect decided to continue sharing the remaining fifty spots with other new ns and eventually, they also invite independent cultivators. That''s how the White Cloud Tournament was born. Perhaps they were no longer afraid to share the dimension. With the amount they gained, they still developed far faster than we who arepeting against each other for the remaining half.


    "The White Cloud Sect could have reneged the bargain and monopolized all the one hundred slots if they want¡­ Maybe perhaps they already did¡­ Well, what I want to say is, that although they allow other ns and public talents topete for entry to this special dimension, everything that is found inside has to be handed over to them when the participants exited the dimension."


    "What? Then why do we bother to send our youths to participate? They will still take the findings, it is the same as if they take all the one hundred slots for themselves," Madam Lin uttered.


    "As I said, they have grown strong enough to impose that. Probably it does mean that they no longer share that dimension with us. But they give something in return. All the treasures our youths find inside will be marked with points. They take the treasures but we will be given points. They pick and set aside some of the treasures and allow the ns to use those points to buy the treasures. Aside from that, they alsopensate the winning ns with generous aer stones and support on some influence within the city."


    "It still sounds like we are working for them," Madam Lin said with dissatisfaction.


    "Everyone in this city is working for them, sister," Lin Bubai uttered. "Such is the privilege of a supreme ruler. They are strong enough to be tyrannical, but they chose to do it in a more obscure manner. Perhaps that''s why they have been able to stay on top for this long. It will be difficult to organize enough force to rebel against them. Not enough people are dissatisfied with their position, yet. On another note, most of the ones from the nless talent who managed to enter the dimension, are then recruited into their sect. So, they are killing two birds with one stone."


    "So, it doesn''t matter if I perform well in this final round. All my effort will be taken away by the sect," Amon said.


    "We will still be grateful if you score enough points for us. If we get enough points, we can exchange them for good treasures and we can also better negotiate when opening business venues in this city," Lin Bubai said.


    ''But there is nothing for me,'' Amon uttered in his mind.


    "Still, you need to be careful inside the secret dimension," Lin Bubai added. "This secret dimension holds many treasures, but it also holds unknown dangers. There are plenty of Spirit beasts inside. Mostly inferior, but there are also reports of superior beasts being sighted. If you meet such a beast, you need to run immediately. There are often casualties every time this secret dimension is opened."


    Amon thought about this info while Madam Lin chat with her brother. After getting this information, Amon had little interest in doing his best in the final. He was even considering forfeiting. He was just not sure how the Lin n would react if he did so. His reputation was already not so good within this n. Not that he cared, but he would prefer to avoid unnecessary trouble for now.


    During his train of thought, he suddenly thought of something. He grinned. Perhaps he could still gain benefit from going into this secret dimension.


    Amon no longer asked any questions. He had gained the answer he was seeking, so he just kept his silence as the two adults talked. After a while, Madam Lin noticed that Amon had lost interest. She then expressed her desire to leave.  Amon thanked Lin Bubai for the information before leaving with Madam Lin.


    Lin Bubai mentioned that they will send a record of thendscape and beasts that had been encountered by past Lin participants inside this dimension. These records would be given to both Amon and the other two Lin finalists. This was to help them with starting information when they entered the dimension.


    Arriving back in their housingplex, Madam Lin gave Amon some medicinal herbs to help him recover from the tournament. Amon thanked her. She gave Amon the advice to rest before leaving.


    Amon touched his stomach. The pain was still there. Wei Lhosa''s one punch was strong enough to cause an internal wound. Therefore, Amon took Madam Lin''s advice and rested. He drank some recovery potions and then brewed the medicinal herbs Madam Lin had given to drink regrly. He then spent the rest of the day and night doing nothing but letting his body rest.<sub> </sub>


    For the next ten days, he spent them as usual. Meditation and training. Now that he was back in his own house, he was free to practice his martial art. He focused on practicing his newly created art, the Silent Swift Shadow Fist. He could now execute this fist easily and with greater force than when he used it in the tournament.


    He also prepared more Poison Cloud Bullets in his free time and made several wooden bolts for his crossbow. He prepared some vial of poison that he could dip the bolts into if necessary. He regrly sharpened his Swan dagger and all his throwing knives, then put the whetstone into his storage ring for use in the field.


    There was also another recipe inside 101 primal poison tome that he deciphered. But interestingly, it was not a recipe to make poison. It was a recipe to protect against poison. It''s called Poison Repelling Pill. Consuming this pill would protect him from all sorts of poisons in the next three hours. As long as it was not a poison strong enough to affect cultivators of the martial realm, this pill would be effective.


    It''s a good thing that this pill could be made using ingredients avable on the market, but very expensive. With his aer stones, he could only buy enough to produce four pills.


    On the night before the final. He came out silently to his courtyard. After making sure no one was around. He picked a secluded corner and started digging. After digging a deep hole, he put into this hole a space ring he had prepared. Inside this space ring was several of his most valuable items. The 101 primal poison tome, ck Aetherium Stone, some of the most exotic materials he had bought in the market, and the two arcane art books which he had yet to learn.


    These goods were originally inside his ck space ring. After the incident with Lin Weida, andter with Madam Lin, the ck space ring had been proven to be inessible to others except for Amon. Amon didn''t know the reason yet, but if this was true, then he could put whatever things he had gotten inside the secret dimension into this ck ring and no one would know what he had taken since no one could ess this ring other than him.


    Of course, he did not dare to risk things for an assumption. Although even someone like Lin Weida was unable to notice the space inside this ck ring, it didn''t guarantee that people from the White Cloud Sect could not. That''s why he had removed his most valuable possessions from his ck ring and transferred them to a normal ring which he now hid under this ground. If things didn''t go as nned, the worst for him would be losing this ck space ring.


    Amon covered back the hole with dirt. He also moved some of the grass over, to ensure that no one suspected that this ground had been dug. After making sure everything looked fine, he returned to the house.


    *


    The next morning, Amon went directly to the White Cloud Estate. He didn''t bother waiting for the other Lin finalists.


    The White Cloud people checked his identification using the te which had recorded his unique energy signature. After confirming his identity, the White House staff brought him inside.


    Amon was brought to a in room with only chairs. There was one other person inside, the Lei n''s prodigy, Lei San.


    Amon wondered why this prodigy was alone here and so early. He pictured this golden boying with a parade and being thest person that arrived. To see him alone here was unexpected. But Amon didn''t think too much of it. He sat on the opposite side and started meditating.


    Lei San only nced at Amon briefly. He didn''t say anything as well. The two waited silently.


    As time passed. More finalists arrived. When the other Lei finalist, Lei Muyin, arrived. She immediately came to Lei San with a concerned expression and barraged him with questions, asking him why he had left by himself. That everybody had been worried sick, thinking something had happened to him. Until Lei San''s servant told them that he had left for White Cloud estate before the sun had even risen.


    When the other Lin finalists, Lin Fen and Lin Cang, arrived. They also barraged Amon with words. Not caring words as Lei Muyin did, though. The two scolded Amon for acting by himself. The two had waited for him like fools only to find out that he had left.


    Amon snickered at their words, "Well, with you two ranting like this, you two do indeed look like fools."


    "You¡­!" Lin Fen''s face was red with anger.


    "Let''s leave him. My father had told me about the nature of this final. We will roam dangerousnds. Let''s see how he fares by himself," Lin Cang uttered.


    "Hmph! Right! Don''t expect us to lend you a hand!" Lin Fen said. The two then went away and sat in chairs as far from Amon as possible.


    ''Heh, I would be doomed if I need help from you two greenhorns,'' Amon thought with a sneer.

 72 Chapter 72

    After all fifty finalists arrived, several White Cloud staff came in bringing several red cloths and a long rope. These staff asked the youths to not move as they blindfolded the youths using the red cloths one by one.


    Everyoneplied. Amon found this blindfolding was natural. This should be meant to keep the entry location of the secret dimension a secret.


    After everyone was blindfolded, they were asked to stand up and hold the rope. When the rope was pulled, they started walking following the direction where the rope was pulled.


    They turned numerous times. Went out to the outdoor, then indoor, then outdoor again. Climb up slopes, going down slopes. It was a very long walk. Most were wondering if they were still within the White Cloud Estate. Several of the youths startedining, but they continued to walk.


    After what felt like a whole day of walking, they finally stopped. Their blindfolds were removed. Almost all blinked as they tried to adjust their visions.


    They were in a veryrge spherical hall. There were carvings all over its spherical walls. Amon recognized those carvings as words of power. They also sometimes emitted odd glows. Those must be engravings, but this was the first time Amon had seen such arge-scale one.


    At the center of the hall was a strange stone formation. Several people were circling this stone formation. Amon saw Pai Kuan amongst them. On the other side was another batch of fifty youths. Those should be White Cloud''s top fifty youths who were still below fifteen years of age.


    Those White Cloud youths were eyeing Amon''s group with disdain. They were the young generation of the ruler sect of the city. Of course, they were superiorpared to the youths from the other ns or sects. Such were their beliefs. They never considered the youths from the other ns aspetitors. These outsiders were only here because the sect master tried to honor their ancestors'' pacts with the ns.


    Amon, of course, ignored those condescending stares. Such a childlike attitude was beneath him. He was more interested in the stone formation and the engravings. The glowing on the engravings became more frequent. Considering they were brought here, this ce should be where the entrance to the secret dimension was located.


    "Attention!" Pai Kuan called out. Everyone turned to him at once.


    "Most of you should have learned by now about this final, but let me say it again. We will soon open the gateway to a secret dimension. One hundred of you that have gathered here, will enter this secret dimension. We know not who or what created this dimension, or its purpose. We assume that it might be a pocket dimension created by a powerful cultivator that stored a portion of the ancient world.


    "Whatever it is, know that it contains many treasures inside. The gateway can only be opened every ten years and can only be entered by a hundred youths who were fifteen years of age or below. That''s where you alle in. Your task is to collect as many treasures as you can find. Gather them and bring them back here to us. You will be given points based on the treasures you find.


    "Do not try to keep the treasures for yourself. If we find you do so, you will receive punishment, the treasures confiscated, and no points will be given to you. Everyone has to submit their space ring for us to check before going in. We will record the list of goods you possessed before you enter. We will not touch those goods. After youe out, you will give us your space ring for checking again. We will take anything that is not on your list. Am I clear?"


    Everyone nodded their understanding.


    "Good! Now we will start checking your space ring. Please get into line orderly."


    They were lined up into ten groups, each consisting of ten youths. Ten inspectors checked the head of the line. Even the youths from the White Cloud sects were getting checked. Amon stood at thest of the line.


    When it was his turn, he took off the space ring on his finger and gave it to the inspector. The inspector looked inside the ring and wrote down the things inside. When he gave the ring back to Amon, he asked, "What about that ring?"


    "It was a normal ring from my grandfather," Amon answered. It was his ck space ring. He wore it on his finger this time because he intentionally wanted it to be seen.


    "Give it to me," the inspector ordered.


    Amonplied.


    The inspector received the ring and started inspecting it. He turned the ring a few times. He grunted before giving it back to Amon.


    "Why bring rubbish here?" He said.


    "It is a memento from my grandfather. I carry it with me to always remember him by," Amon said as he extended his arm to take back the ring.


    "Wait!" A voice suddenly called out.<sub> </sub>


    It was Pai Kuan. He hade to Amon''s side. He nced at Amon briefly before saying to the inspector. "Let me see that ring."


    "It is just amon ring, master," the inspector said, but he still handed the ring to Pai Kuan.


    Pai Kuan held the ring in his hand. He turned it around as the inspector had done. He then frowned.


    "This is not a usual ring," he uttered and gave Amon a hard stare.


    "What do you mean, sir? I don''t understand," Amon feinted a confused expression. He forced his heart rate to beat steadily. Powerful cultivators had strong enough senses to detect another''s heart rates.


    "I injected arge amount of aether into it. If this is a normal ring, it would have crumbled into dust," Pai Kuan said.


    "I''m sorry, sir. This ring is given to me by my grandfather. I always thought it is just a simple ring. Perhaps it is made from a very strong material?" Amon said.


    "Hm¡­" Pai Kuan rolled the ck ring in his fingers. "Although I can''t break it, I don''t see anything special nor does it react to my aether."


    He gave the ring back to Amon.


    "Thank you, sir," Amon said politely. He wore the ck ring back onto his finger, right next to the normal space ring.


    Everyone else had finished with their inspections. Pai Kuan then announced, "All right. Everyone, listen! Although this secret dimension is filled with treasures, dangers also abound. You are on your own inside. No one wille to your rescue. There have been cases where participants who went in didn''te back again. Proceed with caution! Fighting between each other is prohibited. If we find out you do so, you will be punished. Your main objective is to collect treasures, focus on that!


    "Another thing to note. When you enter the dimension, you will be thrown to a random ce. The size of this secret dimension is unknown. Even until now, we have not yet scoured its entire space. So whatever you''ve learned from your n people, they might be useful or they might not. You might end up at a ce where none of the others before you have ventured before.


    "Anyway, you will have three months inside this secret dimension. After three months pass, you will be forcefully thrown back out here, providing that you are still alive by then."


    Someone lifted a hand and asked, "What if we are not?"


    "Then your body will stay inside that dimension forever. Only the living ones are repelled by that dimension after three months," Pai Kuan answered.


    After giving his exnation, Pai Kuan asked the youths to stand back as they got to work.


    Half of the White Cloud adults started to channel their aether into the engravings on the wall. The glows became even more frantic now. The other half which include Pai Kuan was standing encircling the stone formation. They performed what Amon perceived as ritualistic motion.


    All Amon saw was just senseless movements at first, but then he saw words of power appear in the air surrounding the stone formation. These floating words of power became even more tangible when the entire engravings on the walls glowed brightly.


    A bright pir of light suddenly came down from the top of the ceiling pouring directly on top of the stone formation. The stone formation broke into several floating stones. Each of the words of power conjured by Pai Kuan and the rest entered these stones.


    These stones then revolved around the pir of light. Their speed increased by the seconds until they abruptly stopped and formed what looked to be the outline of a gate. Bright light filled the center of this gate, no one could see what was behind it.


    "All right, you can start to enter now," Pai Kuan dered.


    Everyone looked uncertain. Even the youths from the White Cloud sect. None of them had ever done this, after all. This was an experience of a lifetime. You only got to do it once. Once your age increased, you were no longer eligible.


    One youth came out without hesitation and walked towards the gate of light. He was Lei San. He stopped in front of the gate and turned to Pai Kuan who stood beside the gate. Pai Kuan gave him a nod. Lei San then stepped into the light. His body was swallowed by the intense light and vanished.

 73 Chapter 73

    Amon let the others enter first. It was not like entering first would give one an advantage. It was simply a few minutes of a head start. Not to mention, they would enter random locations. There was a chance that they won''t even meet each other for the whole three months inside, so it didn''t matter who enter first.


    Some youths, after seeing Lei San entering the gateway, werepeting to be the second one to enter. Especially those from the White Cloud youths. They felt humiliated for letting Lei San take the initiative.


    Amon scoffed at these children. It was their indecision that caused Lei San to offer himself for entering first. Yet, they got angry at him for their own faults.


    Pai Kuan had to scold them to get them back in line. Everyone then entered under his stern gaze.


    Amon waited until everyone entered before he himself walked to the secret dimension''s gateway.


    "Good luck," Pai Kuan said when Amon came before the gateway.


    Amon simply nodded for a reply. He then stepped into the light.


    When he entered. He felt his body suddenly be weightless and got sucked by a very strong force. He felt himself be one with the light. When he looked down, he couldn''t even see his body anymore. Perhaps he indeed became one with the light.


    Suddenly, the light part. He found himself falling from very high up. He passed by many clouds as he fell. He could see thend below. It was very big. From what he saw up here, he felt like he was seeing half of an entire.


    ''The secret dimension is this big?'' Amon thought in astonishment. This was practically another world. No wonder White Cloud people said they had not yet scoured all the ces within this dimension even after so long.


    ''But¡­ Isn''t falling from such a height dangerous?'' Amon thought. Even if his current cultivation made his body much stronger than the one in his previous world, falling from such a height would still guarantee instant death.


    The speed at which he was falling escted. He could feel the wind pressing against him.


    Amon didn''t think that the gateway would send them here to die. Unless, of course, there was a mistake. Perhaps there was a glitch when he entered. Instead of sending him to a location on thend, the gateway teleported him high into the sky instead.


    There was no time to think if this was bad luck or not. The ground was enclosing fast. Amon activated Hardened Bronze Body. He didn''t think this art would do any good with his current momentum, but he had to do something. He positioned his body with his legs below to absorb the impact while he covered his head with his arms.


    Just before he hit the ground, he again felt his body be weightless and getting zoomed somewhere else, very fast. His vision became ck this time.


    Amon was not sure if he had lost consciousness. When he regained control of his body and could see again, he found himself on the ground. His mind was still hazy, it was as if he had just woken up from a very deep sleep. He closed his eyes again and forced his consciousness to clear. When he reopened his eyes, his mind was sharp again.


    ''This looks familiar,'' he thought.


    He looked around another time.


    He was certain now. This was the throne room where he had died in his previous life.


    ''What is this? Did I get transported back to the previous world?'' He looked down at his body. It was still the young demon body of his second life. He tried to regte the aether in his body, he could feel the energy circting. He punched out. The energy from his Bone Shattering Shadow Fist shot out and caused a dent in the wall.


    ''Thews are still following the ones from the new world,'' Amon thought.


    Was this simply a simr throne room then? Amon looked around one more time before heading to therge double doors. He opened the doors and walked out. He was outside.


    He knew then he was not back into his old world. The throne room he was in was not connected directly to the outside. There were some hallways before the exterior. Now, he was already standing at the exterior of the castle after exiting the throne room. The exterior did look the same as the one in his previous world, though. He saw the army camps that his soldiers had built around this ancient castle.


    Yet, there was no one at all.


    The sky above was nighttime with a full moon. He came down the stairs and walked amongst the camps. There were weapons and supplies scattered about. He picked up one of the rifles that were lying on the ground. He opened the magazine which showed that it had full ammunition. He reattached the magazine back, took an aim, and pressed the trigger.


    Nothing happened.


    He gave the rifle another look before throwing it away. He started walking again. There were also a tank and two anti-aircraft guns further out from the camps. Their positions were as hest saw them.


    Amon continued walking, following the road. It brought him to a small woods, which was not as he remembered. There were no woods outside that ancient castle where he took a temporary residence. Nevertheless, he proceeded into the woods. There was nothing but ghosts back there.


    As he walked amongst the woods, he heard a voice. A woman''s voice. He headed towards it.


    He came into a clearing with a small pond filled with clear water. The full moon was reflected on its surface. Besides this pond, a woman sat on a small rock with his back to Amon. She was wearing a loose dress that showed her bare back.


    The voice Amon heard was her singing. Her singing was very melodious and Amon felt like it brought great peace to his soul. Which was disturbing, because peace was what Amon detested the most.


    Amon did not feel any danger from this woman. Yet he chose not toe over to her, because he sensed absolutely nothing from her. The whole situation was bizarre. He chose to be prudent and watched the woman from afar.<sub> </sub>


    Her singing finally stopped. She then turned around and looked directly at Amon. Her face was the most beautiful Amon had ever seen. It was perfect. Which immediately sent an alert sign within Amon, because he knew for a fact that nothing was perfect.


    The woman smiled at him. The smile on her sensual lips could melt any man, as with her enchanting eyes. She stood up. Her body was even more perfect. Her loose dress was half transparent, showing the alluring curves of her body. Her two firm and round breasts bounced erotically as she started walking towards Amon.


    Amon stayed his ground, but he was ready with all his senses on alert. Lesser men might have their minds clouded by such a seductive sight, but not him.


    When the woman was around five meters away from him, Swan dagger came out in his right hand while his left gripped a throwing knife.


    "Come any closer and I will attack," Amon uttered.


    The woman stopped. A surprised glint was in her eyes. She kept on smiling, though. "You are different from the others," the woman said.


    "Others? Someone came here as well?" Amon asked. Perhaps those that had stepped through the portal before him?


    "Yes. They came, every once in a while. I kept them happy here, so they stayed. I can make you happy as well."


    "How do you n to do that?"


    "I can give you great pleasure," she said while taking a step forward.


    Amon lifted his hand that was holding the swan dagger. "I''m warning you."


    The woman took a step back. "What gives you pleasure?" She asked.


    "Great battle and bing stronger," Amon replied.


    "That''s¡­ umon."


    "Let me out of here. We will go our separate ways."


    "What makes you think you are being held here?"


    "This ce is unreal. I think it is some kind of a pocket dimension. Since you live here, you should know of the way out."


    "Why? There is nothing but suffering out there. Stay here with me. You can enjoy being happy here your entire life."


    "Not interested," Amon said.


    The woman seemed lost due to Amon''s rejection. She continued staring at Amon. When she saw Amon''s determined look, she knew she couldn''t sway him.


    "All right,e with me. I will show you the way out," the woman said. She then turned around and walked into the woods.


    Amon followed behind her, keeping a safe distance while having his weapons ready.


    Her body moved gracefully as she walked. The half-transparent dress she wore didn''t hide her naked body inside. Her moving ass seemed to invite Amon to pounce at her. While walking, she turned back a few times and giggled. As if asking why he hadn''te at her and forced her down yet.


    After a long walk, they came to a small wooden hut. The woman entered the hut and invited Amon in. Amon stayed before the door and looked in.


    "Juste in. Don''t worry, I won''t bite," the woman said as she walked to a bed opposite the entrance.


    She removed her dress and fully revealed her naked body. Shey down on the bed in a sexually provocative position and said, "why don''t youe here and let me make you veryfortable?"


    Amon frowned. "So, you didn''t want to show me the way out? Fine, I will make you tell me," Amon said.


    He threw his flying knife. The knife flew straight at the woman''s shoulder. Amon wanted to hurt the woman without killing him to force her to tell him about this dimension''s exit.


    But when his knife struck the woman, she turned into a puff of smoke and disappeared.


    ''What¡­?''


    Curious, Amon walked into the hut to check the bed the woman was on just now. But when he stepped inside, the whole hut transformed.

 74 Chapter 74

    The interior of the room literally transformed. They reshaped themselves from wood walls into stone walls. The furniture changed as well. The wooden bed disappeared and was exchanged for a modern-looking bed. Even the size of the room changed, it became bigger.


    ''I recognize this room,'' Amon thought after the room stopped changing. It was the room of one of his safe houses. He had many such houses which he used when he performed missions.


    "You are different from the other teenagers who came here," Amon heard the woman''s voice from his back. Amon immediately whirled back. There the woman was, standing naked just behind him. "The other teenagers were unrestrained of their impulsive lust. Why are you different?"


    Amon was baffled. He had never had someonee so close to his back unnoticed.


    "What do you want?" Amon asked. Despite feeling no danger from this mysterious woman, to be able to alter the environment was an rming feat. Amon didn''t think antagonizing a being with such unknown ability was wise.


    "I already tell you, I only want you to be happy."


    "Then let me out of this dimension. I will be happy about that."


    The woman again showcased her seductive smile. "You are still too young. You don''t know what is good for you. There is nothing for you out there. Stay here and let me take care of you. You will be happy."


    There was no use talking to this woman, Amon thought. Amon decided to try finding the exit himself. He ran to the door and opened it, only to find the outside was a lush garden with a pool. Multiple stairs branched out from this garden and went up to the sky. Amon looked at the stairs. They seemed to go up all the way to the white cloud above. Above the cloud, there were a few floatingnds with structures on them, they looked to be upside down. One of the stairs going up ended at one of these floatingnds.


    Sshing sounds were heard, Amon looked down and saw the mysterious woman swimming in the pool. Not woman, women. There were three of them, all looked the same, all naked.


    "Why don''t youe and join us?" The three asked at the same time.


    Amon frowned. ''This is not a pocket dimension,'' he said in his mind.


    He sat down on the floor. The women kept on calling him, seducing him to join them. Amon ignored all the noises. The women''s voices came nearer. Their voices were now as if speaking from right beside him. He ignored them all.


    Little by little, the voices receded, until everything became dead silent. He even lost feeling in his body. It was as if he was floating in an empty space. He couldn''t tell if he was still sitting or if he was standing.


    Soon, the noises returned. Even louder this time. It was as if a hundred of those women were teasing him at the same time. Yet, he didn''t let his mind drift. He focused all his senses, trying to iste the real ones. He felt a tiny prick on his left arm. He immediately shifted all his attention to that part, blocking all other sensations. He felt the pain from the prick. He let that pain take hold. It slowly coursed throughout his arm, then his entire body. He could feel the numbness. He then slowly felt the wetness of the t surface on his face. He knew then that he was lying face-down on a damp floor.


    He smelled a strange odor. He felt the humid air. He forced his consciousness to consolidate. He slowly regained control over each part of his body. He felt his fingers move. He slowly opened his eyes.


    As he had thought. He was lying down on the ground. All that he had experienced just now was an illusion. He knew, however, he was not out of the woods yet. Whatever caused this illusion was certain to be nearby.


    He tried to force more parts of his body to move. Everything felt numb. He took a deep breath. He then focused inward to articte the aether in his body. Energy circted through his body. Whatever power was holding him down, the aether slowly returned the control of his body back to him.


    When he could move again. He tried getting up. There were thin membranes all around his body. It was sticky yet crispy. It broke to pieces when he rose. He looked at his left side. There was a small spider-like critter. It had been the one that bit his left arm. That bite was what had given him the sensation that allowed him to escape the illusion.


    He expressed his gratitude by mming a palm down at the critter, turning it into a paste.


    He looked at his arm. There was a tiny hole where the critter had stung him. He felt slightly numb around the area. He wondered if that critter carried poison in its bite.


    Amon then looked around. He was in arge cave hall. Surprisingly, he was not alone. There were others. Others who seemed to have been here for a long time. The sticky membrane around his body was around these others too. But on them, these membranes had hardened to what appeared like tree roots. These roots-like membranes were holding the others in ce. They seemed to still be alive, their eyes opened. Yet, it was hollow, no consciousness could be gleaned from those eyes.


    These captives were different in age, but they were all older than Amon. Some even looked like old men already. When he looked further, some seemed to have died for some time and even a few had only skeletons left.<sub> </sub>


    He roughly could predict after seeing the scene.


    He then sensed something from behind. He swirled in that direction. Something wasing from one of the holes around this cave.


    "Why don''t you want to stay? Why don''t you allow me to make you happy?" Amon heard the voice of the woman again. However, it was no longer the sexy and alluring voice. The voice now sounded like a strange inhuman voice that only resembled a woman''s voice.


    He heard stepping sounds and saw a shadow from the hole. Not long after, the owner of the voice came forward. She stepped into the cave''s dim light with all her six legs. The bloated stomach carried a head that resembled a woman''s head with long hair. At the bottom of that stomach, there was arge tentacle. Due to its position, it looked very much as if that was the creature''s penis.


    Amon never read about this creature in any books about spirit beasts. All the reports from the Lin n''s past ventures into this dimension also never described such a beast. Probably because none had evere back after encountering this creature. But one thing was sure, this creature should be at least a lower superior beast. No inferior beast had the ability fornguage.


    The bound people around this cave should be the previouspetition''s finalists. Pai Kuan did mention some who entered this dimension but didn''te back out. These people should be some of them. Maybe these membranes kept them here despite being alive after their three-months time was up. Amon had no intention to join this vegetative troupe.


    The spiderlike woman beast didn''te nearer. It instead stayed near the hole it came out from.


    "Why don''t you bow to me¡­!?" Her voice suddenly reverberated with a very high pitch. Amon felt as if the voice was piercing into his head. He experienced a serious headache.


    "Sleep now¡­ Let me take care of you¡­ You do not need to worry anymore¡­" The beast''s voice turned soothing. Amon felt a strong desire to rest, but he forced his mind to focus.


    "Get out of my head, you disgusting thing!!" Amon shouted. He bit his lips to have the pain force him to stay conscious.


    The spider beast reeled backward one step as if someone had punched it. "Why don''t you sumb? How can your mind be so strong? Aren''t you a teenager?" It uttered.


    "I see¡­ You put people to sleep and then what? Feed on them?" Amon said. The pain in his head had greatly subsided. "No, these people are still alive and physically well. So, I guess you feed on their mind? Are you keeping their bodies alive and feeding on their thoughts? Is that what you are doing?"


    "Never mind that. Since you are not willing to live happily, then I will let you die miserably," the spider beast said menacingly and took one step forward.


    A throwing knife appeared in Amon''s hand and he threw it forward. The knife flew straight at the beast''s head, but the spider beast turned out to be not slow. It jumped before the knife arrived. It jumped very far and very high, it ended up sticking onto the wall. Its legs had ws that allowed it to cling to any surface.


    Amon threw another knife. The beast jumped again and stuck onto the ceiling this time.


    Amon equipped his bow. He had limited throwing knives, he couldn''t afford to continue wasting them like this.


    Amon used his aether to mark the beast using his bow arts. He then took a shot. The beast jumped away again, Amon''s bolt turned a sharp curve following the beast''s path. But just as the bolt was about to hit, the beast''s speed suddenly increased. The bolt lost its target.


    ''It is too fast,'' Amon thought.


    The beast no longer stayed passive, the tentacle at the bottom of its stomach shot some sort of liquid. Amon noticed the tentacle suddenly became erect and knew that something would shoot out. He had already jumped away when the liquid came.


    The liquid hit the ground and it solidified into what looked like wooden roots. If he got caught by this liquid, he won''t be able to move. Amon kept on moving to make him a harder target while he continued shooting his bolts. Neither Amon nor the beast managed to hit their targets.


    ''This can''t go on. I don''t have unlimited ammo, while the beast probably can shoot that liquid for a long time,'' Amon thought. He needed another way to fight this beast!

 75 Chapter 75

    As the two continued shooting at one another from range, Amon thought of something. He aimed his bow in a different direction and fired.


    His bolt struck the head of one of the trapped humans. That human slumped lifelessly.


    "No! What are you doing!?" The spider beast yelled.


    It was as Amon had guessed. This beast needed these humans alive. Amon took another shot. Another bolt killed a second man.


    "Stop it!" The beast roared. It shot its liquid frantically, but Amon was alert enough to dodge. Amon shot the third bolt.


    This time, the beast came down and put itself in harm''s way. It used one of its legs to p the bolts away.


    Amon threw his knife at this time. The spider beast didn''t dodge. If it dodged, its prisoner behind would be hit by Amon''s knife. It lifted its leg to swat the knife away. But as the knife was knocked away, a second knife followed.


    This second knife had been flying in the shadow of the first. And this second knife was not the normal knife, it was the poisoned one. This poison knife stabbed deep into the spider beast''s stomach. The ck ughter Poison immediately seeped inside.


    The creature reeled from the poison.


    "You¡­! What did you put in this knife?!" The spider beast uttered.


    Amon replied by throwing another knife. This spider beast didn''t die instantly after suffering the poison, meaning it was indeed a superior rank beast or it simply had high resistance against poison. There was no trick to this third knife, yet the spider beast was too weak to evade. The third knife stabbed right into the woman''s face of the beast.


    It trashed around with a high-pitched scream. Scurrying frenziedly around the hall. Amon didn''t take any chance. He stepped away as he continued shooting using his bow. Wooden bolts riddled the beast''s body before long. Its movement was getting slower until finally, it dropped to the ground.


    Amon waited. When the creature didn''t move for a long time, he made sure again by firing another bolt to the back of the creature''s head.


    No reaction.


    Only then did he approach.


    He retrieved his poison knife. Those knives were his ultimate trump cards. Losing one would be a huge loss. He cleaned the knives off the creature''s blood, which was a disgusting and smelly dark liquid.


    After that, he retrieved the normal knives and bolts. Some of the wooden bolts were broken, he only took the one he could still use. He could easily make more of these boltster.


    After finished collecting his ammunition, Amon came back to the beast''s corpse.


    Amon felt lucky this superior spirit beast was not a strong type. Normally one needed to be at least at the Transformation stage to be able to contend against even a lower superior beast. Probably this beast''s forte was its mind attack and mind control. Since Amon managed to break free from the hallucination it created, he pretty much took out its edge.


    Amon took out his Swan Dagger and started dissecting the spirit beast. Any spirit beast provided valuable parts. These were the parts that the alchemists, smiths, engravers, and pill masters of this world could use


    Amon used his aether to sense these valuable parts. This was an unknown spirit beast to him, so he didn''t know which parts were valuable. After a beast died, some of the aether they carried while alive remained mostly in the most valuable parts of their bodies. This was how Amon tried to identify its valuable parts.


    There was a sac behind the tentacle that shot the hardened liquid. Amon felt dense aether from this sac, so he cut it out and store it in his space ring. The ws at the end of the beast''s six legs also felt valuable, so Amon took them as well.<sub> </sub>


    When he cut underneath the beast''s woman''s head, he saw something that looked like a small and deformed brain. He felt as if he had seen such a thing before. He searched his memory. After a while, he remembered. This was one of the ingredients recorded inside the 101 Primal Poison Tome.


    This brain thingy was called Phantom Inducer Pouch. The liquid inside could be extracted to create one type of poison recorded in the tome, a more powerful onepared to ck ughter Poison. The poison was called Thousand Dream Poison. It didn''t cause instant death like ck ughter Poison, but it induced strong hallucination. Even the Spirit stage cultivator would suffer its effect in an instant once contracted.


    This was an unexpected find. But with this, Amon could confirm one thing. This dimension held some ancient ingredients that were no longer avable in the outer world, such as the ingredients described inside his poison tome. He would need to search for more in the short three months he had in here.


    He wondered how long had it been since he entered this dimension? The time when he was under the spider beast''s hallucination could have been days for all he knew.


    After finished harvesting the spider beast, Amon looked at the imprisoned cultivators around this cave. They didn''t have any response, which meant they were still under hallucinations, or their minds had simply died already, leaving an empty husk of a living body.


    Amon went to one of them. He pped the person to make sure. Still no response.


    He then checked their fingers. There was a space ring. As he suspected, the spider beast had no interest in these cultivators'' possessions. All it was interested in was simply feeding on their minds.


    Amon took the space ring off. He expected the ring to still be under ownership, hence he would need to exert some effort to break into the space within, but his mind just went in effortlessly. Probably the owner''s mind was too weak already to maintain a link with this ring, hence the link simply expired on its own. Whatever the reason, Amon was d he didn''t need to waste much time.


    Unfortunately, there was nothing valuable inside. It was just a few weapons and some recovery pills. There were not even aer stones inside. Amon figured this person should be just like him, getting caught by the spider beast just as he entered this dimension.


    Amon went to the next one. There was a space ring as well, but no valuable items.


    He continued. The results were the same. He was about to give up and leave when he finally found a space ring that had something interesting inside. From the look of it, the owner of this person was unlike the others. He must have traveled around this dimension collecting things before he was captured by the spider beast here.


    Inside the ring were numerous rare herbs. Not exactly extinct ingredients unavable to the outside world, but rare. These herbs would fetch a very high price out there. It could be used to concoct high-tier recovery pills or boost the effectiveness of cultivation pills. Even if one consumed it in its raw state, it would still help in increasing one''s cultivation. And the number of herbs inside was rather abundant.


    Amon transferred the content of the ring into his own. He didn''t take the person''s ring. Sometimes a space ring was marked. If this person was someone important, someone might recognize the ring and thus ask him questions. He didn''t want that kind of attention.


    He checked every person''s ring inside this cave. Most were empty or contained trivial things, but a few contained valuables. Herbs, rare materials, engraved weapons, aer stones, a few martial art books, some pills, and a couple of unknown trinkets.


    There were even seven Regrowth Pills. He had read about these pills. They were rare even for the nobles. These pills could help a cultivator regrow missing limbs so long as the cultivator was still alive. And from the color and smell of these pills, these were high-tiered ones. He didn''t believe someone brought these precious pills here. These were treasures found in this dimension.


    Amon took all those valuables. He nned to sort them outter and spare a portion to give to the White Cloud Sect. He couldn''t return empty-handed, they would get suspicious.


    After finishing his looting. He looked around the cave. There were several holes. He walked around each of these holes. He felt small drafts from a few of them. After feeling the wind for a while, he entered the hole that had the strongest air current.


    Amon didn''t even nce back at the people that were still trapped in theiratose states. Without the spider beast supplying their bodies with sustenance, they wouldn''t have long to live. Their minds should still be lost in whatever dreamlike world the spider-beast had fabricated for them. Let them die while still living in that dream world. However, Amon didn''t do this out of the kindness of his heart. He simply thought they were not worth his time.


    Amon advanced through the cave slowly with his Swan Dagger at the ready. This was uncharted territory, there was no telling if any other dangerous creatures lurked here.


    He thought it was unlikely. If there was, that creature would havee due to themotion caused by his fight against the spider-beast. But one could never be careful enough.

 76 Chapter 76

    Amon focused all his senses as he traveled through the cave tunnel. His ears paid attention to any suspicious noise. The cave was dark but his eyes could still see well enough. He brought the Bright re Stone with him, but he didn''t use it. If there was indeed a dangerous creature still within these cave tunnels, it might attract their attention.


    After a while, Amon felt the draft getting stronger. He must be close to the exit.


    He finally saw some light in the distance. He didn''t run over though, he continued pacing with careful steps. All the while, pay attention to his surroundings.


    When he arrived at the exit, he didn''t go out immediately. He ttened himself at the edge of the exit and peeked out.


    Outside was arge expanse of green field. He saw woods in the distance, also a stream in the other direction. He paid attention to moving things. There was none. No animals. No spirit beasts. Not even a critter.


    After observing for a while, he finally came out into the open.


    He looked back and saw the cave he came out from was inside a small rocky hill. The sky was bright. It was mid-day, yet he saw no sun, just white clouds on a blue sky. He wondered where was the light source of this dimension.


    He didn''t dwell too much on the thought. He had limited time here. He needed to find as many treasures as possible before his time was up. He was not even sure how much time he had left.


    He climbed onto the top of the hill behind him. Trying to get to a higher elevation to have a better look.


    The areas around him were the same green field. Aside from the woods and stream, in the distance behind the hill was a series of mountains. He thought about where he should go.


    He closed his eyes. When he fell from the sky after entering this secret dimension. He saw a half of the entirend within this dimension. He didn''t know if that fall was real or part of the illusion caused by the spider-beast. Perhaps when he entered the portal, he was transferred directly to the spider beast''sir. Maybe he was unconscious from the transfer between worlds when the spider-beast put him under its influence.


    Anyway, only one way to find out if the fall was real. He winded back on his memory. He watched the view of thend again. He remembered seeing somendmarks during his fall. Landmarks that seemed to be unnatural,ndmarks that looked like man-made structures. The highest possibility of finding treasures was within such structures.


    He first looked for a view that showed thendscape he was on. A rocky hill in the middle of a green field, surrounded by woods, a river, and mountains. After observing his memory for a while, he thought that a small part of thendscape he saw from the sky was simr. He then traced that ce to the closest unnatural structure.


    After a while, he opened his eyes. He looked towards the direction where the woods and the mountains met. That was where he should be heading. If the fall was real, then he should find the man-made structure there.


    He started running.


    *


    He ran for days. The structure in his mind was situated rather far away. Even with him running at full speed, he estimated that it would take him a few more days to reach the ce.


    His journey was not without findings. Several times he passed through areas with rare spirit herbs growing. He took his time to harvest these herbs. There were even some herbs needed as supplementary ingredients for concocting the poisons in his 101 Primal Poison Tome. He made sure to grab those as well.


    Dangers also existed in his journey. Luckily, there were very few spirit beasts roaming. Amon spotted them from afar. Somerge, some small. All of which were alien to him. He didn''t find any depiction of these beasts in the books he had read. These beasts must be ones that didn''t exist in the outside world.


    He didn''t n to approach these unknown beasts. Some of them might be too strong for him to handle. He took the prudent approach and traveled around them.


    After roughly one week since he escaped from the spider-beastir, the structure he was heading to was finally in sight.


    "So, the fall was real," Amon said as he watched the structure from on top of a tree.


    The structure looked simr to the Aztec pyramid from his past world. There were four wide stairs on its four sides leading to the entrance at its top.<sub> </sub>


    Amon didn''t head directly to the pyramid. He first circled it. At first from afar. He tried to glimpse if anyone or anything was upying thend around the pyramid. He then came closer and circled it another time, trying to see if there was any sign of somethinging in or out of the pyramid.


    When Amon was sure that the surrounding was truly deserted, he then approached, slowly. All the while continued to stay alert. His swan dagger was ready in his hand.


    The materials that formed this pyramid looked like limestone, but its surface was too smooth. There was no visible scratch mark. He touched the stone. It was very cold. He also sensed that the stone had an unusually high content of aether. Even without engraving, this building could probably withstand strong impacts. It''s no wonder there was no sign of deterioration to the pyramid despite it being ancient. White Cloud Sects said that this dimension had existed from far before their time, and yet this pyramid still looked as good as new.


    He climbed the pyramid via one of the four stairs towards the top. He had seen four door-less openings on four sides at its top. When he almost reached the top, he sneaked to the side of one of these openings. He then listened intently, trying to hear whether anything was moving on the other side of the wall he leaned on.


    After not detecting any sound for a while, he peeked through the opening.


    Inside was an empty hall. Seeing nothing suspicious, he walked in. Other than the four holes on the walls, there was truly nothing inside. There was no door or anything on the floor that indicate a way to the pyramid below, just iprehensible drawings.


    ''Is this ce a simple monument? Is there nothing valuable here?'' Amon thought.


    He didn''t want his one-week travel here to be a waste of effort, but such was the uncertainty of searching unexplorednd. You could waste your whole time only to find nothing.


    Amon didn''t let himself be discouraged. He closed his eyes and checked his memory again. See if there were any other man-made structures nearby.


    There was none. The nearest one would probably take him around half a year to reach. He opened his eyes. He probably should just try searching the areas around here. See if there were any more valuable herbs he could find in the wilderness.


    But first, he wanted to try one thing. He gathered his aether on his fist, before unleashing his full-power Bone Shattering Shadow Fist on the floor. The impact created a shockwave and a loud sound. But otherwise, the floor remained intact. There was not even a scratch. The material used to build this pyramid was indeed special. It''s hard to believe this ce was just a monument.


    Never mind, there was no usementing, Amon thought. He stood up and was about to head out when his attention was drawn to the ceiling. Unlike the floor and walls which were full of carvings of enigmatic drawings. The ceiling was filled with words.


    And the words took Amon aback. He understood the writings on the ceiling. The reason why he understood the writings, was because it was written using thenguage of his past world.


    During his time learning in this new world, Amon had never seen any record of connection with his past world. He had thought himself to be the only anomaly that linked this new world with his past world. But now, he had found another link.


    The words were written in a clockwise pattern. Amon turned himself as he read.


    "If you wish to enter the great bowel of the temple, offer your soul willingly. ce your hands on the serpents'' mouths. The worthy will enter, the weak will perish."


    Such a cryptic message. He was not truly fond of solving riddles.


    He read the writings one more time.


    "Serpents¡­" He looked down. The drawings underneath were rather abstract, but there were what looked like the drawings of two serpents'' heads next to each other with their mouths opened. These serpents were surrounded by the drawing of a series of mazes. If he crouched down, the positions of these serpents'' mouths should be just right to ce his two hands.


    He didn''t do it though. There was a worrying message at the end of the sentence. The weak will perish. How did he know whether he was strong or weak? What is the worthiness ording to this pyramid''s standard?


    After thinking for a while, he decided to not take the risk. Although he was curious, it didn''t worth risking his life. He had learned a long time ago to curb his curiosity when needed. The saying, curiosity killed the cat, was not without reasons. He walked out of the room and decided to search for valuables somewhere else less fishy.

 77 Chapter 77

    Since there was no particr objective to head to, Amon simply roamed around randomly in search of more spiritual nts to harvest. When his journey brought him to nearby woods, he saw several tall trees that bore big bright red fruits. The fruits were unlike anything he had seen nor read in books. Curious, he carefully approached one of these trees.


    When he found nothing suspicious, he climbed onto where the fruits were. He carefully touched one of the fruits before plucking it. When the fruit was in his hand, he sensed an unusual amount of aether within the fruits.


    "This¡­" He gave the fruit a smell, before tasting it with the tip of his tongue.


    Amon was hesitant for a bit, but he finally took a bite. When the pieces entered his belly, he felt as if his inside was burnt. He quickly sat on one of therge branches of the tree and concentrated on the rampaging energy inside his stomach.


    He activated his Drown Heart Pulsating Art and methodically guided the energy into his energy core.


    The energy was so dense that he couldn''t absorb it all, the excess energy was expelled from the pores of his body. This excess energy burned the water vapor in the air around him, creating white smoke.


    When he managed to get everything under control, he looked at the fruit in his hand.


    He had read about this type of fruit, or at least one simr to this. This fruit was called spirit fruit. Simr to the spirit herbs he had been harvesting, they could be consumed directly to improve one''s cultivation. But while spirit herbs were more potent if being made into a cultivation pill, a spirit fruit was best if consumed directly.


    He had read that some noble families in the imperial n grew such trees, but they were very rare. The fruits borne from these trees were fully reserved for their most talented youngsters. These fruits greatly increased the cultivation speed of those lucky youngsters. Commoners or lower nobles could forget aboutying their hands on such things. While here, it grew in the wild, there were even so many that he doubted he could consume them all.


    He estimated that the energy he had just absorbed was even better than when he cultivated using the ck aetherium stone.


    Without hesitation, he took another bite.


    Every time he took a bite, he needed a while to absorb the energy, thus it took a long time for him to finish one fruit. After he was done, he picked a second one.


    He spent the whole day just consuming the fruits and absorbing their energy. However, he discovered one unfortunate thing. As he consumed more and more fruits, he sensed the energy he could absorb be less and less. Most of it ended up getting expelled from his body and was wasted.


    He did read that continuous consumption would reduce the effect of a spirit fruit. Because of that, he stopped and instead went on to pick as many of these fruits as possible and stored them inside his space ring.


    When the night arrived, he rested. In the morning, he tried eating another fruit again. The efficiency increased from thest time he ate the fruit, although not as potent as the first time. He was relieved. So, as long as he didn''t consume them too frequently, these fruits could continue to increase his cultivation.


    With that thought, he diligently picked as many of the spirit fruits as possible.


    Too bad he couldn''t just store the entire tree inside his space ring. It was not possible to store living things inside a space ring.


    Since these fruits were very useful to him, he stored them inside his ck space ring with other stuff which he intended to hide from the White Cloud people.


    After he had plucked all the fruits in the outer rim, Amon proceeded deeper into the woods. Not every tree bore those red fruits. So he continued further to collect as many as possible. He found that the deeper he went in, the more the trees that bore the spirit fruits were.


    *<sub> </sub>


    On the fourth day when he was harvesting the fruits inside the woods, he smelled a weird scent before suddenly sensing danger. At that moment, he was crouching on top of a thick tree branch. He turned in direction of the danger but saw nothing.


    He frowned, was it just his imagination? But then he saw a slight distortion and heard a hissing sound.


    He immediately jumped away just as arge python materialized out of thin air. The tree was very high, but Amon''s current constitution allowed him tond safely from such height.


    The phyton turned invisible again as it also jumped down from the branch. Amon immediately moved away from the area where it was falling to. He heard the sound of heavy things dropping to the ground and saw the grasses getting squished. Without wasting time, he immediately threw two throwing knives.


    The knives hit something in the air and bounced. The sound of their impacts was as if they had hit metallic things.


    Amon saw the grasses on the ground part ways, in his direction. He immediately backstepped. He gave his surrounding a fast nce before running to a nearbyrge tree. He continued watching the ground as he saw the grasses and the dirt move from the friction.


    Amon stood with his back to the tree. When the indication on the ground showed that the python was at an attack range, Amon readied himself. He felt the sudden danger and jumped to the side, just as the python materialized again as it sprang forward. It slipped beside the tree and rolled around it.


    It turned invisible again as it rolled around the tree. Amon then saw the tree trunk crack, before it exploded inward. The invisible snake gripped the trunk so tight that it was brokenpletely. The broken tree then fell to the ground. If it was a human body getting caught by the grip, it would have been ground to a paste in an instant.


    Amon ran to another tree again. After the two attacks, Amon could determine two things. First, the python turned visible for a short moment when it was making its attack. Second, it didn''t have fangs. Amon had paid attention to it in the short seconds it was visible. This python seemed to kill by constricting. So, it was not a poisonous beast.


    Amon again paid attention to the ground beneath, his poison knife was in his right hand while the swan dagger was in his left. The invisible python was slithering over in his direction again. As it reached the position to attack, Amon moved, but did not make arge jump to dodge like previous. Instead, he slipped to the back of the tree from its right side.


    The python again came into view, directly in front of him this time. Its mouth wide open, Amon saw the void behind the python''s throat, ready to devour him.


    After the first sudden attack, Amon had let it attack the second time to make sure its attack pattern. It struck without directly striking using its mouth, but instead at an angle where its head would pass through the right side of its prey. It would then coiled itself around the prey and constricted it. Shattering all the bones in its prey''s body before devouring it.


    Amon had instead moved his position right in the python''s trajectory. This position change prompted the python to open its maw, intending to just swallow Amon directly. Amon''s hand that was holding the poison knife shot up into the python''s mouth as it came. The poisonous de thrust into the inside of its mouth, cutting the inside and delivering the toxin.


    The invisible python''s skin had proven too hard to be prated. The only way to wound the beast was to wound its inside which was not protected by its scale.


    The pain caused the python to mp its mouth on Amon''s hand. The action had been too fast, Amon didn''t have enough time to pull his hand out. Amon felt himself getting pulled by the phyton and mmed into the tree. The sound of bone breaking was heard as Amon''s right arm bent unnaturally. Amon gritted his teeth as extreme pain assailed his brain.


    The python didn''t turn invisible anymore. It seemed that its invisibility had been deactivated by its pain, which showed that its invisibility was something that it did deliberately. When it attacked, it might have been due to the brief excitement when it was about to catch its prey, it lost control for a second and caused itself to turn visible.


    The ck ughter Poison didn''t work fast enough, Amon saw the python''s tail swoop in from the other side of the tree. It was going to coil itself on Amon and the tree. Without hesitation, Amon used the swan dagger in his left hand and made a fast sh, cutting his broken right arm cleanly into two.


    Amon jumped away just as the tail came and coiled around the tree trunk, hugging it tightly until it cracked. Half of Amon''s right arm was still inside the python''s mouth.

 78 Chapter 78

    Gushes of blood poured out from the stump on Amon''s right arm. He took out a handful of powder from his space ring. After injecting the powder with aether, it ignited. He then shoved the zing fire into his cut arm.


    "GRRRGGHHH¡­!!!"


    The burning closed the wound forcefully and stopped his bleeding. The powder was emergency medication to close off wounds, worked better than the healing salve but hurt like hell.


    He didn''t allow himself to lose consciousness from the intense pain. His face was full of sweat. His eyes were staring intensely at the python that was still coiling around the tree trunk.


    The trunk was half crushed by now. Unable to bear the weight of its top part, the tree slowly bent and fell. The python fell with the tree. Its body was pressed to the ground by the fallen tree. It didn''t turn invisible and it was also not moving.


    Amon waited for a long time. His eyes never left the python. If it was ying dead, it should have made some small movements by now. It didn''t.


    After sure that the python had died. He took out one of the regrowth pills he had taken from one of the spider beast''s preys and popped it into his mouth. If this pill was as high-tiered as he suspected, his cut arm should regrow in a span of a few days.


    If he didn''t have this pill on him, Amon wouldn''t have taken such a risky approach against the python just now. He would have thought of a way to flee instead.


    He came over to the dead python. With his one remaining arm, he grabbed the fallen trunk that was pinning the python''s body.


    "Uurrgghh¡­!" Amon exerted all his strength to pull the heavy tree up. Under normal circumstances, with his cultivation, he should be able to lift this tree with no problem. But with only one arm, it was indeed a much more difficult endeavor.


    After much effort, he managed to push the tree trunk away from the python''s body.


    This python''s body should contain valuable treasure that could be used. Not to mention his poison knife was inside its mouth. He only have a limited number of these knives, he couldn''t afford to lose them. However, he couldn''t stay in this ce for long. There was no telling if another of these pythons was nearby, or worse, a stronger spirit beast. He figured the deeper he was in the woods, the more danger there was.


    He hurriedly took the python''s body and stored it inside his ck Space Ring.


    Many spirit fruits were on the ground, dropped from the two fallen trees. But different from the python''s body, Amon couldn''t afford to take the risk of picking them up. He had also collected a good number of these fruits in his space ring. There was the time to take a risk and the time to walk away from it, unnecessary greed was never a good reason for risking one life.


    He ran away from the ce, back to the outer rim of the woods where he hade from.


    Aftering out of the woods, Amon went to the ces he had passed by before. ces that he had checked to be safe and deserted. A single old tree in the middle of a in. He took a rest on top of its branches. He started to regte the aether inside his body. He had not had the chance to do so since losing his arm, the energy inside his body was in turmoil. He was suffering all the while but enduring it. The pain of his cut arm was especially excruciating.


    Amon spent days resting on top of this tree. The in around this tree was open in all directions, so he could see if anythinge near. His arm took a longer time to regrow than he expected, yet the progress was encouraging. His arm had grown to where his wrist was, in a few more days, he should have his hand again. To make sure, he swallowed another of the regrowth pills.


    He then came down from the tree. He couldn''t afford to wait until his hand waspletely grown. He estimated that he had only two months left by now. He needed to collect more treasures before his time in this dimension was up.


    But he didn''t go into the woods with the spirit fruits anymore, the danger there was real. He chose to explore in a different direction.


    *


    Amon didn''t find many valuables in the next few days. only some more spirit herbs. But he did find a kind of worm that was recorded inside his 101 Primal Poison Tome. It was called Four-seasons Worm. It was called so because the worms onlysted four seasons. With each season, its poison lethality would increase. These worms were a supplementary ingredient that was mentioned in the many different recipes inside the tome. So, the more he could collect, the better.


    Unfortunately, he could only collect dead ones since space rings couldn''t store living organisms. He had prepared several preserving jars. He stored the dead worms inside these jars before storing them in his space ring.


    As he traveled, he arrived at a forested area where the ground was mostly covered by lush bushes.


    Amon observed the trees. There were no spirit herbs. The bushes also didn''t contain any valuable nts. There was no point to search around the area if there were no valuable things. But as he was about to leave for another area, his sharp ears picked up some sound.<sub> </sub>


    He turned in the direction. He wouldn''t simply go to where a suspicious sound was heard from. Many dangers could befall such a curious deed. However, there was something about the sound that caused Amon to find it hard to ignore. The sound was like the voices of humans.


    Could it be the other finalists who had entered this dimension with him?


    Finding another finalist was not a good thing. This meant that he had topete for this territory. Ignoring it would be worse. He didn''t want to get caught off guard when the other finalists found him first during an inopportune moment.


    So, he decided to head over to where the sound came from. He approached slowly and carefully. It''s a good thing that there were many bushes around the ce, plenty of ces to hide. His only concern was to approach quietly. It was a challenge considering he brushed so many leaves as he moved.


    He continued forward discreetly as the sound became clearer.


    ''This sound¡­ This is the second time already I found something like this in the wild. Do the people in this cultivation world like to do it outside in the open?'' He thought as he recognized the sound.


    The sound was the sound of fleshes pping against one another repeatedly while moans and heavy breathing were heard. There was a voice as well, a female''s voice. Amon couldn''t hear it clearly but it was certainly agitated.


    Amon closed in further. When the female voice became clearer, it was obvious the act here was not fully in consent.


    There was a tree not far away. Amon headed over and climbed the tree to have a better view.


    Among the bushes below was a half-naked boy. His shirt was on but his pants were down. Amon saw the guy from behind, his buttocks were seen as it moved back and forth repeatedly. In front of him was a naked girl, her torn clothes were on the ground near her. She was being pinned face down by the hand of the boy behind her, with her two arms bent backward and locked by the boy''s other hand.


    Amon heard the girl cursing in anger as the boy fucked her from behind, "You fucking swine! Disgusting lowlife! How dare you do this to me!"


    The boy justughed hearing the curse. "Hahaha! You are always acting high and mighty. The daughter of an elder. Do you think you are too good for us? Too good for me? Look at you now, getting intimate with me. I bet you love it, don''t you? You slut? Aren''t you always going and ying with those sons of the other elders while looking down on usmon students? How about it? My cock isn''t any less than those elders'' sons'' cocks, is it?"


    "You shameless sickening beast! You are nothingpared to them! I will get you for this!"


    "Get me? Like thest time when you pped me in front of the others just because I bumped into you? How about I p you now?" The boy lifted the hand that pin the girl''s head down and swiftly p her butt cheek.


    The girl tried to lift her head in the interval but the boy''s hand quickly came and pushed her head to the ground again.


    "Fuck you! You asshole!" The girl screamed in frustration.


    "You should have thought twice before you offended someone that has higher cultivation than you, you stupid fuck! Even if my station is lowerpared to you. Do you think I will continuously take your shit? All you are good at is just that poison w martial art your family let you learn. Even though I can beat you easily during that spar a year ago, your family didn''t allow me to hurt you. And what did you do in return? You still use that poison w on me and caused me to bear through the poison for three full days. Now I''m going to return the favor, I''m going to **** you for three full days. What do you think? Do you want to use that stupid poison ws you are so proud of? Haha, try to use them if you can."


    Amon looked at the girl''s hands which were being locked. The two hands were slightly purplish, indicating the girl had indeed learned poison art.


    "I will get you back for this, you fuck! Wait till we get back. I''m going to have my father hang you and I''m going to beat you until all your bones are broken!"


    "Hehe¡­"


    "What are youughing about, you fuck!"


    "You are amusing. You think I''m just going to let you go back alive after doing this?"

 79 Chapter 79

    "You¡­ You¡­ What do you mean?!" The fury that was always in the girl''s voice had now changed to fear.


    "I will be extremely stupid if I return with you now, won''t I? I also know that it will be a death sentence if your father knows what I''ve done to you," the man said.


    "No¡­ No¡­ Let me live. I won''t tell my father! Do what you want with my body, just don''t kill me."


    "Hehehe, aren''t you obedient now? I have been dreaming of getting back at you since one year ago. I can''t believe I run into you in this dimension. Of all the people, it has to be you. It must be fate. The Gods themselves have seen that it is my right to do this. That''s why they let me stumble into you here. This dimension is the best ce for me to get my revenge, no one knows what happens inside here. If you don''te back, people will just assume you are killed by the spirit beasts."


    "No¡­ Please spare me!" The girl''s voice was close to hysterical now.


    "Don''t worry, I will let you live¡­ for three more days. If I enjoy it, I will probably let you live a few more days longer, hahaha!"


    Amon watched the entire scene from above. These two were the young generations of the White Cloud sect that had gone into this secret dimension with him. He remembered the faces of these two when they lined up in the hall with the portal that brought them here.


    He was just about to leave. It''s not of his concern what these two people do. They could kill each other for all he cared. But he suddenly thought of something. He looked in a direction. He turned back and looked at the boy who was still humping the girl excitedly.


    Amon made a decision. He took a pill out of his Space Ring. It was the Poison Repelling Pill. He then popped it into his mouth.


    Under the ground, the girl tried to fight desperately. Before, it was just about her dignity getting squashed. Now, it was about fighting for her life. She had to do all she could to fight off the boy behind her. But the boy was too strong. No matter how she struggled, she couldn''t tear away from the man''s grip.


    "Hahaha. Keep struggling! It makes me feel great. Ah¡­ I''m about to cum. Haha, let''s fill you up with my love before you leave this world, eh? Hahaha."


    "No¡­! Let me go! Let me go!" The girl continued to try to break free.


    "Haha. Yes! Struggle more! Yes! I''m close! Yes! I''m¡­ Eergghh¡­!!!"


    The girl felt the boy stop moving. His grips, however, were getting stronger. His hands were clenching her wrists and her head very strongly. It was as if he was trying to crush her, but then it turned loose.


    She then felt something slumped beside her. She turned and saw the face of the boy who had been raping her. His eyes were bulging while his mouth was wide open. There was a big gaping hole behind his opened mouth, the woman could see the grass behind the man through that hole. Blood was gushing out through there.


    "Aaahhh¡­!" She screamed at the horrid scene. She scrambled away. Still shocked, it took her a few seconds to register another boy was standing behind where the dead one on the ground used to be. There was a dagger in one of his hands, the dagger was dripping with blood.


    "Who¡­ Who are you?!" She shouted, afraid that her predicament was not over yet.


    The standing man was Amon, who was secretly d that the girl didn''t recognize him. She didn''t watch the White Cloud Tournament then. Amon was currently faking an innocent face. "Miss, are you all right? I heard your voice and came here. I saw that you are being held against your will, so I save you."


    ? "You¡­ You did¡­?" The girl said. He scrutinized the boy in front of her. The boy didn''t seem older than her. In fact, he seemed younger despite his tall body.


    She didn''t remember this boy. He was not of the White Cloud sect. That meant he was from the lowly ns outside the sect. Under normal circumstances, she wouldn''t deem tomunicate with such a lowly being. But since he had just saved her, she thought she could show some courtesy.


    "What you have done is very good. When we return to the sect, I will make sure you are rewarded," the girl said.


    "Don''t worry, miss. I only want to help. I don''t need any reward," Amon said, trying his best to sound sincere. "Do you have other clothes, miss? This one is ruined."


    The girl just realized that she was still naked. "Turn around!" Shemanded.


    "Of¡­ Of course," Amon said andplied.


    Amon let her alone for a minute. He heard the sound of fabric shuffling. She must have kept spare clothes inside her space ring.


    "Okay, you can turn back now," He heard the girl say.


    Amon turned and saw the girl in a luxurious dress. ''She came here bringing this kind of clothes? What does she think she came here for? A holiday trip?'' Amon thought.


    "What can I call you, miss?" Amon asked.


    "Call me Pai Ning," she said. She was looking at Amon with her chin up. Contempt could be seen in her stare. It was hard to imagine this girl was just begging for her life a few minutes ago. Even more incredible was the fact that she hadn''t thanked her savior after getting saved from certain death.


    "Eew! What''s wrong with your hand?" Pai Ning asked. Amon''s hand had mostly grown back but the hand not yet had the fingers.


    "Defect since birth," Amon lied.<sub> </sub>


    Pai Ning didn''t like looking at Amon''s deformed hand, she turned her gaze away and spoke, "I need to tell you something. What happened here, I forbid you to tell anyone else. Is this understood?"


    ''About you being raped by a low-tiered member of your sect? Don''t worry,'' Amon thought. To the girl, he said, "I won''t tell anyone, miss."


    Pai Ning nodded. She then asked, "Now tell me. What are you doing here?" Her tone was as if a mistress talking to a ve.


    "I''m on my way to the South of here," Amon said while pointing in a direction. "I found a parchment informing me that a structure was there that housed untold treasures."


    "Treasures?" Pai Ning''s ears perked up hearing Amon''s exnation. "Show me that parchment!" Shemanded.


    "It crumbled once I was done reading it. I think it had been engraved with some kind of enchantment that allowed it to only be read once."


    Pai Ning eyed Amon with a hard stare. She then turned to the South. "You said it was in that direction?"


    "Yes."


    "All right, let''s go together then."


    "That will be best. To be honest, I''m kind of scared to travel alone."


    Pai Ning gave Amon a contemptuous gaze. "Scared? What is your cultivation level?"


    "I''ve just entered the Strength stage not long ago," Amon lied again.


    "Beginning Strength stage? Newly breakthrough? How did you even be a finalist in the tournament? The tournament has truly lowered in quality. Or are all the young generations of the lower ns turned lousy? Maybe all you low blood can do is just backstab your opponent."


    Amon simply faked a wry smile, as if her insult was justified.


    Seeing Amon''s expression, Pai Ning''s contempt became even more apparent. "Just show me the ce mentioned in the parchment. If you go by yourself, you will surely perish if you encounter a spirit beast."


    "Certainly, now that I have Miss with me. I feel a lot safer¡­ But what about him?" Amon asked while pointing at the dead boy on the ground.


    "What about him? Let him rot here for what he had done to me," Pai Ning uttered.


    "No, I mean his space ring. Perhaps I should take it?"


    Pai Ning who heard that hurriedly came and shoved Amon aside. "That is White Sect n''s property! Low blood people should not touch it!"


    "Of course, of course," Amon said obediently as Pai Ning bent down and relieved the space ring from the dead boy''s finger. She then stored it inside her own space ring.


    "Let''s move!" She said.


    "Of course! This way, miss," Amon said and started walking.


    During their walk, Amon talked about the ce they were heading to. He told Pai Ning that the parchment indicated that from where they currently were, it should be another two days'' walk to arrive there. The ce was a pyramid-like monument. The entrance was at the top of this pyramid.


    Amon mentioned that the parchment informed a secret way to enter the pyramid. Which was to ce one''s hands upon the carvings of the serpents'' mouths on the floor, and then transfer one''s aether into the carvings.


    The riddle had mentioned offering one''s soul, but Amon had deciphered that it was one''s aether that one should offer. Amon couldn''t hope this girl to be smart enough to figure out the riddle, so he just gave her the answer from the start.


    "What else is written in that parchment?" Pai Ning asked.


    "Nothing else. That''s all there is," Amon said.


    "I see¡­ Now, which direction again to that pyramid?"


    "It''s that way," Amon said as he pointed in a direction. He then felt five strong fingers grip the back of his neck. The fingers sunk deep into his skin. He felt something seeping in.

 80 Chapter 80

    Pai Ning''s hand was behind Amon''s neck. The hand was currently bright purple. It formed a w and was digging into Amon''s skin. Amon fell to the ground.


    "Wha¡­ What¡­ have you done¡­ to me¡­?" Amon said weakly.


    "I have hit you with my poison w," Pai Ning answered.


    "Wh¡­ Why¡­?"


    "Hmph, a weakling like you won''t survive in this ce, it''s better that I end your suffering now. For a beginning Strength stage like you, you won''t survive my poison. I should have just finished you now, end your misery. But considering that you have aided me a little before, I will let you live a while more."


    "But¡­ but¡­"


    "Stop whining, you miserable boy!" Pai Ning kicked Amon. "It should take my poison a few hours more to reach your heart. You just savor whatever time you have left. Now, give me that!"


    Pai Ning forcefully tore the two rings from Amon''s fingers. It was amon space ring and an odd-looking ck ring. She tried to send her consciousness to the ck ring.


    "What is this? Just a rubbish ring!" She threw the ck ring to the ground. She then checked the space ring. Amon had cut the connection to thismon ring beforehand, allowing her to delve inside the ring easily, creating the illusion that her cultivation level was higher.


    "What have you been doing all this time, sightseeing? There is barely anything inside here!" Pai Ning uttered. Amon had also transferred all the stuff into his ck space ring, only leaving a few worthless things inside hismon space ring.


    Pai Ning still stored Amon''s space ring in hers. She then left without sparing Amon another look. Amon just watched her go.


    After she was out of sight, Amon grabbed his ck space ring and stood up. He touched the back of his neck. There were still some itches there. The girl''s poison was rather potent, but his poison repelling pill was good enough to neutralize the poison.


    Afterward, he tailed Pai Ning covertly.


    *


    Pai Ning took two and a half-day to arrive at the area where she could see the pyramid structure. Luckily, the girl didn''t travel off course. Otherwise, Amon would have needed to do something covertly to redirect her in the right direction. In that time, Amon''s fingers had grown. His cut hand was now back to normal.


    Pai Ning took longer than Amon had told her because she was walking leisurely. ''Did she enter this dimension just for sightseeing?'' Amon thought.


    The girl was visibly excited when she saw the structure and immediately ran towards it.


    ''So careless,'' Amon thought.


    He continued to follow her from a safe distance. Hiding from one cover to the next just in case the girl somehow had the urge to look back.


    Amon saw the girl enter one of the openings at the top of the pyramid. He ran to a different side and climbed the stairs on that side. After reaching up there, he hid beside the opening before peeking inside.


    The girl was still looking at the carvings on the floor.


    ''Don''t tell me she cannot tell which ones are the drawings of the serpents¡­?'' Amon thought.


    After some time, Pai Ning crouched down before slowly cing her two hands on the floor. Amon saw the spots she was cing her hands to were the correct spots. Pai Ning then started transferring her aether onto the floor. The two serpent carvings on the floor started shining once she did.


    Pai Ning was visibly startled by the change, but the surprise soon turned to excitement. This meant that the boy wasn''t lying to her. There truly was something here. She poured her aether onto the floor more vigorously. The glow on the floor started to spread out slowly. Not just on the serpents'' carvings but was spreading outward.<sub> </sub>


    The glow was growing slowly, though. It didn''t even cover one-third of the floor yet when Amon saw Pai Ning''s face be pale. She must have almost depleted her aether reserve.


    Pai Ning tried to endure. The thought of finding hidden treasures in this dimension excited her greatly. She had heard about past expeditions. Not every youngster who came in here found valuable items. But those who did wereuded by the elders and were rewarded bountiful cultivation resources. If she managed to bring back treasures to the sect, her future sess would be set in stone. She might even acquire a better position than her father who was simply amon elder.


    Yet, she could feel herself be weaker with each passing second. She couldn''t continue for long. Maybe she could rest first and then continue againter? She hoped the glow on the floor would not dissipate. She stopped transferring her aether. Or at least, tried to stop transferring her aether, but the aether inside her was still flowing into the floor.


    "What¡­?" She uttered with an unsettling feeling.


    She then tried to remove her hands from the floor. But as her hand left the floor, tendrils of dark energy shot out and coiled around her hands. They then pulled and forced her hands back onto the floor again.


    "What the¡­! Let me go¡­!!!" Pai Ning shouted.


    Yet, the ck tendrils continued to grip her tightly, not letting her hands leave the floor. All the while, her aether continued to flow against her will. The floor was sucking her aether forcefully from her body.


    ''As I have thought, there''s danger associated with this mechanism,'' Amon thought as he watched the scene.


    "No! No! Let me go! Let me go!" Pai Ning was yelling hysterically as she continued to try to pry her hands off the floor, with no sess.


    "No¡­ no¡­" Her voice became weaker.


    "No¡­ I¡­ I am¡­ an elder''s daughter¡­ I¡­ I was¡­ destined¡­ for greatness¡­ I can''t¡­ die¡­ here¡­"


    She was getting so weak that she had trouble supporting herself. Sheid t on the floor with her two hands still stuck at the serpents'' mouths.


    She was so weak that Amon no longer bother to hide. He stood at the opening as she watched the dying girl without any emotion. No satisfaction for getting back at the person who had attacked him from behind, nor pity for a helpless girl in need of help. She was just a means to an end.


    "Yo¡­ you¡­" Pai Ning''s eyes turned wide when she saw Amon''s figure, but she had no strength to curse or scold or ask anything.


    Her eyes slowly closed unwillingly, there was a tearing out from her eyes before they closed.


    After a while, the ck tendrils released their grips and disappeared back into the floor. Before it did, the glow on the floor suddenly grew exponentially. It did not cover half the room before, but now, almost all the floor was glowing, leaving only the outer rim. Amon estimated there was still around 10% left of the floor area that was not glowing.


    Amon waited for a brief while before stepping inside. He put one foot in first. When nothing happened, he did the same on the glowing floor. After making sure no ck tendrils wereing out of the floor, he walked on the glowing floor towards the center. He paid attention to the shine as he walked. The edge of the shining parts was slowly receding.


    ''It doesn''tst,'' he thought. One with low cultivation won''t be able to open the entrance to this pyramid. That''s what it meant by the weak would perish. Amon estimated Pai Ning to be an Intermediate Strength stage cultivator, someone who had just entered the intermediate stage not long ago. But even with her cultivation, it was not enough to fill up half the room. Amon thought the requirement to enter must be one who was a strong peak Strength stage. Someone who was just a half-step toward entering the Transformation stage. Or could even be someone that had entered the Transformation stage. Considering this dimension only allowed youths of fifteen age or below, that was a very stringent requirement.


    However, the spike at thest moment intrigued him. Could it be because Pai Ning had lost her life? He did read the theory that one''s soul contained arge amount of aether. The spike was probably Pai Ning''s life which was absorbed by the floor, allowing it to almost fill up the room.


    Amon couldn''t dally. The glow was receding. If it recededpletely, then Pai Ning''s aether would have been wasted. There was no guarantee that he could find another cultivator after this. Even more so of finding someone foolish enough to be duped like Pai Ning here.


    Amon hurriedly came to the center of the room. He pushed Pai Ning''s body aside and without hesitation ced his hands on the carvings of the two serpents'' mouths.


    There was a time not to take a risk, there was a time to. This was the time to take one. He only needed to fill up around 10% more to light up the entire floor. It shouldn''t be a problem with his cultivation level.

 81 Chapter 81

    He started transferring his aether into the carvings of the serpent''s mouth. He could feel his energy flowing into the floor vigorously once his aether made contact with the floor. Even when he didn''t exert his will, his aether still flowed. It''s more like the floor was sucking his aether instead of him transferring it. Pai Ning should have felt something was wrong if she paid attention, she was just too excited that she didn''t realize it. But not that it would do any good. Once the process started, it didn''t seem to be a way to stop it.


    The glow slowly expanded again. It turned slower after getting closer to the edge. Much slower. Which rmed Amon for a bit. Despite there being only 10% of the area left since he started, he still needed to expend more than half of his aether reserve.


    When the whole floor lighted up, a click sound was heard. He then felt the pressure on his two palms subside. His aether stopped flowing. He removed his hands from the floor. No ck tendrils appeared.


    A hum was heard and the floor started trembling. The portion of the floor in front of him broke apart and started moving, revealing a secret entrance with stairs going down. The inside waspletely dark, Amon couldn''t see how far the stairs went down.


    Amon just stood there and focused on his hearings, trying to hear if there was any movement from down there. It wasplete silence.


    After a while, Amon stepped onto the stairs. He had gone through all the trouble to open this ce, might as well check it out. He didn''t forget to remove Pai Ning''s space ring first before going down.


    After walking down a few steps of the stairs, he heard a rumble from above and turned to see the entrance was slowly closing again. He had a brief thought of running back and out before the entrance closedpletely, but he stayed his feet. He had decided toe down, so he would stick to it.


    When the entrance waspletely closed, it was nowplete darkness.


    Amon fished out something from his ck space ring. A strong light abruptly illuminated his surroundings. He was using the bright re stone that was given by Lin Giru when Lin Fong tried to use a ploy to assassinate him.


    The light was bright enough to illuminate arge portion of his surroundings. The stair hall was not wide. Its walls were solid stone. There was no way to go except to follow the stairs down. Amon continued his descent.


    The descent went on for a long while. By his estimation, he should have already passed the base of the pyramid a long time ago. Which meant the pyramid on the ground was only the tip of the structure. Its interior went way into the underground.


    After a long walk, the narrow stairway finally opened to a wide space. A veryrge cavern hall. This cavern hall had a single bright light that illuminate its huge space. This bright light was hanging from the cave ceiling a long distance away from Amon. It was like a small sun to this huge cavern. Amon could even feel some heat from that small sun.


    With that light source, he did not need the bright re stone, so he stored it back in his space ring. He could see the stairs he was on still had a long way down. He couldn''t help but admire the space. This looked like a natural cavern but he could also see some evidence that some parts were clearly dug and shaped.


    What caught his attention the most was the series of wooden walls at the center part of the cavern. It was like someone was building a house inside this cavern without putting a roof on it. He saw some furniture there. There was even a garden behind it, with a small stream, nts, and trees. How did those greeneries survive down here? He wondered.


    He didn''t rush over despite his curiosity. He walked down step by step while maintaining alert. He didn''t sense any danger down here but he had learned to be careful whenever he was in a new ce.


    After a long walk, he finally reached the base of the stairs. He still needed to walk for a bit to reach that structure he had seen from above. Down here the stones were high, forming a natural barrier. He had to go through a winding path to reach that center structure. It was no problem for him, he had memorized the path when he look at them from above.


    After walking a while, he frowned. The crossroad was different from what he had seen from above. Could he have remembered wrong? No. One thing he hadplete confidence in was his memory. He remembered everything he had seen. Something was amiss.<sub> </sub>


    He then jumped. With his current cultivation, the rock walls that formed this path should be easily scaled. However, the top of the rock wall seemed to shift higher as he jumped. Hended back on the ground and looked at the rock wall. They seemed normal.


    He tried another jump. The result was the same. He just couldn''t reach the top of the rock wall.


    Something was preventing him from jumping out of the path. An enchanted formation? He had read about this in books. This was a kind of practice that dealt with theyout of an environment. It was a setup usually used for passive defense, it created a maze that slow down or confuse intruders. The books also said this practice had been mostly forgotten. Only the most prestigious and oldest ns still possessed such ancient knowledge.


    There were two ways to pass through the maze created from such an enchanted formation. Following a set path through the maze or forcefully breaking out. Thetter, however, required the person who did the breaking to have a higher cultivation level than the person who created the maze. From what Amon felt when he tried to jump out, his cultivation level was clearly not up to par.


    This left him with only one way. He looked back. As expected, the path he had just passed through had changed. Once he entered this maze, he could only proceed or got trapped forever inside this formation.


    He looked around. There was not much information from the books about this enchanted formation. Considering it was an ancient practice that was mostly lost to the general public, this was not strange. However, he remembered a book from a schr studying the past mentioned that this formation''s true path usually possessed some sort of a hint, some kind of simrity that marked the way. The book didn''t borate, though.


    He stayed in that ce and looked around. There was nothing that caught his eyes. Unable to glean any clue, he could only continue walking. The paths he took were nowpletely different from what he had seen from above when he walked down the stairs. He walked for hours, but there seemed to be no end to the path.


    ''This is not working¡­,'' Amon thought. But since he couldn''t think of a way out, he continued walking.


    After more hours of walking, he felt like he noticed something. He looked around the maze he was currently in. This part of the maze was slightlyrger than the rest. If he estimated the shape of this maze, it would look like a serpent''s head when he viewed it from the top.


    "Could it be¡­," Amon mumbled. He then closed his eyes, checking his memory.


    "Let''s give it a try," He said and walked in a direction.


    After a while, he thought that it was as he suspected. He continued walking. At every turn, he had known how the next path would turn out to be. Every now and then, he closed his eyes and checked his memory before proceeding.


    After a long walk, he came out to another part of the maze that wasrger than usual, simr to the one he thought to shape like a serpent''s head. The difference was, in this one, he could see the house structure that was situated at the center of this cave.


    p ''I am right,'' Amon thought. He didn''t find the simrity that the schr mentioned. He, however, figured out that this maze was exactly the same as the maze drawn on the floor at the top of the pyramid. It was the maze drawing surrounding the two serpents'' heads that sucked his aether to open the entrance to this ce. The right path of this maze was shown in that drawing. It was the path from the head of the serpent on the right to the head on the left.</anda>


    When he walked out of the maze and into the foyer of the structure in front of him, a voice greeted him from behind, "Congrattions to have passed the tests and entering this repository."

 82 Chapter 82

    Amon whirled in rm and jumped away from the source of the voice at the same time, Swan dagger in his right hand and a throwing knife in his left. How can someone sneak behind him like this? He had the thought as he jumped.


    The person in his sight was a schrly dressed young man. No, not a man. After a better look, this man looked intangible.


    ''A spirit?'' Amon thought.


    "I am indeed a spirit. I am a spirit created to oversee this ce until a suitable candidatees," the spirit said.


    "You can read my mind?" Amon asked.


    "This ce is enchanted. Those that enter this ce will have their minds open to the overseer. In this case, me."


    "What is this ce?"


    "It''s a legacy ce left behind by my creator. He ced the treasure here to help future young cultivators, such as you."


    "I see¡­ Considering this ce is still intact, I figure I am the first one to arrive here?"


    "You are correct."


    "What do you store here?"


    "Knowledge."


    Amon frowned at the spirit''s answer. ''A bit vague, aren''t you?''


    The spirit smiled. "How about you go inside and see?"


    "Are there any more tests inside I should be aware of?"


    "No. No more tests. Only rewards now."


    "After you," Amon said.


    Although the spirit looked harmless, it was still better to stay cautious.


    The spirit understood Amon''s thought. He shook his head and then floated and disappeared into the door that was the structure''s entrance.


    Amon came to the closed door and opened it. When he walked in, he saw rows and rows of bookshelves. What he saw from up there as a series of wooden walls were in fact bookshelves. Amon looked at the one nearest to him.


    Encyclopedia of inferior spirit beasts.


    Geography of Tyraa Province.


    Catalog of inferior spirit herbs.


    There were all kinds of books. It would take him months to read through them. So this was what the spirit meant by knowledge?


    After sifting the bookshelves for a while, Amon asked, "no cultivation books?"


    "Of course there are! Come with me," the spirit said. He led Amon to another section.


    In this section, Amon found lots of books rted to cultivation. Martial arts, Arcane Arts, and even Cultivation Arts. The number is staggering. It would take him a long time to sift through them and determine which ones to learn. There was no way he could learn them all.


    The spirit exined, "Here you will find all the arts my creator had collected which is useful up until the Lord stage of the Martial Realm."


    "Lord stage?" Lord stage was currently the best cultivator stage he had heard to be talked about in this world. Even the Lin n master and the sect master of the White Cloud Sect were only at the Spirit stage of Martial Realm. The ones he heard that had reached the Lord stage were the direct families of the king in the kingdom they resided in. However, he knew there was a higher realm above it, the Demigod realm.<sub> </sub>


    "Are you disappointed? Unfortunately, the arts for the Demigod realm are too valuable even to my creator. He could only impart those arts to his direct descendants."


    "So, I am allowed to take all this?" Amon asked.


    "Be my guest," the spirit said.


    ''Good,'' Amon thought. If he was prohibited, he would look for a way to rob this ce.


    "You are a violent person. I honestly don''t think leaving all this knowledge to you is a good idea," the spirit said after hearing Amon''s thought. "But since I am just a spirit overseer, there''s nothing I can do even if I want to stop you."


    "Good," Amon said it out loud this time.


    He didn''t just go and plunder this ce at once. He walked around to take a look at other things. He came out to the back garden that he had seen from above. The garden was neat. It was as if someone had tended them. There were rows of spirit herbs that Amon had no idea of. But from the aura they exuded, they were high-quality spirit herbs. A small stream of clear water ran beside this garden.


    One tree was in the garden. Amon could see lots of spirit fruits hanging from its branches. The aura he felt from these fruits was even denser than the ones he had taken and eaten from thend above. This ce was indeed a treasure trove.


    "How do they survive here?" Amon asked the spirit.


    "They have water, they have sunlight, they have good soil, why won''t they survive?" The spirit asked.


    "Sunlight?" Amon looked above to the artificial light source hanging on the ceiling.


    "That was a miniature sun created by my creator. Not as hot as the real sun, of course, but its light is enough to help these nts and trees grow."


    "They couldn''t have lived all this time since your creator nted them, could they?"


    "Of course not. But my creator had ced an enchantment that allow them to reborn. After they wilted out of old age, they will be reborn as new buds and then repeat their cycle. As long as there is enough sunlight and water to sustain them, they will repeat their lives again and again."


    "I will take them also. Do you have a problem with that?" Amon asked.


    The spirit shrugged.


    After that, Amon returned inside and started studying through the bookshelves. After looking at them for a while, Amon found that whoever put these books here had arranged them neatly. Everything was put in the same category. There was no need for him to arrange them anymore. All he needed to do wasbel the bookshelves so that he could easily find a topic if he needed to.


    He started to store them in his ck space ring one bookshelf at a time. During the process, he also took a look at some of the books. He didn''t have the time to read them all, but he read some that he thought might be useful for the immediate future.


    He read some books about the spirit beasts. In the books, he found out about the spider creature that had trapped him when he first arrived in this dimension. It was called Mind Demon. As had been expected by Amon, this Mind Demon was usually a lower superior spirit beast. Their battle capability was nothingpared to a normal superior beast, but their forte was the ability to create hallucinations and unrattled their target''s minds.


    Their modus operandi was by weakening their targets'' minds until they lost consciousness before locking their minds inside the hallucinations they created. Once their targets were happy inside the hallucinations, the Mind Demon would suck their life forces. They prefer strong cultivators as these targets provided more life forces for them.


    The book also provided the Mind Demon''s weaknesses. They were susceptible to loud high-pitched noise. If one had sound-based art, it could disrupt them and create an opening.


    ''This is good,'' Amon thought. If he could learn the weaknesses of the spirit beasts, he could better deal with them in the future. On that thought, he went to the cultivation books section. After looking for a while, he found several books containing martial arts that did sound attacks. He would need to choose one of these to learnter.


    Amon continued to store the books and did selected readings from time to time. He spent days inside this ce. Before he knew it, almost a week passed. He stored all the books in his space ring, he would just sort through themter after leaving this dimension.


    He, however, found one art book that he was very eager to learn. It was called Concealed Ghost Body. It was not an assault art. It was instead a transformation art that conceal one''s presence. With this art, he could prevent those that had reached the Martial realm from detecting him or his cultivation. As long as the cultivators were not two stages above him, he should be able to mask his presence. From the art''s description, if he reached master level, he could even turn invisible.


    This art would be the first one he focused on once he was out of this dimension.


    After finishing storing all the books, he now turned to the garden. Too bad that he couldn''t store living things inside the space ring, it was a waste to pluck these spirit herbs but if that was the best, then so be it.


    But before that, he remembered he had a dead carcass of the invisible python in his space ring. He had also learned about this python from the books about spirit beasts here. This Python was called Ethereal Bronze-skinned Snake. It was ssified as a higher inferior beast. It said that this snake usually stayed in a group, but sometimes one could wander slightly away from their.


    The one that had attacked him must be one that wandered. It was a good thing that he didn''t decide to explore the woods deeper. If he stumbled into these snakes''ir. He wouldn''t be able to survive fighting a group of these invisible snakes.

 83 Chapter 83

    Amon took out the carcass and ced it inside the now empty structures after Amon stored all the bookshelves in his space ring.


    "Ethereal Bronze-skinned Snake," the spirit said after seeing the carcass. Amon never bothered to ask the spirit''s name all this time. When he wanted to ask the spirit a question, he simply called the spirit, spirit.


    "You found this carcass or you killed it?" The spirit asked.


    "Killed it," Amon answered.


    "You are indeed exceptional. This phyton is extremely dangerous. Even someone with high cultivation could still fall prey to it. Only those that have entered the Martial realm and have developed the ability to detect others'' presences can safely go up against this snake. Otherwise, they won''t know from where this snake will attack."


    Amon didn''t pay attention to the spirit''s ramblings. The spirit had done that often during these few days that Amon was here. He didn''t know whether a spirit could get lonely. Perhaps that''s why the spirit was so chatty.


    Amon took out his Swan Dagger and started cutting the snake. Its scales were too tough. He couldn''t damage it when the snake was alive, he couldn''t do it now even after it had died. He slipped his dagger into the underneath of the scales and cut from there. The process took a very long time due to that, but Amon worked patiently.


    With the help of the books about this snake, he also learned its valuable parts. The part that he would want to harvest was its nd that helped it turn invisible. This nd was useful as both engraving and alchemy ingredients.


    The scales were also useful for smiths, they could be turned into a good scale mail. But not all the scales were useful, the book told Amon that the ones that should be taken were the small part near the back of the head. All the other parts would just deteriorate and turned soft over time.


    The snake''s galldder and the oil from its fat were also useful ingredients for alchemy and medicinal pills. With the knowledge from the book, he no longer had to waste time feeling the aether of a corpse, he could go directly into dissections.


    During the process of cutting, he found one fascinating thing though. There was a living worm crawling underneath one of the scales he was cutting. It couldn''t havee after the carcass was taken out. It was not that long to allow this slow-moving critter to climb all the way here.


    But how did he exin its existence here? It was not possible for living things to exist inside his space ring. If this worm was already on the snake''s body, it would be repelled when Amon stored the snake''s body in his space ring for the first time. Unless¡­


    To test his theory, Amon stored the carcass back in his ck space ring again. He then had his consciousness dove into the ck space ring. He went to the part of the snake''s body where he had seen the worm. There it was. Still clinging to the snake''s body and still wriggling.


    Amon took the carcass out again and looked at his ck space ring. Not only was this ck ring contained space way bigger than normal rings, but it was also unable to be essed by other people for reasons he had yet to know. Now, he also found out that it was capable to store living things, something that he read to be impossible. This ring was even more special than he initially thought.


    "Something''s wrong with the ring?" The spirit asked.


    Hearing the spirit''s question, Amon showed the ck space ring to him and asked, "Do you know what kind of ring is this?"


    "Hm¡­," The spirit mumbled as he observed the ring. "Can''t say I do. Doesn''t look like anything special to me."


    Since the spirit didn''t know, Amon didn''t ask further. He resumed his process of harvesting the snake''s valuable parts.


    After finishing with the snake''s carcass, Amon turned to the garden again. He now know he could store these living herbs and trees in his ck space ring, but another issue cropped up. How did he provide an environment where these nts could live?


    For the soil and water, he could take some from here and transfer them into his ck space ring, creating a small garden. But they would still need sunlight to survive.


    Amon looked up. He then asked the spirit, "All the things here are free for me to take, right?"


    "That''s right," The spirit said.


    "Then it will be fine if I take that artificial sun up there as well, right?"


    The spirit looked up. "If you can take it," he answered.


    Amon looked up again. Yes, that would be a challenge. If he was already in the Spirit stage of the Martial realm, this should not be a problem since he could just float up there and take it. But as he was now, he had to climb up by himself.


    The ceiling of this huge cavern was incredibly high. If he fell, even if he survived, it would not be without wounds. Not to mention, the miniature sun was located right at the center of the ceiling, the furthest spot away from the cavern walls. Which meant that he would have to do roof climbing on the ceiling all the way to where the miniature sun was.


    "Is there a mechanism to shut it off and bring it down?" Amon asked the spirit.


    "I can turn it off. Well, not exactly turn it off. Just lower its light to a minimum. That''s how I generate a night feel here. If you try to take it as it is now, you will be burnt to ashes before you can touch it. But even if I can make it dim, I can''t bring it down. You have to do it physically."<sub> </sub>


    "I understand. Please turn it down then," Amon said.


    "All right," the spirit then uttered, "Night." But in thenguage of Amon''s past world. This took Amon by surprise. The miniature sun in the sky turned dim. It still emitted a soft light that kept the cavern from total darkness.


    "Whatnguage do you use just now?" Amon asked.


    "The one I use to control the miniature sun? It''s thenguage created by my creator," the spirit answered.


    ''Created¡­?'' Amon wondered.


    "Tell me, spirit. Is your creator also the one that created this dimension?"


    "Yes. All the things and legacies within this dimension were ced by him here before he passed over to the higher realm."


    "Higher realm?"


    "It''s the ce where Gods live."


    "Hmph, interesting. I might want to visit that ce in the future," Amon grinned. "This creator of yours. Does he or she has a name?"


    "It''s he. Sadly, I am not permitted to divulge his name. But if you truly visit the realm of the Gods, probably you will meet him."


    "Meet him? How long ago since your creator left?"


    The spirit gave the matter some thought. "Give or take, around three million years ago."


    "And you think your creator is still alive after that long?"


    "My creator has reached the Divine realm. That''s how he can go to the higher realm. One bes immortal after reaching the Divine realm."


    "Unless one is killed."


    "No one can defeat my creator."


    Amon didn''t bother to argue with the spirit. He turned his attention up to the miniature sun that now looked more like a miniature moon. Everything was darker now.


    "I will go up there. Keep that miniature sun dim," Amon ordered.


    The spirit nodded.


    "By the way, will the maze prevent me from moving freely again?" Amon asked before he left.


    "No, once you passed the maze. You are marked as the inheritor of the legacy here. The maze won''t hinder you anymore."


    "Good," Amon said and left.


    He went to the cavern wall where he saw its top part slightly sloped in, hence the distance where he had to scale the ceiling was shorter. He took out his climbing ws once he arrived under the wall. He had also made a set that was to be used on his feet, a set of foot spikes. He wore these ninja climbing gears before he started scaling the wall.


    There was no problem as he climbed the wall. After a long climb, he arrived at where the ceiling and the wall met. The scene herebined with the ground so far below would have intimidated anyone, but not Amon. This was not his first time doing roof climbing. He had done plenty in his past life. Sometimes for covert missions, sometimes for training, sometimes simply because he had no better things to do. He even often did it without any harness or climbing gears at all.


    As he started doing the roof climbing here, his previous habits all came back. All the toe hooks, heel hooks, knee bars, bicycles, and campusings. But all in all, what truly mattered was his strength and stamina. Can''t have one losing a grip midway because of getting tired. With his current cultivation, he found this roof climbing to be much easier than in his past life.


    Amon steadily proceeded through the ceiling towards where the miniature sun was waiting for him.

 84 Chapter 84

    As he got closer, the temperature turned warmer. It was blistering hot when he was less than thirty meters away from the miniature sun.


    The spirit overseer below was right, if he didn''t turn this miniature sun into this dim version, he won''t be able to get close to it.


    He continued. It was harder to proceed as there were fewer handholds, so it took him a long time. He was full of sweat due to the heat. As he was around ten meters away from the prize, there was no handhold at all. There was even an upside-down crater in the ceiling directly above the miniature sun. The surface of this crater was extremely smooth, even his climbing ws had difficulty getting a grip.


    The surface here must have been affected by the heat of the miniature son. After long exposure to the heat, it slowly melt and turned into this reversed crater with smooth surfaces.


    Without any handhold, there was no way for him to reach the miniature sun. Amon gazed at the thing. That miniature sun was still around ten meters away and hanging around five meters below him. From the ceiling, it was hanging around eight meters away.


    Amon supposed its original distance to the ceiling was also five meters. But after heating the ceiling rock for a long duration of time, it created this crater and caused it to appear hanging further away. The miniature sun was held by a red color chain that went all the way to the ceiling.


    Amon surmised the chain must have gone even further, deep into the ceiling rock. To be able to bear the heat of the sun that could melt even the ceiling rock, the chain must be extremely durable. Yet, Amon didn''t care about the chain. All he needed was that miniature sun.


    After thinking for a while, Amon made his decision. He decided to take the risk. All he needed to do was touch the miniature sun long enough to transfer it into his space ring. He estimated with this distance, he should be able to push for a jump. The thing was, he only had one chance. He was sure he would suffer quite some injuries falling from this height. He won''t be in good enough shape to climb a second time if he missed.


    He took out the highest-grade recovery pill he had in his space ring, then put it into his mouth. He stored that pill under his tongue. After that, he got ready. He positioned his hands and feet at handholds and footholds that had enough surface to propel himself forward.


    He focused his mind on the target and controlled his breathing. He transferred the energy to his hands and feet. He held his breath. He then pushed using all his hands and feet. His body shot in the air at an angle towards the dim miniature sun.


    He could feel the heat intensifying as he approached, so much that he had trouble opening his eyes. But he forced them open, he couldn''t afford to lose vision at this crucial moment.


    He extended his arms forward as he got near. His two arms hit the round object that was the miniature sun and gripped them with full force.


    "EERRGGHHH¡­!!!" He gritted his teeth as extreme heat burned his hands. He took care to not open his mouth or else the recovery pill might fall out. Despite the extreme pain, he didn''t let go. He forced his grips to stay with the round object.


    He needed at least one second to send his consciousness to store the object into his space ring. Anyone''s mind should have been cked out by the sheer pain, but Amon''s persevered. The pain made it difficult for his mind to think, but he forced them to. He ended up spending two seconds before the miniature sun vanished and entered his space ring.


    With the miniature sun disappearing, so too was his handhold. He was free-falling towards the ground.


    He spread his arm and body to create enough surface for the air drag to help slow down his fall. When he was almost to the ground, he readjusted his body so that his feet were facing down. He pressed his two legs together and tucked in his chin while covering his head with his arms.


    The miniature position was directly above the central structure of the garden. During the fall, Amon had positioned himself so that his free-falling direction was towards the tree in the garden.


    He activated Hardened Bronze Body just before he hit the tree. The tree had thick foliage. The leaves and branches helped cushion his fall before he hit the ground.


    *CRASH*


    Hended on his feet and knees. He tried to roll to cushion the impact but everything was too sudden. The bones in his legs were broken, and so too were the ones in his ribs and arms. Thankfully, he managed to protect his head.<sub> </sub>


    He was still breathing as hey on the ground. The Hardened Bronze Body and the trees had saved him from a fatal impact. But all his body parts were hurting, his hands were badly burned. He won''t be moving anytime soon.


    He swallowed the recovery pill that he had stored under his tongue.


    He saw the spirite above him and asked, "Are you okay?"


    Amon didn''t reply. He just closed his eyes to regte his breathing and regte the aether in his body. It would take him a long time to heal before he could move again.


    *


    One month passed with Amon staying inside the cavern.


    For the first half month, Amon simplyid there on the ground with the broken bones. He regted the aether in his body to speed up the healing process. During the time, since he couldn''t do anything, most of the time he spent his consciousness inside his ck space ring.


    The miniature sun he had recovered was inside there. He used his mind to move it up onto the top of the space in his space ring. In this space, he controlled everything, he could move things simply with his mind. So, there was no risk of getting burned by the miniature sun.


    Once it was up there at the top, Amon uttered, "Day," in his previous worldnguage. The miniature sun shone brightly, brightening up the entire space within.


    Now, he only needed to transfer soil and water inside here before bringing the living nts inside. But since he could still not move, he must leave that forter. For now, he went to the rows of bookshelves and studied their contents. He started to take out one book to read after another.


    In the arts section, he found something useful for his current condition. It was an art called Nine Moon Restorative Mantra. It was an art with a healing function. He could practice this art since it didn''t need him to do any body movement. All he needed to do was regte the aether as instructed in the book while reciting its mantra.


    After memorizing its content, Amon went to practice it. He quickly gained understanding after practicing it for half a day and entered its beginning level. Even with only the beginning level, he could feel his healing proceed at a much faster pace than normal.


    Amon also ate a recovery pill daily. He had to struggle very hard considering he also broke his arms and they were also badly burned. But with enough determination, he managed to put the pill into his mouth.


    During that half month, Amon continued to read the books in his space ring. It was impossible to read them all, but he selected some that he thought were useful. Particrly one that contained information about spirit beasts, the ssification of arts, and cultivation levels.


    After all that reading, he learned that the Arts in this world were divided into five categories: Cultivation art, Martial art, arcane art, transformation art, and movement art. Cultivation art was the art that absorbed aether to enhance and improve a cultivator''s energy core. Martial art was an art that utilize body movements to create a powerful force. While arcane art was the art that utilized the elements of the world. Transformation art caused changes to the body, like Wei Lhosa''s art which turned him into a brute ape. The Nine Moon Restorative Mantra he had just learned was also ssified as a transformation art. Thest movement art was an art that utilize the aether to increase one''s speed and movements.


    The power of each art was also graded based on its power. There were three grades of power in an art: Practitioner, profound, and heavenly. Each of these main grades was further divided into sub-categories: low-tier, mid-tier, and high-tier.


    The Nine Moon Restorative Mantra was considered a mid-tier practitioner art. There was higher grade healing art in the collection, but the higher the grade, the harder it was to learn. Amon needed to urgently heal himself, so he couldn''t choose to learn the difficult one.


    He didn''t know what grade the martial arts he had learned from the Hei n. The ones on the bookshelves here were already categorized by the owner. So, he had no problem identifying their grades. However, the book exined that once one entered the Martial realm, one would be able to use his consciousness to grade an art once one learned its beginner level.

 85 Chapter 85

    For the Cultivation level, he learned that there were four main levels. Each of these main levels had three sub-levels. Each of these sub-levels was further divided into beginning, intermediate, and peak. The four main levels were: Human realm, Martial realm, Demigod realm, and Divine realm.


    The Human realm had three sub-levels: Mortal stage, strength stage, and transformation stage. Amon was currently at the intermediate Strength stage of the Human realm.


    The Martial realm was divided into Mystic stage, Spirit stage, and Lord stage. The strongest practitioner Amon had met till now was the master of the Lin n, who was at the peak Spirit stage of the Martial realm.


    After the Martial realm was the Demigod realm. Once one reached this level, one could be said to have put one foot into the realm of God. This realm was divided into King stage, Emperor stage, and Ancestor stage.


    The highest realm which was also something everyone in this cultivation world was aspiring for, was the Divine realm. One who reached this level of cultivation could be considered an immortal and a God amongst men. This realm also had sub-levels: Sovereign God, Heavenly God, and True God.


    The book informed that once one entered the Divine realm, one could enter the higher world, which was the home to Gods. This higher world was probably the one this dimension''s creator had migrated to.


    After learning about these levels, Amon had a clear goal in mind. He was determined to reach the True God level. He didn''t care how many obstacles or men got in his way, all would be obliterated.


    However, the book also described that those four cultivation levels were from the divine branch of cultivation. He was surprised that the book mentioned another branch of cultivation, the infernal branch. Amon never heard nor read any mention about this infernal cultivation before reading the book here.


    Unlike the divine branch that was divided into four realms, the Infernal cultivation had only three realms. However, each of these realms was divided into four sub-levels instead of three. The three realms were: Acolyte realm, Monster realm, and Devil realm.


    The Acolyte realm had four sub-levels: Damned stage, Wicked stage, Malevolent stage, and Diabolic stage. The Monster realm had: Malicious stage, Fiendish stage, Supreme stage, and Mammoth stage. While the highest realm, the Devil realm was divided into Overlord, Unholy Monarch, Infernal Devil, and True Devil.


    Amon wondered what this meant? Were there two types of cultivation in this world? But after all these years, why he had only seen or heard about the divine cultivation? Was it that the infernal cultivation had been lost to time?


    After learning about this infernal cultivation, Amon went to the bookshelves containing the Arts section. The information mentioned that these two cultivations had distinct differences. One had pure energy, while the other was corrupted and chaotic.


    The elements manipted from these two branches also differed. Practitioners who cultivated divine cultivation could manipte the elements of Wood, fire, earth, metal, water, and light. Providing that they possessed the corresponding arcane arts.


    Practitioners of infernal cultivation, on the other hand, had the elements of Lightning, wind, ice, gravity, and darkness. Same as its cultivation, Amon had never heard about Arts or any cultivators that used these five elements.


    After searching through the collection of arts on the bookshelf, Amon didn''t find any cultivation art book that cultivate infernal energy. Nor did he find any arcane art books that utilized the five infernal elements.


    ''So, it''s just a story?'' Amon thought. Or perhaps because the creator of this dimension cultivated divine cultivation, so his library only possessed the cultivation art and the elements of the divine branch? The book did mention that the practitioners from the divine cultivation won''t be able to learn the arcane arts of the infernal elements and vice versa.


    In any way, Amon was just curious about this infernal cultivation. He didn''t intend to learn it. The book mentioned that one could only cultivate one type of energy. If one cultivated infernal cultivation, one would have to let go of the original divine cultivation in one''s body. Amon had worked hard to reach his current cultivation level. He had no intention to let it go.


    He also went through Pai Ning''s space ring and the ring of the man who raped her. Nothing much from them. Just some mundane items, her clothes, recovery pills, a strange-lookingpass, and a few spirit herbs that they must have gathered from their brief journey through this dimension. However, he found one interesting thing in Pai Ning''s belongings, a martial art book. The book contained the technique of Poison w art.


    It must have been the art she used when she tried to poison him. Amon wondered why Pai Ning brought this book. Others who had the proper backing of a n normally left their precious belongings when they ventured out of the n, only bringing the essentials to avoid being robbed. The reason he could think of was that Pai Ning had not yetpletely learned this art. Since she would be here for three months, she must have brought this book so that she could continue practicing it in this dimension.


    Amon took this book and the spirit herbs and threw the rests out, including their space rings. He didn''t want to take the chance if the rings were marked. He nned to learn the poison w if he had the time. Combined with the deadly poison he created from the 101 Primal Poison Tome, this could be his next trump card in addition to the poison knives.


    *


    After half a month, Amon could finally start moving again. Albeit in a very limited capacity. His broken bones hade together, but it still hurt every time he moved. So he continued to stay inside the cavern as he used the Nine Moon Restorative Mantra to speed up his healing, in addition to consuming his recovery pills daily. Luckily, he had many recovery pills to spare.


    He also consumed the spirit herbs and the spirit fruits from the tree regrly. The dense aether they provided gave his body the energy it needed to heal itself.<sub> </sub>


    After the constant usage of the Nine Moon Restorative Mantra, he became more proficient. His proficiency in the art increased to the Skilled level. His healing was further enhanced at this level. With this breakthrough, his healing speed increased.


    After a month had passed, Amon could move normally already. His burned hands still had some scars, but that was of no importance to him. He couldn''t continue to stay here. He probably had less than one month now. He needed to do a lot of things.


    He started to move the earth in this garden into his ck space ring. The earth in this garden was especially fertile. He spent days transferring arge amount of the earth. Afterward, he started to use his space ring to absorb the water from the stream inside this cavern. Like the earth, the water here also contained arge amount of aether, allowing it to provide much nutrition to the spirit herbs.


    After being done preparing the small garden inside his ck space ring, Amon moved the spirit herbs and the tree inside. They now sat inside his ring''s space.


    It''s time to leave, Amon thought. After learning his ck space ring''s ability to hold living things, he could now better utilize it.


    The space inside had the size of a town. The garden inside was just a tiny spot. He nned to put in much more. With the various nts that existed in this dimension, he would have no problem getting ingredients for his poison and his pills anymore. He could just grow them inside his ck space ring.


    For that, he needed to go out there and collect as many different types of nts as possible. He also wanted to bring in more of the trees where he had plucked the spirit herbs before.


    "Are you leaving?" The spirit asked.


    "I am. Are you tied to this ce? Or can you follow me?" Amon asked. He felt no attachment to the spirit, he just thought that if the spirit could follow, he could ask things in case he needed information.


    "I can''t follow, I''m bound to this ce. But since you have taken everything, once you leave, I will disperse," the spirit answered.


    Amon nodded. "Do I exit from where I came in? Or is there another way to go out?"


    "From the way youe in, the door will automatically open once you approach."


    "All right," Amon said and turned. He walked out the exit. He tried jumping over the maze''s stone wall. He was sessful in doing it now. The maze didn''t hinder him. He ran to where the stone staircases were and started climbing them.


    The spirit watched him running up the stairs. There was a sense of sadness in his eyes. His body started to slowly fade as Amon climbed higher.


    Amon returned to the dark corridor as he continued to ascend. He took out his Bright re Stone to illuminate the way.


    When he came near to the closed ceiling where the stairs ended, the ceiling started to slowly open by itself, just like what the spirit had said.


    He hid by the side of the stairs as the secret door opened, ready with his Swan dagger and poison knife. He didn''t want to be caught off guard in case one of the finalists stumbled upon this ce while the secret door was opening.


    After it waspletely opened, Amon stayed hidden as he listened intently.


    He heard nothing, so he came back up. He looked around. No one, just the dposing corpse of Pai Ning. Her body was starting to liquefy. Amon left the pyramid without sparing her another look.


    He looked around thendscape once he was outside.


    ''Okay, time to work,'' he thought.

 86 Chapter 86

    Amon had less than a month left, so he immediately got to work. He went to the area where he had seen the wild spirit herbs before. The soil there would certainly be fertile.


    He spent days transferring the soils into his ck space ring. He did feel the soil in this ancient dimension contained more aether than the soil outside. So he had to bring as many as he could while he was here.


    Thebor took a long time considering he had to scoop the soil before it could be transferred. Unlike water where he could simply put his ring inside and had it suck the water in.


    Every time he had ced sufficient soil, he would ce the spirit herbs in.


    When thend inside his space ring grew, the water he absorbed from the cavern was no longer sufficient. He had to find more water. He had encountered several rivers during his journey before entering the pyramid, so he went to one.


    He never approached any of these rivers before because he didn''t know what lurked under its surface. At the moment, he was willing to take some risks. But even so, he avoided the ones that had murky water and chose one that had clearer water. This way he could somewhat see what was beneath it. Due to this, he wasted several more days looking for one.


    Even when the river looked peaceful, Amon still approached the river carefully. His Swan Dagger was ready in his hand. The river''s water was flowing steadily. Amon chose the part of the river where it was the shallowest, hence he could see its depth and made sure there was nothing suspicious.


    Still, he didn''tpletely convince himself he was safe even when he could see the inside of the water. There was, after all, an invisible snake in this dimension. Why couldn''t there be an invisible fish?


    He stood beside the stream in alert for a while. Nothing seemed to agitate the water. After a long observation, Amon finally came down to the water. He ced his hand which had the ck space ring and started sucking the water in.


    He had built a reservoir inside the little world in his space ring by shaping it using the soil he had ced inside. He also put in lots of stones to make it solid. Everything that went into his space ring could be easily moved around with his mind, so he had no trouble building and arranging things inside. The water that he sucked was ced inside this reservoir.


    He had also built some kind of simple irrigation system that brought the water from this reservoir to distribute to the nts he had ced inside his space ring.


    The water level of the river was starting to slightly lower due to Amon''s action. After a long hour, the reservoir inside his space ring was almost filled up.


    As he was about to end drawing the water from the river. He felt a stirring in the water. He turned to his left and saw arge shadow underneath the water.


    Amon immediately jumped away at the same time that shadow leaped out from the water, towards where he was before.


    The thingnded on the drynd beside the river and Amon got a good look at it. It was a giant bullfrog, but it only had three legs. Two hind legs and one center leg which was directly under its throat. It had golden skin and several fins along its body.


    Amon recognized this spirit beast from the encyclopedia of spirit beasts which was one of the books he had gained from the pyramid legacy. It was called Three-legged Toad. It was a higher inferior spirit beast.


    Its danger, aside from its tremendous strength, came from the poison excreted around its skin. Amon felt lucky he had learned about this toad before encountering one. Otherwise, he wouldn''t know that its golden skin wasced with poison. One idental touch could be fatal. The only way to deal with this toad was from a distance.


    It also had another weapon that it liked to use, which it was using now. It croaked as itsrge round eyes stared at Amon. Its wide mouth opened then a red and long tongue shot out.


    Amon had prepared for it. He jumped sideways once the toad opened its mouth. At the same time, Amon threw three flying daggers. The dagger pierced the toad''s skin. The toad roared painfully. This toad did not have unprable scales like the Ethereal Bronze-skinned Snake he had fought before.<sub> </sub>


    Another thing notable about this toad was it was highly resistant to poison. Hence, Amon didn''t waste his poison knife on it. In the case that the knife lodged inside the toad''s body and couldn''t kill it and the toad decided to flee, Amon would have lost a precious poison knife.


    After seeing his knives could pierce the toad''s skin. Amon equipped his small crossbow and started shooting. The toad jumped forward to approach Amon, but Amon moved back and kept his distance. With this kiting method, he lured the toad away from the river while continuing to riddle the toad''s body with bolts.


    The crossbow wounds were shallow for the toad. But with so many of them, the injuries were building. The toad lost a lot of blood and finally realized its life was in danger. It decided that Amon was not a suitable prey. It turned back and started jumping away, trying to get back to the river.


    Amon wasn''t going to let it go. For this toad, the encyclopedia didn''t list all its valuable body parts, but Amon did not doubt that one of them might be the ingredient to one of the recipes in his 101 Primal Poison Tome.


    The toad had be slow after losing so much blood, but Amon continued to keep his distance. He didn''t take a risk tond a big blow. A moment of carelessness could turn a situation fast.


    Amon applied Soul Searching Shot in his next crossbow shot. In his current Master level, his bolt flew in a curve and struck the toad''s left eye urately. The toad croaked in pain as it trashed around. Amon took the chance tond more bolts onto its body.


    After a while, the toad finally stopped. It was just a few more jumps to reach the river, but it had no more strength to make a jump. It was still breathing though. Amon stayed at a distance and waited. He still didn''t approach despite the obvious victory. A beast on its death bed could still be dangerous.


    When the toad waspletely not moving and Amon couldn''t hear its breathing or its heartbeat, Amon took a step forward. He fired another bolt onto the toad''s throat. No response. The beast had truly died. Then only did Amon approach.


    Fighting a beast with prior knowledgepared to fighting one without any knowledge waspletely different. Amon made a resolution to read more about the spirit beasts'' encyclopedias he had gotten from the cavern. There were lots of these encyclopedias, he had only read a few of them. He was d one that he had read mentioned this Three-legged Toad.


    Amon removed one of the bolts riddling the toad''s body. It was melting. The poison from the toad''s body had corroded the wood. This meant all these bolts were useless now. He would have to make new bolts to rece this.


    The book mentioned that it took a day since the toad died before its body stopped secreting poison. So he needed to wait before he started dissecting the toad''s body. Amon took a thick glove and wore it before touching the toad''s body and transferring it into his space ring. His glove made a hissing sound and started melting as it produced smoke. Amon removed the glove and threw it away.


    Amon then went to the woods filled with trees that bore spirit fruits. He didn''t go inside the woods, however, he had no intention to encounter the Ethereal Bronze-skinned Snake again. He stayed outside the rim and started hacking on one of the trees. The wood of this tree was very sturdy. It would make for excellent bolts.


    He cut the downed tree into smaller parts and started shaping them into small bolts. He had no metal for the top, but the wood was strong enough and should be able to pierce solid objects on its own as long as he sharpened it enough.


    Hebored a full day to make the bolts before resuming his task of inserting soil into his space ring. The soil around this wood was also good. He nned to put more in and started transferring these trees into his space ring as well.


    Days passed as he worked. Amon left the toad''s body inside for longer than needed. He only took it out for dissection after three days had passed. Inside its body, multiple small poison sacks were under its skin. These poison sacs were no doubt valuable ingredients for poison-making. Amon stored these sacs with the other valuable parts that he could harvest from the body. After that, he returned to his routine.


    When Amon estimated that only two weeks were left of their time inside this dimension, One small corner of the space inside his ring already had what looked like a small ntation. With various spirit herbs and several trees that bore spirit fruits.


    Amon didn''t forget to hunt the Four-seasons Worm he found previously. He only collect the dead ones before, now he captured the live ones and put them inside his space ring. With this collection, he should have no problem experimenting and producing more poisons from the 101 Primal Poison Tome.

 87 Chapter 87

    Amon continued to collect soil, water, spirit herbs, spirit trees, and the Four-seasons Worm in his following days. But one day, he heard something from a distance. He looked over the direction before hurriedly finding a ce to hide.


    Not long after, he saw a couple of men passing through. Amon remembered the two. They were part of the fifty finalists from the tournament. The two were from a smaller n than the Lin n.


    The two looked over to the woods. Many of the trees here had been uprooted by Amon, so the soil was rather messy. The two observed the terrain with puzzlement. As they walked closer to the woods, they saw some of the trees bore spirit fruits. They seemed ecstatic and started to go and pick the fruits, storing them in their space rings while eating some at the same time.


    These people would be here for a while if he let them. Amon could move to a different part of the woods but that would be time-wasting. There was also no certainty that these two would stay here. They could also wander around and stumbled onto Amon another time there. That second time could be at an unfortunate moment where Amon was unaware of their approach.


    After a brief thought, Amon decided to just take care of them. They were from a smaller n, so they shouldn''t have that much ess to strong arts. It should be safe to deal with them. If they want to me someone, then me themselves for daring to be interlopers in his territory.


    Amon made sure first that there was no one else in the vicinity. Afterward, he approached the two from behind. The two were still busy collecting the spirit fruits in tion. Their excitement in finding treasures had made them oblivious of the environment. From the look of it, they were heading deeper into the woods. They would just be the prey of Ethereal Bronze-skinned Snakes if so. So, from the way Amon saw it, their fates were sealed. Might as well give whatever treasures they had found to him instead.


    Amon saw the two separated to cover more ground. Stupid move on their parts, but a blessing on Amon''s part. Amon crept to the closer one. All the while making sure that he stayed in his prey''s blind spot. He used the trees and shrubs for cover while trying his best to make as little sound as possible.


    Amon studied the situation. The two were not too far apart. It was not possible to take down one without alerting the other, which meant he had to face the other one directly. Since he couldn''t sense one''s cultivation yet, he couldn''t tell which one was stronger among the two. And since both were not showing their killing intents, Amon could also not gauge which one was the more dangerous one. So, it''s fifty-fifty.


    Never mind, they were just boys. Talented perhaps, with a bit of experience in killing spirit beast, but still, immature boys. He would have no problem going one-on-one with them.


    With that thought, Amon rushed out from his hiding ce. His prey had juste down from one tree and was headed towards another one. The boy heard something and started to turn. With his Swan dagger, Amon executed Silent Swift Stab. His body turned invisible.


    When the boy turned, he didn''t see anyone, but suddenly he felt something sharp stabbing into his throat as a cold eye boy suddenly appeared before him.


    "Urgghh¡­" He was choking on his own blood.


    Amon pulled his dagger violently to the side. The boy lost half of his neck. His head looked as if it was about to fall due to losing its support. The boy''s entire body then fell to the ground as blood continued to pour out of his torn neck.


    "You¡­! Who are you¡­?!" The other boy heard the disturbance and looked over. He immediately took out his weapon which was three interconnected ropes that had a spiked metal ball at each end. He started to spin these balls.


    ''Three-weights b weapon?'' Amon thought after seeing the weapon.


    The boy threw the b weapon, which spin around and destroyed everything in its path. Amon moved to the side to avoid the trajectory, but the spinning weapon turned in the air and came back at him.


    Amon was surprised but not flustered, he made a long jump back and dropped to the ground before rolling away, putting arge distance in a short time. The b weapon struck the ground then rebounded and flew back to the boy who threw it.


    It was a martial art, Amon thought. The art made his b weapon behave like a boomerang.


    The boy caught the b and spun it again.


    Amon threw his knife at the boy. Seeing the flying knife, the boy spun the b in front of him with fast speed. The b spun so fast that it created a force field. Amon''s knife bounced back after hitting this force field.


    The boy threw the b again. Amon dodged to the side and threw another knife, targeting the window when the boy lost his defensive weapon.


    The boy, however, took out another b weapon and spun it, deflecting Amon''s knife.


    The boy continued with this rhythm. After catching the first b back, he threw it again for the offense. The second b he kept for defense. Amon didn''t try to make contact with the thrown b, he continued to retreat.<sub> </sub>


    "Where are you going, you coward?! Are all you capable of is backstabbing?" The boy called out, trying to agitate Amon.


    Amon paid the words no mind. He might be able to finish off the boy if he forcefully approached, but there was also the risk of him getting injured by the b.


    The b came again, Amon hid behind arge tree. The b struck the tree, shattering the outer part of its trunk. The tree was sturdy enough to resist the b''s devastating force.


    "Hide and run, let''s see how long you canst," the boy shouted.


    Amon equipped his crossbow. ''You want to have a long-range contest? Let''s see who can hit farther then.''


    The b was thrown again, this time to the side of the tree since Amon was hiding behind it. The b abruptly changed direction in the air and came to Amon''s back.


    Amon had expected it. This boomerang tactic won''t work on him. He took a low position and rolled on the floor as the b flew past above him and again shattered the tree bark. Amon ran to another tree. That tree would break with another throw. He wouldn''t want to be underneath it when it came down.


    His opponent threw his second b at the same time as he received the one that returned, creating a continuous attack cycle. He did it while advancing to keep Amon within reach.


    Amon weaved in and out of trees as the bs kept oning.


    After a while, his opponent''s throwing slowed. The boy was tired now. As expected of an inexperienced boy, he didn''t know how to conserve his energy. It''s time to strike then.


    Amon waited for the boy to do his next throw. When the b left his hand, Amon shot his bolt. With precise dexterity, he loaded the next bolt swiftly then fired again, then loaded another bolt. He managed to shoot three bolts before the enemy''s b came. He immediately took cover in a tree that was next to him.


    When the opponent saw Amon''s bolts all flew slightly away from him. He snickered. Such a bad shot, he thought. But then the bolts started to change direction.


    These three bolts had been fired using Soul Searching Shot. Their flight curved and went for the target from different directions.


    The boy panicked and immediately spin the one b in his hand to create a protective forcefield. He deflected the first bolt, but the second bolt came to his side. He hurriedly turned and blocked the second bolt. At that time, the third bolt flew towards his back.


    With only one b, he couldn''t defend against attacks from so many sides. If he hadn''t thrown the other b, he could have used both to defend more effectively.


    He knew he couldn''t block the third bolt, so he tried jumping away. But he was toote and too slow. The bolt missed his vital point but hit his thigh. He screamed in pain.


    The b that he had thrown previously was on the way back. Due to his sudden pain, he was not paying attention. He ended up getting hit by his own b. The sound of cracking was heard when the metal balls of the b mmed his arm.


    He doubled over to the ground. He was yelling in pain due to the wounds. But the yell was quickly silenced when a fourth bolt came and hit him on the forehead.


    After dispatching the two boys. Amon came over and picked up their space rings. He checked the goods inside. There were surprisingly many items. The boys seemed to have worked hard in collecting things. Aside from the spirit fruits they had picked up just now, there were also spirit herbs, loads of aer stones, various pills, engraved weapons, and spirit beasts'' body parts.


    There was, however, one tool that piqued Amon''s curiosity amongst their belongings. Something that looked like apass. Amon searched through the things he had taken from Pai Ning. He had thrown away her clothes and other mundane things but had kept thepass. He thought that he might need it to get a bearing.


    He took thatpass out andpared it with the one from the boys. They were exactly the same. The wooden needle on both thepasses was pointing towards the depth of the woods.

 88 Chapter 88

    Amon transferred all the goods into his space ring including thepasses. He assumed thepasses as something the boys used to determine direction within this dimension. Perhaps the direction facing the depth of the woods was this dimension''s equivalent of the north pole.


    He threw away the two boy''s space rings and disposed of the body. He dug arge hole and then buried them inside. It''s not that he wanted to give them a proper burial. It''s just that if someone else came again and saw the body, they would be alerted and it would be harder for Amon to ambush them.


    Afterward, he returned to his chores of building the ntation inside his space ring.


    As before, he worked on the periphery of the woods without going too deep. Most of the soil surrounding the woods was now badly messed up due to Amon. Amon figured it should still take him a few more days to finish gathering the soil and trees in this woods'' outer rim. After that, he would need to search for another plot with good soil.


    Another two days passed. Amon had worked himself to a different part of the woods'' outer rim. He was mostly done at this ce. Before he left, however, he took out one of thepasses he had taken from the two boys he killed.


    He had a curiosity about thepass and wanted to check. When he looked at the needle, thepass was pointing in a different direction than the previous. Amon knew his bearing because he paid attention to his surroundings. He was sure thepass needle was pointing in a different direction.


    However, he noticed although the needle was pointing in a different direction than two days ago, it did point to the same thing. It was pointing into the depth of the woods.


    His curiosity piqued further, Amon decided to find out. He held thepass in his hand and he ran along the outer rim of the woods. As he ran, the needle of thepass slowly turned. Its needle was constantly pointing into the depth of the woods.


    ''Is the center of these woods the north pole of this dimension?'' Amon wondered.


    As he was having his thought, his sharp ears heard voices from the distance.


    ''Another person? Is it the other finalist again? This dimension is so vast and yet he keeps on running into other people?'' Amon hurriedly hid again.


    From his hiding ce, he saw two people. Two people he recognized. They were Lin Fen and Lin Cang, the youths from the same n as his. They were heading towards the woods. One of them, Lin Fen, was holding a small thing in her hand. He regrly looked down at this thing in her hand, as if ascertaining the direction they should take.


    Amon somehow thought if he went over to them, he would find out that the thing in Lin Fen''s hand would be the samepass as the one he had.


    ''Why do they have this thing?'' Amon thought. The Lin n never told him anything about this thing. Then again, he was considered an outsider in the Lin n so it was natural for them to keep something from him. What he was more interested in, was what thispass was pointing at and why these n youths were heading in the direction it pointed.


    After some thought, Amon decided to follow the two Lin youths. Like the two boys that he killed before, Lin Fen and Lin Cang were ecstatic when they found the trees that bore spirit fruits. They went and picked up the fruits.


    Was thepass simply showing the woods that had the trees with spirit fruits? Amon wondered.


    Amon stayed still and just observed them for a bit. He was mostly done with this ce, there was no need for him to kill any more trespassers. If all they were after were these spirit fruits, then Amon would just leave them and headed somewhere else searching for the next good plot to transfer into his space ring. They would encounter trouble from the Ethereal Bronze-skinned Snake inside the woods but that was not Amon''s problem.


    After some hours, the two Lin youths were finally done with the spirit fruits. Lin Fen looked at the thing on her hand again and they ventured deeper into the woods.


    Amon decided to tail them.


    They went deeper and deeper into the woods. Amon tailed them at the same time he was paying attention to his surroundings. He didn''t n to get ambushed by another Ethereal Bronze-skinned Snake again. He had read from the spirit beast encyclopedia that one could know one of these snakes was nearby by its particr scent.


    The scent was abination of the sweetness of almond scent and the stinkiness of a rotten cadaver, which was the weird scent Amon had smelled before he was assaulted by the invisible phyton he had killed. With this knowledge, he paid particr attention to his nose.


    He wondered whether the two Lin youths would arrive at whatever thepass was pointing to or would they be prey to the snakes. He put a sufficient distance between himself and those two. Firstly, to make sure they weren''t aware of being followed. Secondly, so that he could retreat safely if the two were ambushed by the snakes.<sub> </sub>


    It seemed that fate was rather kind to the two Lin youths. They had traveled for more than half a day and were very deep into the woods. Yet, no encounter with the snakes.


    In fact, the woods were surprisingly devoid of living things. Only a few harmless critters and worms. No other animals nor spirit beasts. Amon assumed probably the creator of this dimension didn''t put too many ecosystems inside this world. Even throughout his travel these few days, this dimension appeared rather barren with life except for a few spots.


    The two Lin youths Amon was following suddenly stopped. They looked around as if searching for something. Amon stopped as well.


    ''Did they hear me?'' Amon thought. No, he was very confident with his stealth.


    Amon then saw the reason why the two stopped. Another figure appeared and walked to where the two were standing. Amon remembered that person as one of the White Cloud youths. The two Lin youths seemed to be on edge when this person approached. However, this person held his hands up and gave a gesture that he meant no harm.


    The three talked. Amon couldn''t hear what they were talking about since they were too far.


    After a long discussion, the three started walking together.


    Amon frowned. ''What''s going on here?''


    He tailed after the three. He checked thepass in his possession. The three were deviating a bit from the direction shown by thepass.


    Amon decided to follow the three first. He didn''t want to go to where thepass was pointing without sufficient information.


    After a while, Amon saw the three approaching arger group of youths. Amon was surprised to find so many youths there. The world inside this dimension was so big. How did they end up here? He looked at thepass in his hand. Was it because they all followed this thing?


    Amon searched for a tree that had thick foliage near where the group was gathering. He then stealthily approached and climbed the tree. He counted the number of youths gathering below. Including the two Lin youths, there were thirteen youths.


    Out of one hundred youths that entered this dimension, this could be considered quite a few. Amon looked at their hands, most of them carried the samepass in his hand. This confirmed how they gathered here. There were probably more youths that had thesepasses as well, but they couldn''t get here because they were transported to a ce too far away from here when they entered this dimension.


    The group below had five from the White Cloud sect while the other eight were from the different ns who participated in the tournament. Amon remembered all their faces even if he didn''t catch their names. There were, however, two familiar faces within the group. Wei Lun, the Wei n''s tournament winner who pretended to be weak, and the talented youth from the Lei n, Lei San.


    A tall boy from the White Cloud sect seemed to be the one assuming the leadership of the group. This boy was briefing the new arrivals, the Lin youths.


    p Amon was close enough to hear what they were talking about.</anda>


    "You are of the Lin n?" This tall boy asked.


    Both Lin Fen and Lin Cang nodded.


    "My name is Pai Wuci," The tall boy introduced. "I am the leader of this group. You should do well to listen to my order."


    The two Lin youths looked at one another before they nodded.


    "Good. You two are following the nightshadepass, so you know what youe here for," Pai Wuci said. "But know this, the Thousand Year Mandrakes you after are within the nest of Ethereal Bronze-skinned Snakes. If you proceed, you won''t make it out alive."

 89 Chapter 89

    ''Thousand Year Mandrake?'' Amon had read about this nt from the catalog of spirit nts. This catalog was one of the many books he had gotten from the legacy under the pyramid.


    The Thousand-Year Mandrake was ssified as a higher superior nt. The ssification of spirit nts and spirit herbs was the same as spirit beasts. This Thousand-Year Mandrake was a potent ingredient to create pills that could help cultivation or many other different areas. However, it had one particr perk. If this mandrake was consumed by a cultivator of fifteen age or below. It could trigger a special constitution on the cultivator''s body.


    A special constitution was something that gave the cultivator a unique ability. The ability was different for everyone. For one person it could be an ability to increase cultivation speed. For another, it could be an affinity to the fire element, and so on.


    Normally this kind of special constitution was gained from birth and was very rare. The rate was probably one among ten million who might be born with a special constitution. Some pills could increase the chance. These kinds of pills were usually taken by a pregnant mother. The pills, however, were very expensive and their ingredients were very difficult to procure. Additionally, the sess rate was still very low.


    The highest chance one could hope for to gain a special constitution was by consuming the Thousand-Year Mandrake before one reached sixteen years of age. Yet, this Thousand Year Mandrake was no longer found in the outside world. If there was one here, it''s no wonder that these youths came for it.


    Amon looked at the nightshadepass in his hand. The wooden needle seemed special. It was probably a kind of special wood that was attracted to the Thousand-Year Mandrake. For these n youths to carry thispass meaning the existence of this Thousand Year Mandrake inside this dimension was public knowledge amongst the ns.


    ''Damn that Lin Bubai. He didn''t mention anything about this mandrake when he exined about this dimension,'' Amon cursed within.


    Down there, Pai Wuci was still briefing the two neers from the Lin n.


    "If you don''t know about Ethereal Bronze-skinned Snakes, then let me enlighten you," Pai Wuci said. "They are a higher inferior beast. They can turn invisible and their skin is very hard to pierce. For the Strength stage cultivators like us, you can forget trying to pierce their skin. Unless you have a Runic weapon."


    Amon understood that a runic weapon was a higher grade weaponpared to an engraved weapon. He, however, had neverid his eyes on one.


    "Since none of us have such a weapon, we must work together to get the Thousand Year Mandrake," Pai Wuci continued.


    "How should we work together?" Lin Fen asked.


    "Before that, let us make clear who will get the mandrake first," Pai Wuci said.


    "Do you know how many Thousand-Year Mandrakes are there?" Lin Fen asked again.


    "My sect brother who learned the eagle eye art said he spotted three," Pai Wuci answered.


    "Only three?" Lin Fen said and looked at the youths gathered here. There were thirteen of them.


    "The White Cloud Sect will take two. The remaining of you will decide among yourself who will get thest one."


    "One? But¡­ There are more of us than the White Cloud disciples!"


    "One White Cloud disciple worth a hundred of you filthy n brats!" Pai Wuci bellowed. The other n youths were visibly dissatisfied hearing Pai Wuci''s condescending words. "We have a secret method to lure the adult Ethereal Bronze-skinned Snakes away, leaving only the younglings. These younglings'' skin was not as hard as the adults. They also couldn''t turn invisible yet. So, we should be able to deal with them and get the Thousand Year Mandrakes."


    "Then why do you need us for?"


    "Even if they were younglings and not as strong as the adults, they were still higher inferior beasts. Their numbers were also concerning. We can''t deal with all of them ourselves. That''s why we are willing to relinquish the third Thousand-Year Mandrake to you people. After we get the three mandrakes, you people can decide about this third one. Either bypetition or real fight, we don''t care. So, are you in? The others have agreed to this condition."


    Lin Fen and Lin Cang looked at the other n youths. They didn''t object to Pai Wuci''s words, which meant that he was telling the truth. The two thought about it. Even if they sessfully got the mandrakes, they still had to fight the other n youths for it. Was it worth it? Did they have the confidence to beat the other n youths?


    "If you don''t want to join. You are wee to go ahead and try to take the mandrake by yourself," Pai Wuci said when the two remained quiet. "Perhaps then the snakes will be full after having a big meal. It will be easier for us to deal with them."


    The other White Cloud disciplesughed after hearing Pai Wuci''s words.


    Lin Fen and Lin Cang looked at one another.


    "We don''t have all the time in the world. Are you in or are you out?" Pai Wuci bellowed. "If you are not in, then scram!"


    "We¡­ We are in¡­," Lin Fen said weakly. A small chance was still better than no chance, she thought.


    "Good. Now go there with the others. We will begin our operation tomorrow. We will see if more peoplee," Pai Wuci said.


    Lin Fen and Lin Cang went to the group formed by the ns. They preferred to stay away from the five of the White Sect. The White Sect''s youths had the same thoughts.


    Amon observed them and then try to gaze at where the mandrake was supposed to be. Should he try to get those mandrakes before this group did? No, he had heard them. There was a nest of Ethereal Bronze-skinned Snakes around the mandrakes. He had personally experienced the danger of this snake. It would be suicide to go into their nest.


    Pai Wuci mentioned he had a way to lure the adult snakes away. Amon figured he would just watch what they do and reacted ordingly based on the situation.<sub> </sub>


    So, he stayed hidden in the tree while observing the youths below.


    *


    No new youth appear anymore. It was night. Some of the youths were sleeping while two of them kept a watch. One from the ns'' youths, the other from the White Cloud sect. They didn''t trust each other to have only one side keeping watch.


    Amon stayed awake throughout the night while cultivating. His demon body allowed him to rest by meditating.


    While he was in deep meditation, he felt a presence from his back. He abruptly turned and jumped away.


    "Don''t worry, I mean no harm," the person that was behind him just now said.


    Amon frowned. Lei San? He looked down there. The sleep sack where Lei San used toy was empty.


    "Did you use a concealment art?" Amon asked. Otherwise, it wouldn''t be possible for Lei San to sneak behind him until so close.


    "And a detection art. I won''t be aware of your presence otherwise," Lei San answered. "We should talk somewhere away. They might hear us if we keep talking here."


    Lei San moved away without waiting for Amon''s answer. After a brief pause, Amon followed after him.


    The two went a distance away.


    "Stop! There is no need to go out this far," Amon said and stopped running.


    Lei Sanplied. He approached Amon.


    "Do note too near," Amon uttered as his Swan dagger appeared in his hand.


    "You are a very careful person, Lin Mo," Lei San remarked. "Some people might mistake you for a coward."


    "Better be a coward than be dead," Amon replied.


    "I suppose that''s true," Lei San said.


    "Are you calling me out just for a chat?"


    "I can see you are not a patient person as well. All right, I will get to the point. I want to offer cooperation."


    "Cooperation? For what?"


    "There is no need to be coy. I know you are listening when that Pai brute was talking with the other two Lin youths. I assumed the three of you Lin youths are not truly tight?"


    "I thought you are getting to the point?"


    Lei San smiled. "I want to propose for us to work together to get those mandrakes."


    "How will we do that?"


    "You are interested? Good. How we do that is to wait for those White Cloud youths to lure the adult snakes away. Only they have that means to lure those snakes. We can''t do anything before that."


    "And once they did?"


    "I will be with them, following their n to clear out the young snakes."


    "So, where do I factor in this?"


    "I have a secret art that should be able to clear out a path for a few short moments. When I do, you will be the one who snatches the mandrakes."

 90 Chapter 90

    "Hm¡­" Amon gave the matter a thought.


    "Even if you cannot get three, you should at least get two with your two hands. One for me and one for you. What do you say?"


    Amon didn''t respond.


    Lei San continued, "this mandrake can be said to be the true purpose for the youths that enter this dimension. As you know, everything we take from this ce will be confiscated by the White Cloud sect once we leave. While there are spirit herbs and fruits here that we can consume to increase our cultivation, the time we spent here is too short. A few months of consumption won''t give much effect. The Thousand-Year Mandrake, on the other hand, is something that you can consume and its effect willst your entire life. It is what every young cultivator is willing to die for.


    "This dimension has been secretly known as the ce that has plenty of these mandrakes. That''s why many ns and even the White Cloud sect made thispass. The needle was made from the stem of a Thousand-Year Mandrake that was harvested before. This stem was attracted to the nearest living Thousand-Year Mandrake, so it can be used to locate the next mandrake. However, a Thousand Year Mandrake rarely had a stem, so each of thesepasses was a valuablemodity for those who enter this ce.


    "That''s why almost every reputable n that managed to enter this ce, was told to search for these mandrakes. This was their priority before umting other treasures to be given to the White Cloud sect in exchange for points."


    Amon understood now why neither Lin Weida nor Lin Bubai exined to him about these mandrakes. The benefit would only be for himself, the Lin n won''t get any if it was Amon who discovered the mandrakes since he was still considered an outsider. Better to let their direct descendants such as Lin Fen and Lin Cang the opportunity.


    "Do you need to think for so long to give me an answer?" Lei San asked.


    "All right, I will do it," Amon said. "How do I know when you will use your secret art?"


    "You just need to watch my art," Lei San said as he offered his hand for a handshake. "I hope our cooperation is sessful."


    Amon simply stared at Lei San''s hand without offering his.


    Lei San kept his smile as he retracted his hand. He then took out a small round object from his Space Ring. "This is a Repent Smoke Bomb. It creates thick smoke that spread out and will repel most spirit beasts. Once you get the mandrake, you will have a higher chance of escaping if you use this. The smoke will cover you and it will also drive the remaining snakes away, so you can make a quick getaway."


    "Why you didn''t just use that smoke bomb yourself to get the mandrakes?" Amon asked.


    "First, they have already seen me in this group. The White Cloud will give my Lei n a series of troubles if they knew I take the mandrakes out of their youths'' hands."


    "And I won''t have that problem?" Amon asked.


    "I''m sure you bring something that covers your identity when you do the snatching. No one is aware that you are here aside from me. As long as you are not caught, then there should be no problem. The second reason, you will need to see the mandrakes clearly when you pluck them out. If you use the Repent Smoke Bomb before that, you won''t be able to."


    "Why would I need to see the mandrakes?"


    "When being pulled out, the Thousand Year Mandrake will utter a shrill cry that can paralyze most creatures. You should prepare something to plug your ears for that. After the cry, the mandrake will detach itself from its stem and flower before attempting an escape. You have to pay attention to the direction where its shrieking mouth is pointing because that''s the direction it will bolt to. You have to catch it just as it is detaching itself. If you fail to catch it as it detached, you will have very little chance of catching it. It is very fast, not to mention there will still be those young Ethereal Bronze-skinned Snakes around the ce, not to mention the other youths. You won''t be able to chase after it. Once it is gone, the mandrake will look for another secluded and safe ce to burrow itself and grow another flower again."


    "I see. That is very useful information. Any other things I should be aware of about the mandrake? What about after I have the mandrake? Can I just eat it raw?" Amon asked.


    "You can. In fact, that is the only way to eat it. Doing anything else to it will reduce its potency," Lei San said. His hand extended again to offer Amon the Repent Smoke Bomb.


    "How about what the mandrakes looked like? How do I identify them inside the snakes'' nest?"<sub> </sub>


    "The mandrakes haverge purple flowers above them. The sides of the flower have red lines. It is very distinctive. There should be no other flower inside that nest."


    "All right, we will follow your n," Amon said and received the bomb. "I will try to get all three if possible. If not, then I will get at least two. You have my words that I will give one to you."


    "I''m d to hear it," Lei San said. "I will return. If I am gone for too long, they might get suspicious. They nned to do it at dawn. When the young snakes are still sluggish. You should prepare by then."


    "I will," Amon said.


    *


    The next morning, before the sun rose. The thirteen youths prepared themselves to raid the nest of the Ethereal Bronze-skinned Snakes for the mandrakes.


    Pai Wuci was organizing the operation. He had one of the White Sect youth go somece away. That youth was the one in charge of cing the bait to lure the snakes away.


    The bait was scented meat. This scented meat had been prepared by the White Cloud sect''s cooks and alchemists. It carried a strong particr scent that the Ethereal Bronze-skinned Snakes found hard to resist once they smell it.


    White Cloud sect was the organization that had explored this dimension the longest. They had not yet explored all the corners of this dimension nor did they encounter all the spirit beasts that existed here. But the ones they did, they had studied and devised the strategies and tools to deal with them. Pai Wuci carried with him all sorts of these tools and baits. Luckily for these youths, these Ethereal Bronze-skinned Snakes were one of those known beasts.


    Pai Wuci arranged the remaining twelve youths here. They spread out and prepared to take action.


    They had taken positions as close to the nest as possible. From the distance, they saw the countless snakes coiling on top of each other. These snakes didn''t turn invisible until they left their nest to hunt.


    Not long after, they saw the Ethereal Bronze-skinned Snakes start reacting. One by one, the snakes left. As their bodies slithered out from the nest, the furthest one started to be transparent. As they moved further, they werepletely invisible.


    Pai Wuci gave the sign to hold when he saw some of the youths be restless. They needed to wait until the adults were far away. They needed sufficient time to deal with the young snakes. The White Cloud sect''s boy who had taken the bait would be moving the bait further in an interval. Therefore, pulling the adults further and further.


    When Pai Wuci thought that it was long enough. He gave the go sign.


    Everyone came out of their hiding ground. Those that had long-range weapons or arts initiated the assault. The young snakes which were slithering or restingzily in the nest were greatly startled by the ambush. They hurriedly spread out as the attacks wounded them. There were nearly fifty of them.


    The next to attack were those who possessed fire element arcane arts. The Ethereal Bronze-skinned Snakes were of the metal element and fire was strongest against this element.


    All four of the White Cloud sect''s youths possessed these fire element arcane arts. They were the top organization in White Cloud city, so it made sense that they possessed the most number of arts. The first round of assault resulted in six young snakes being killed.


    The snakes didn''t just wait to be ughtered. Although they were still young, they fought ferociously. They didn''t have venom. And since they couldn''t yet turn invisible, their edge came from their strength. Their scales although not yet as tough as the adults, were still tough enough to endure most attacks. Only those with the fire element could truly hurt them easily.


    One of the n youths got reckless. He became too heated in the attack and advanced too far. He got himself surrounded by three snakes. As he realized his blunder, he tried to escape. But one of the snakes swung its body and hit him by the side. Another took the chance and coiled around his body.


    He tried to fight the snake off while calling desperately for help. However, the others were too busy fighting or simply didn''t care. He felt the snake that wrapped around his body start to tighten. Soon, he heard the sound of his bones breaking. It took a second before the pain seeped in. He screamed. The scream soon ended when the snake tightened the grip on his head and shattered his skull.

 91 Chapter 91

    The youths originally underestimated these snakes because they were still young, but after one youth was killed, they became cautious. They tried to keep the fighting at range because the snakes had no range capabilities. Due to this, the snakes got pulled away from the center of their nest.


    Seeing this, Pai Wuci instructed one of his sectrades to sneak through the snakes. He used his arcane art. His two arms burst into me. The me formed into the shape of a saber. Pai Wuci swung his two arms which were now ming sabers onto the closest snakes. The me sabers cut through the hard scales of the young snakes and produced scorching wounds. They hissed while reeling back.


    This created a gap for his sectrade to pass through. This White Cloud youth was the fastest amongst them. He also possessed movement art, Cloud Walk, which allowed his running speed to increase. During the activation of this speed, his running speed made his feet appear as if not touching the ground.


    Pai Wuci used another of his fire element arcane art. Several me darts were shot from his fingers. These me darts struck the snakes near hisrade''s running path, preventing them from intercepting hisrade.


    However, it was still not enough. When hisrade was halfway towards the nest, one of the snakes swung its tail into the air. Pai Wuci''s me darts stabbed the swinging tail but it endured the burn and continued swinging. The swinging tail was long, it covered arge area. The sect youth who was running at top speed had little time to react.


    The swinging tail connected with his chest. The two wereing at each other at high speed. The impact was severe. Everyone heard the sound of bones cracking. The sect youth was smacked to the ground by the side, right in the middle of a carpet of wriggling snakes.


    His scream, which was let out due to both terror and pain, made everyone''s hairs stand on ends.


    One of the n youths couldn''t endure the pressure. He turned around and fled.


    "Coward! Come back!" Pai Wuci uttered with disgust.


    While the rest of the n youths were having second thoughts after seeing one of them run, they heard a loud voice.


    "Watch my art!"


    They turned and saw Lei San who was standing a distance away. He had his right hand''s fingers held up high, his left hand was holding those fingers. Violent fire aether swirls around those fingers. Lei San then brought his fingers down and pointed forward. A thin red beam shot out from those fingers. It cut a straight line to the nest. This line then caught on fire, creating a fire fence.


    Many of the snakes that this beam pierced through were wounded or outright cut. The ones that were still alive writhed away from the fire fence.


    It was indeed an impressive art. But shouting to draw everyone''s attention, this Lei San was quite a showoff, Pai Wuci thought with a scoff.


    Lei San was not done, he took a step sideways as his other hand''s fingers started to umte simr fire aether. He then pointed those fingers and shot another beam. Two long fire fences lined up side by side. The snakes avoided the fire, creating a safe path directly to the nest.


    Lei San, who had just discharged powerful arcane arts two times in a row, fell to the ground with a pale face. He shouted to the others, "Everyone! Go through this path and¡­"


    His words stopped because at that time, a dark shadow shot out from the bushes behind him. This shadow jumped over Lei San and ran through the created path. Lei San showed a surprised expression. "Who¡­? Stop¡­!!"


    Amid the fire fence, the others caught sight of this intruder. It was a boy in a ck suit. His head was also covered in ck cloth, leaving only his two eyes. He was running at high speed towards the nest.


    "Stop him!" Pai Wuci immediately shouted. But the snakes were blocking their path, they couldn''t get through. They ran towards where Lei San was, so that they could enter from the path created by the fire fences as well. Yet, Lei San had ced himself some distance away from them. They had to waste time running over there. Pai Wuci cursed Lei San in his mind for that.<sub> </sub>


    Lei San was still panting on the ground with a pale face when the first youth arrive. "St¡­ Stop him¡­," Lei San said weakly.


    The first boy who arrived rushed into the fire fence path. When Pai Wuci arrived, he had the urge to kick Lei San before going in, but he controlled himself. He was about to rush into the fire fence when he stopped himself. Another n boy got past him and rushed in. When a White Cloud''s youth was about to head in, Pai Wuci stopped him. This youth looked at him with a puzzled expression.


    "The fire is getting weaker," Pai Wuci spoke to answer his questioning look. The youth took a better look after Pai Wuci''s words and found the fire fence was indeed dimming.


    As the fire fence became weaker, it was no longer enough to repel the snakes. The first boy who rushed in to chase the ck-suit intruder had gone only halfway when one of the snakes jumped through the weakened fire fence. It had used its powerful belly muscle to rise in an attacking posture beforeshing out from a height, jumping past the fire. The snake''s jump height was the height of the boy''s head. The boy detected the movement from the corner of his eyes and turned just to see the wide-opened mouth of the snake.


    His consternationsted only a moment before his head entered the snake''s mouth. He was pulled to the side out of the fire fence due to the snake''s jumping momentum. He fell to the ground with his whole head still being gripped by the snake''s mouth. He only had the chance to struggle for a brief moment before the snake mped down on his powerful jaw and shattered his skull.


    The second boy who had run into the fence stopped dead on his track after seeing what had happened. He then immediately turned around and attempted an escape, but the fire fence had gotten even weaker by then. Several snakes forcefully crawled through the fire. He soon found his return path blocked. He looked to the front again and saw several snakes had crawled in from that side as well. When he was unsure of where to go, he didn''t notice one tail sneaked through from underneath, enduring the pain caused by the dimming fire fence. It then abruptly coiled around the boy''s leg and then pulled. The boy was screaming as he was forcefully pulled out from the fire fence. His scream didn''tst long.


    Pai Wuci turned to Lei San in anger, "You should have told us first if you are going to create a path like that so we can prepare!"


    "I¡­ I''m sorry," Lei San said.


    Pai Wuci was about to ask if he could do that fire beam art again. But with one look at Lei San''s exhausted face, he knew that there was no need to ask. He gritted his teeth as he looked back at the nest. The dark suit youth was already inside the nest. He couldn''t get a good look because the nest was formed by broken twigs, branches, and bushes.


    ''Who the hell is that person?'' Pai Wuci thought in rage. While still holding the thought, a shrill cry that made him feel as if his ear drums were bursting filled the air.


    *


    The ck-suited person was Amon. He had stayed in hiding but stayed close to Lei San all the time. He noticed the Lei youth was slowly moving away from the other youths. Amon suspected he had done so deliberately, which meant that he should act soon.


    When Lei San yelled asking people to watch his art, that''s when Amon knew it was time to act.


    Amon honestly was impressed by Lei San''s art. It was a powerful fire element art. The prating effect was very powerful. Many of the snakes were cut by the art despite their hard scales. It was also very fast. If Lei San used this art in a fight, it would be very difficult for the opponent to dodge. Unless that opponent was him, of course.


    After going through the path made by the fire fences and arriving inside the nest, Amon saw other boys entering the fire fences path as well. Some of the snakes were also slithering back after seeing an intruder enter their nests, but these snakes had been pulled away from their nests. It would take some time for them to return.


    Amon ignored them all. He focused his mind to search for the mandrakes. Luckily, they were not hidden at all. He immediately located threerge purple flowers at the center of the nest. The flowers had red lines adorning their sides. He knew then he had found the right ones.


    He didn''t have much time, so he used two hands to grip two flowers. He intended to pluck two mandrakes at the same time.


    Without hesitation, he pulled.

 92 Chapter 92

    He pulled the flowers in his grips and felt the ground giving way, revealing tworge roots that looked very much like miniature humans. These two humanoid roots wore a terrified expression and opened their wide mouths. Piercing shrill cries soon assaulted him. He had already worn earplugs as was warned by Lei San, but he could still hear the cry. The cry made him cringe but his mental fortitude kept him from being paralyzed. If he didn''t wear any earplugs, then it would have been a different case.


    He felt the flower in his grips be lighter, just as the humanoid roots detached themselves from the stem of the flower he was holding. He had been prepared and paid attention to the direction they were screaming at. His two hands released the flower with a fast motion and came down the paths where the two humanoid roots were facing.


    <o>,m Amon felt these two humanoid roots m into his hands as they attempted to run. He immediately tightened his grips around these two mandrakes. All the while, they continued to cry.</o>


    With a thought, Amon sent the two mandrakes into his ck space ring. If he was using a normal ring, he would have to kill these mandrakes first before storing them. Otherwise, they would have been repelled because they were still alive.


    Thest purple flower was still at the nest, but the snakes were getting near now. These mandrakes were their treasure. They had made their nest at this ce precisely because of the existence of these mandrakes. The aura and air around these mandrakes provided them with a nourishing environment to grow. Once they saw an intruder in their nest, they slithered back frantically.


    Amon used one hand to grip thest purple flower. He was not going to let it go when he was so close. His other hand took out Lei San''s Repent Smoke Bomb. He channeled his aether into the bomb to trigger it before throwing it onto the ground.


    Thick smoke exploded outward, covering everything in the vicinity. The smell was indeed terrible, but Amon could still bear it. The snakes, however, were screeching wildly. Amon couldn''t hear them because of his earplugs, but he sensed the danger they represented dissipating, which meant they were moving away, avoiding the smoke.


    Amon pulled the flower in his hand. He could not see the mandrake, but he could still hear its scream despite the earplugs, which was a good thing. He was not paralyzed by the scream but he could still hear the cry enough to identify the position of the mouth, the source of the cry. His acute hearings immediately processed this information once the mandrake started screaming.


    Amon''s other hand shot in the direction he suspected the mandrake would be heading. That hand touched something soon. He immediately grabbed the thing and transferred it into his ck space ring.


    Afterward, he ran in the opposite direction from where Lei San was because that''s where most of the youths were concentrated.


    The smoke continued to travel outward, pushing the snakes further. With a bigger circumference, the density of the snakes became sparser. When he came out of the smoke, he quickly identified the area with fewer snakes and ran that way.


    One of the nearest snakes sprang at him with its mouth opened wide. Amon made an abrupt stop. The snake passed by his front. He used one hand to grab the snake''s head. Another hand was holding the Swan dagger, which he stabbed underneath its neck, a little below its mouth. There was a soft spot there where the scale was not as hard as the rest of the body. He had this information after reading the spirit beasts encyclopedia from the pyramid legacy. This weakness existed even on the adult Ethereal Bronze-skinned Snakes.


    With this information, he fared much better than the other youths.


    The snake that had assaulted him died after that one stab into its skull. Amon transferred the carcass into his space ring before resuming his escape.


    Another nearby snake attacked byshing out its tail. It had probably seen this human killing its friend by exploiting their weakness. So it avoided sending its head in the assault. Amon squatted down when the tail swipe came and rolled forward.


    At the end of his roll, he detected a small ball was flying at him. It was toote to dodge, so he used his swan dagger to block that ball. It exploded with tiny shrapnels and blue smoke. Some of the shrapnels hit Amon but he protected his vital parts. The explosion was small and the shrapnels were tiny. They didn''t give him any serious injury.


    Amon looked over at the one who had thrown the ball. It was Wei Lun.


    Amon didn''t waste time standing there. He had broken through the snake''s encirclement after the roll. Without further ado, he ran away.<sub> </sub>


    *


    Pai Wuci had known the ck-suited person would run the other way once he saw the smoke. He hurriedly instructed everyone to head to the other side. However, with the snakes between them, they had to go through a big roundabout.


    He was not even halfway when he saw the ck-suited intruder escaping the snakes. One of the n youths attacked with a ranged weapon, but the ck-suited intruder blocked the attack. The weapon exploded but it didn''t cause any meaningful injury. What a weak weapon, Pai Wuci cursed in his mind.


    The intruder then dashed off into the distance.


    "Arrgghhh¡­! Don''t let him get away¡­!!!" Pai Wuci yelled in rage. However, with such a head start, he knew that it was unlikely for them to catch up. Theirrade with a movement art had perished when he tried to barge into the snakes'' nest. The rest of them didn''t have any decent long-range movement art. Pai Wuci had one, but his movement art was a short burst that was only useful in a fight, not for a long-range chase.


    *


    Amon didn''t stop running. He stayed within the woods as it provided most cover. He also did not run in a straight line. He always used hard-packed soil to step on, rocks or gravel as opposed to soft soil which would leave tracks. He had also inserted soft pads under his soles to muffle his footsteps. He avoided touching the bushes or breaking any branches as he ran.


    Although he was running at high speed, he still paid attention to not stumble into one of those adult Ethereal Bronze-skinned Snakes. He had made sure to run in a different direction than Pai Wuci''s partner who lured the adult snakes away, but there could still be the possibility of a straggler snake, like the one that attacked him the first time.


    He had traveled the circumference of these woods for days when setting up his ntation. So, he knew the terrain outside. There was another forest nearby. He picked the closest side between these woods and the other forest before running out into the ins in the direction of that forest. There was no one in sight so he thought he should have lost his pursuers.


    He didn''t stop until he entered the other forest and headed into the deeper part. He had traveled around this forest before. There were some spirit beasts here, but they were just lower inferior beasts. They were boar creatures that had six tusks on their head. When Amon first encountered this beast and killed it, he found it to be quite tasty after cooking it. Hence, these woods were some of the safe areas for him to hide.


    He rested at a clearing within these woods. He had been running non-stop for almost half a day. Noon had passed and the sun was low on the horizon already. His ck suit was drenched with sweat. He took off the suit and reced them with his original clothes.


    He then sat on arge rock with thick bushes beside it. He allowed his breathing to return to normal while applying healing salve on the wounds caused by Wei Lun''s shrapnels. After a while, he took out one of the mandrakes from his ck space ring. The mandrake was still alive and wriggling in his hand. It, however, was no longer producing that shrill cry. It didn''t have the energy to make the cry continuously, The paralyzing cry only happened one time after the mandrake was pulled.


    Amon observed the mandrake in his hand. It was making a whimpering cry. He lowered his head and took a bite on the mandrake. After a few bites, he stopped. Something was wrong. His body suddenly convulsed violently. He fell to the side into the thick bushes with the mandrake still in his hand.


    He continued to convulse inside the bushes, as was evident from the swaying of the bushes. After a while, the bushes finally stopped moving.


    A figure jumped down from a nearby tree after the bushes stopped moving. It was Lei Muyin, the other Lei n''s youth who entered this dimension with Lei San. On her shoulder was a creature simr to a squirrel. The squirrel could detect a particr scent and she had been using it to track Amon.


    The scent that the squirrel tracked was a scent produced by the Repent Smoke Bomb Amon had used to repel the snakes. The bomb was given by Lei San. He had added special substances inside the bomb which would be released and adhered to the person within the smoke. These substances released the special scent that the squirrel on Lei Muyin''s shoulder could track.


    Lei Muyin approached the bushes. On her hand was a long slim sword. Lin Mo should be half dead already for eating the mandrake raw, but she still wanted to kill this Lin youth using her own hand.

 93 Chapter 93

    Lei Muyin came by the bushes. Her heart was beating. She had gone with her n tutors to kill spirit beasts before, but this would be the first time for her to kill a human being. She was excited. People said that the first time was the most memorable. She would like to pull out this Lin Mo so she could see his face when she stabbed him.


    Their Lei n and this boy''s Lin n had always been at odds, so killing this Lin n''s member would be a glory for her. Of course, she couldn''t spread this glory outside of her n. Otherwise, a war might erupt between the two ns. Open conflict was never good for growth. It would be the White Cloud Sect who reaped the benefit of their two nsing to war.


    She looked around the bushes, looking for Lin Mo''s legs or arms so she could pull him out. But she couldn''t find any, the bushes were rather wide. Did she have to get her robe dirty by entering the bushes? She thought annoyingly.


    Seeing no other choice, she inserted her arm into the bushes. She searched around with her hand trying to find Amon''s body.


    As she did, a de suddenly burst out from within the bushes. The de stabbed right into her throat.


    It happened so fast that by the time Lei Muyin wanted to utter a surprised cry, the de was already in her throat. Her surprise cry came in the form of a choked cry instead, with blood bursting from her mouth.


    The de was pulled out. A gush of blood sprayed from her opened throat. She swayed back before falling to the ground. The squirrel on her shoulder jumped as she fell. Sensing the danger, the squirrel hurriedly scurried away, leaving its dying owner. However, before it could get far, a knife flew out and pierced its body, nailing it to the ground.


    Amon came out of the bushes, the swan dagger in his hand was dripping with blood.


    Lei Muyin wanted to ask how, but blood continued to fill her mouth, causing her to unable to speak. She was still looking at Amon with wide eyes when she breathed herst breath.


    After he was sure that Lei Muyin had died, Amon squatted down and took her space ring. She had found some valuables but nothing much, Amon transferred them into his space ring.


    Amon had known that someone was approaching when he was resting. Lei Muyin''s art of stealth was not enough to fool Amon. When he detected that someone was watching him, he pretended to eat the mandrake raw.


    He had known from the start that eating the mandrake raw would be fatal. He had read about the mandrake''s info from the Catalog of spirit nts. He asked for Lei San''s exnation about the mandrake simply to bait him. Lei San had told the truth about the mandrake except about the consuming part.


    Consuming a raw mandrake would leave the consumer poisoned because the mandrake''s skin possessed lethal poison. One would need to submerge it under boiling water for at least an hour to remove the poison before consuming the mandrake.


    Since Lei San was lying to him, then he was sure to not be trustful in leaving the mandrakes with Amon. Amon suspected that Lei San must have a way toe at him once the mandrakes were in his hands. Turned out it was his partner, Lei Muyin, who came.


    Amon returned the empty space ring to Lei Muyin as well as ced another thing on her body. He then moved away from there. He did not doubt that Lei San woulde soon. He didn''t know how good this Lei San was. But considering him being the best prodigy in the Lei n, the youth wouldn''t be simple.


    Amon could see when he barged into the snakes'' nest that Lei San bing exhausted after performing his fire element arcane art was only a pretense. The Lei prodigy still had enough energy. He might even have more arts deadlier than that fire arcane art he disyed.


    Although Amon still considered no youth would be his equal, he also didn''t see the need to take the risk of confronting this prodigy. He believed Lei San won''t rat him out to the White Cloud Sect. Especially after the gift Amon left on Lei Muyin''s body. If he did, he would be exposed too. So, Amon left.


    *


    After some while, Lei San came upon the clearing where Amon rested a little while ago. Pai Wuci had asked everyone to spread out to search for the ck-suited intruder. Lei San used this chance to break away from them. Since there was no more mandrake, there was no need for him to stay with them.


    Above his left shoulder was a simr squirrel as the one carried by Lei Muyin. However, the scent this squirrel tracked was Lei Muyin''s scent. This particr squirrel could only track one scent at a time. Lei Muyin was tracking Amon while Lei San tracked Lei Muyin.


    Lei San frowned when he saw Lei Muyin''s body on the ground. He came upon the poor girl.


    He was scowling. He cared not for the girl. The girl had some sort of affection for him but it was one-sided. He had asked her to stay hidden so that she didn''t join Pai Wuci''s team. This should allow her to move freely when needed. When Amon appeared, he immediately formed this n to get the mandrakes all for himself.


    What he cared about was the mandrake. It could help improve his power. Now, this stupid girl had gotten herself killed without achieving the objective. Even the squirrel that could track Amon was dead not far from her. He was truly angry.<sub> </sub>


    Suddenly, he noticed some movement on Lei Muyin''s robe.


    He looked closer. The robe covering Lei Muyin''s belly was wriggling. A critter was in there? Lei San carefully removed the robe. Underneath the robe, he found a mandrake tied to Lei Muyin''s body.


    Lei San was rather stunned by the discovery. He even thought this was an illusion. It took him a while before he snapped out and epted that a mandrake was truly before him. A living one nheless. A mandrake''s potency degraded the longer they were dead. The best way was to boil it while it was living and consumed it immediately once all its poison skin was shed. This would ensure the best probability of obtaining a special constitution.


    "Hahahaha¡­," Lei Sanughed. "You have my words that I will give one to you. Lin Mo, you have no problem killing a little girl, but it seems that you are a man of your words. Fine, our business is concluded with this. I will not bother with the other two mandrakes in your hand."


    Lei San then went away, leaving Lei Muyin''s body behind.


    *


    Amon had continued his running, putting more distance to possible pursuers. He didn''t think that Lei San woulde after him after getting his share of the mandrake, but nothing was certain. He had killed Lei Muyin''s squirrel because he knew that critter could track him. He had read about the critter in the spirit beasts encyclopedia. That critter was the equivalent of the tracker dogs in his previous world.


    Amon continued to run under the cover of night. He only stopped after arriving on a rocky hill surrounded by vast ins. He rested near the top of this hill. He should have good visibility in case anyone came to pursue him.


    He took out a spirit fruit and ate it. The fruit not only increased his cultivation but also nourished his body and recovered his stamina.


    He then performed cultivation while resting at the same time.


    As the dawn was approaching. He opened his eyes. There was another pursuer. This one was a bit more skillful than Lei Muyin, but to sessfully sneak onto Amon was still a hundred years too soon.


    Swan dagger and a throwing knife appeared in Amon''s hands. He knew that the pursuer was sneaking from behind. He would give this one a jump the same as Lei Muyin.


    But he sensed this one stopped not far away and his instinct came alive with all sorts of warning. He immediately jump away, just as something fell where he was sitting a moment ago. Arge explosion urred, throwing rocks everywhere.


    Amon had taken cover behind a rock wall when the explosion took ce. Rocks and shrapnels from the explosion scraped the rock he was hiding behind. From the sound, he was sure if he was hit by the explosion, he wouldn''t be unscathed even if he activated his Hardened Bronze Body.


    Amon stayed behind cover as he waited for his opponent''s next move, but his opponent was also silent. The opponent this time was not the typical impatient youth. He wondered who this one was, he was pretty sure it was not Lei San.


    After a brief thought, he called out, "Wei Lun, you are pretty brave toe alone."


    A long silence followed before there was a reply, "How do you know it is me?"


    "You are the only one that hit me before I flee from that snake''s nest," Amon answered. He believed there was a tracking substance in what Wei Lun had hit him with. Wei Lun must have tracked him here using something simr to the tracking squirrel.


    Amon said out loud, "If you have used the bomb just now back at the nest, I wouldn''t have been able to flee."


    "If that happens, I don''t have a guarantee that I will get the mandrake. White cloud youths will just take them from your corpse," Wei Lun replied.


    "You still don''t," Amon said.

 94 Chapter 94

    The two then turned silent. There was no moon in the sky, just some stars, so there was not much light. Everything was dark. Not many animals as well in this dimension, the silence was unsettling.


    Both Amon and Wei Lun stayed still while focusing their hearings to listen to their opponents'' movements. Both stayed that way for a long time.


    ''This one is not an inexperienced kid. He has the patience,'' Amon thought. ''Still, it''s not enough.''


    Amon was still wearing the soft-pad shoes. He lowered his breathing as he crept silently. In his past life, no one would ever notice when Amon sneaked behind stealthily. As long as Wei Lun didn''t study any art that detected one''s presence, he won''t be able to gauge Amon''s position.


    Amon headed to where he hadst heard Wei Lun''s voice.


    He crept slowly and took arge roundabout. He was now hiding behind a rock that should let him see Wei Lun when he peeked out. He slowly and carefully took a look. There was no one.


    Amon frowned. The boy had crept away silently as well? After a brief pause, Amon proceeded forward. If the boy could move stealthily as well, he should be doing what Amon was doing. Wei Lun should be sneaking towards where hest heard Amon''s voice. But since Amon didn''t meet the boy on his way, Wei Lun should be taking the opposite direction.


    Amon increased his pace. Even if Wei Lun was not an unseasoned kid like most of the others that entered this dimension, Amon still didn''t think the speed by which Wei Lun could move stealthily was faster than him. So, if he proceeded forward, he should be able to catch up behind the kid.


    As Amon moved forward for a while, he heard slight noises some distance forward. Amon continued to advance but slowed down, he didn''t want his prey to notice his presence.


    The noises stopped. Amon stopped as well. Amon studied the location. This was near where he was originally at. Wei Lun must have looked over to where he used to be and was currently confounded by his absence. Wei Lun must be weighing his options at this moment. The darkness around added to the uncertainty, Amon was hoping the kid to start panicking by now.


    Amon advanced, even slower now. His throwing knife was ready while his swan dagger was back inside his space ring. He needed his other hand free to assist him in sneaking, he was currently creeping with a very low body posture. The knife was ready to be thrown once Wei Lun came into view.


    There was still no sound, this Wei Lun was more mentally stable than Amon wished.


    As Amon was about to arrive around where hest heard the noise, he heard a sound from the front. At the same time, Wei Lun''s figure appeared from behind a rock. The kid had apparently decided to return after finding that Amon was not there. The two eyed each other for a brief instance.


    Wei Lun''s face was in shock as he found the person he was looking for suddenly came up behind him. Amon was quicker in reaction. The knife in his hand was immediately thrown.


    Wei Lun''s reflex was praiseworthy. He moved to the side. The knife that was about to stab squarely into his heart ended up at his side. Amon had aimed his throw right at the middle of Wei Lun''s torso which provided thergest area of target in precaution that he reacted in time.


    The knife Amon had thrown was unfortunately the ordinary knife, not the poison one. Amon would only use his poison knife if he had a very high percentage of hitting the target. He wouldn''t gamble his limited ammunition if he was uncertain.


    Wei Lun was clearly in pain from the knife wound, but he didn''t yell out. Amon was slightly touched by the kid''s tenacity, only slightly. Something that looked like yellow paper with red scribblings was in Wei Lun''s hand. This yellow paper started shining before Wei Lun made a throwing motion forward.


    Another throwing knife had appeared in Amon''s hand, but he had a bad feeling about that yellow paper. So, he threw his knife. Instead of aiming for Wei Lun, the knife hit the glowing yellow paper in the air.


    Upon the impact, a strong explosion resulted. Both Amon and Wei Lun were thrown by the wind of the explosion.


    ''A magic talisman?'' Amon thought. He had read about this magic tool, but he had never seen it before. There were many applications to these talismans. There were ones that strengthened the user, restricted a target, put someone to sleep, or even exploded as the one Wei Lun had used just now. The first explosion when Wei Lun sneak-attacked him must be using this explosive talisman as well.<sub> </sub>


    He never thought that Wei Lun was someone who possessed such a tool. He had heard some exclusive shops sold talismans but even the basic ones were very expensive. No way, a kid like Wei Lun could have this tool, unless he made it himself. Which meant this Wei Lun was even more talented than Amon initially thought. A high-skilled talisman maker was as respected as a high-skilled engraver and pill master.


    Amon was closer when the explosion happened. He had activated Hardened Bronze Body when the explosion urred but he still suffered a slight burn on one side of his face. He didn''t let this slight inconvenience stop his movement. He had seen another yellow paper appear on Wei Lun''s hand. Wei Lun had been blown away as well but he was not as severe. Amon hurriedly jumped behind a rock just as Wei Lun threw his next talisman.


    Another explosion ensued.


    The rock that Amon hid behind was sted apart, but Amon had moved away from there as well. Against explosive assaults, staying put was identical to waiting for death.


    Even if Wei Lun was a talented young talisman maker, the materials needed to create one were not cheap either. Amon didn''t believe he had many supplies of those explosive talismans. He had used three, Amon suspected Wei Lun only had a few left. Additionally, Wei Lun had suffered injury from Amon''s knife. Wei Lun won''t be able to move freely.


    Amon took out his small crossbow. A crossbow could hit further than a thrown weapon. He then moved away from where he was. He saw Wei Lun appearing out of the corner, the kid was holding his injury with one hand while the other hand was ready to throw his talisman. But when Wei Lun saw Amon was out of throwing range, the talisman stayed in his hand. Amon aimed his crossbow and fired.


    Wei Lun hurriedly ducked back to the corner. Amon had fired the bolt using his bow art, Soul Searching Shot. He had reached the master level for the art which could influence the bolt to travel at an arc, chasing its target. The bolt flew into the corner where Wei Lun had disappeared to. A yell of pain was heard soon. Wei Lun must have not expected the shot to stille at him after he hid behind the rock corner.


    Amon jumped up, climbing the upper elevation of the rocky hill. He agilely jumped around and traveled over the normally untraversable upper part of the rocky hill. He came up on the corner Wei Lun had ducked into and aimed downward, but the kid wasn''t there. There was a trail of blood though, heading away.


    *


    On the grasnd beside the rocky hill, Wei Lun was creeping away with a low posture. The grasses here were not high but it was dark enough. He believed he would be able to escape if he stayed low.


    He couldn''t believe this Lin Mo was such a dangerous boy. His n had marked this boy as a target, Wei Sui had evene to him and asked him to search for Lin Mo inside this secret dimension and kill the boy. She promised that he would be rewarded handsomely if he brought back proof of Lin Mo''s death. With the way Lin Mo had killed Wei Lhosa in the tournament, he didn''t think Wei Sui''s request was strange. Lin Mo had killed that old hag''s son after all.


    He had seen Lin Mo''s fight with Wei Lhosa during the tournament. He thought that it was risky to engage Lin Mo in closebat. That''s why he had prepared these explosive talismans to overwhelm him from long range. But after a long time wandering this dimension, he felt it was a pity he never found Lin Mo.


    When he found out that the thief who stole the mandrakes was Lin Mo, he secretly celebrated. He would not only get the mandrakes, he would even get the rewards Wei Sui had promised. However, sessfully killing Lin Mo was only his wishful thinking. He never thought that the boy would be even more proficient in rangedbat.


    ? He was always a careful person. He was born under a lowly family member in the n. He knew he needed to conceal his strength until he was powerful enough. He had survived by sucking up to the higher n families while concealing his talents. No one in the n knew that he could make talismans. If those families knew, they would feel threatened and he would face many obstacles from them.


    Due to this careful nature, he had decided to cut his loss. He had suffered two injuries, Neither the mandrakes nor Wei Sui''s rewards were worth risking his life. It''s time to split. He would take his revengeter.


    But as his mind was devising a way by which he would take his revenge, a whistling sound was heard. Before he could react, he felt something puncture his left leg. He screamed in pain and fell to the ground.


    A talisman came up in his hand. But before he could activate it, another bolt stabbed that arm, and the talisman fell from his grip.


    In his pain, Wei Lun saw a figure approach under the darkness. The figure stopped a couple of meters away from him. It was Amon.

 95 Chapter 95

    "Spare¡­ Spare me¡­!" Wei Lun pleaded. "You can keep the mandrakes, I won''t tell anyone that you are the one who steals the mandrake."


    Amon was just watching him in silence.


    "Please¡­ I have no quarrel with you¡­ There is no need for you to kill me," Wei Lun continued.


    "¡­ Your n has been showing quite an intent on harming me," Amon finally said.


    "That¡­ That has nothing to do with me. I promise you, I have no intention to be your enemy at all. I attacked just now because you have the mandrakes. If we met any other time, I won''t be showing you any hostility. And this will be the same in the future. You have my words!"


    "¡­ I see you use magic talismans. Did you create those talismans yourself?" Amon asked.


    "Yes¡­ Yes, I did! Do you want me to create talismans for you? No problem. You can take the ones I have here."


    Another talisman appeared in his uninjured hand.


    "Don''t try it!" Amon warned while aiming his crossbow.


    "Don''t worry. I am just giving this to you," Wei Lun said and ced that talisman on the ground near the other one that had fallen previously. "These are all the ones I have left. If you want more, I can create it for youter when we get out from here. Hey, we can be good friends. I can make many talismans that will help you in numerous ways."


    "Tempting, but I''m not interested in friends. Would you be willing to be my underling?" Amon asked.


    "Underling¡­? Of course! From now on, you are my boss. I will listen to all you say. Anymand you give, I will carry it without question!" Wei Lun eximed.


    "You swear it?" Amon asked.


    "I swear it!" Wei Lun uttered.


    At this time, Amon pressed his crossbow trigger. The bolt was released and it prated right between Wei Lun''s eyes. His eyes bulged as he didn''t understand what had happened when he lost his life.


    "Hmph, faker," Amon said. He had dealt with many underlings in his past life. He knew when someone was lying just to save his life. He did not doubt that this Wei Lun would double-cross him once he found a chance. Although the boy''s talisman-making talent was useful, this kind of opportunistic person was someone he could not utilize yet with his current situation. He was not in a position of power yet. What he needed at this moment was trustworthy persons, or more correctly in his opinion, someone who was simple and easier to be manipted. Not this snake.


    He bent down and picked up the two talismans. Although he had never used one before, he had read its application was simple. All he needed was to transfer his aether into the talisman. The talisman would then release its intended effect. In this case, produced an explosion. He stored the two talismans and took Wei Lun''s space ring.


    When he sent his consciousness into the space ring, it confirmed his suspicion about Wei Lun. Inside were another two exploding talismans, the boy had lied. He took these talismans as well together with the other valuable resources Wei Lun had gathered during his time in this dimension.


    After finishing his plunder, he returned the almost empty space ring to Wei Lun''s finger. He then walked away from that ce.


    *


    After traveling some distance away, Amon stopped at another rocky outcropping that he thought was safe enough. He rested there under the cover of night. He applied healing salve on his burned skin and used the Nine Moon Restorative Mantra to help with the healing.<sub> </sub>


    After he felt much better, he prepared to consume the mandrake. It should be just a few more days before they were forcefully ejected from this dimension. Although his ck space ring should be able to hide all his items, he still preferred to consume this mandrake before he left.


    He prepared a pot and filled it with water. He then heat it until it was boiling. He took one of the mandrakes out, which was still wriggling. Without any expression, he threw the mandrake into the pot. A shrill cry was heard as the mandrake sshed around in the pot. Amon covered his ears from the cry. This was not mentioned in the catalog, heined in his mind.


    The cry was not as powerful as the cry it produced when it was plucked from the ground, but still loud enough to make Amon''s ears hurt. He just hoped that there was no one around that heard the cry.


    The cry onlysted a short moment. He saw the mandrake inside the boiling water be weaker as time passed, it eventually stopped moving.


    Amon waited until one hour. He then poured the water out of the pot. The clear water had turned dark brownish. Amon presumed that was due to the toxic element excreted by the mandrake''s skin.


    He lifted the mandrake. It now had a smooth pink-colored skin instead of the previous brown and rough skin.


    After inspecting it for a while, Amon took his first bite. There was almost no taste. The meat was rough. Amon felt like he was munching on wood that had been softened. He didn''t care about the taste though, he was not consuming this mandrake for delicacy. He continued eating until none of the mandrakes was left. He then sat cross-legged and waited for his body topletely absorb the mandrake''s essence.


    A few minutes passed, and Amon felt nothing changed. The book he read informed that if someone had sessfully triggered the birth of a special constitution via the mandrake, the consumers would feel the change. It would be as if their bodies underwent a transformation.


    ''It fails?'' Amon thought dissapointly.


    He still had one more mandrake, but it was no use. One person could only consume one mandrake. After consuming once, even if it failed to trigger a reaction, the body would develop a tolerance to it. The next mandrake won''t give a result anymore.


    Never mind, if it failed then it failed. There was no need to dwell on it. Amon had learned through a life full of struggles that there were winnings and there were losings. It''s all part of a cycle. As long as one still lived, there was a way to turn things around.


    He started cultivating while resting, but as he felt the flow of aether, he noticed something different.


    "Hm?"


    He only noticed it when he started to pay attention to the aether flowing into his body when starting his cultivation art. There was already a small amount of aether flowing inside. He stopped his cultivation art but kept his attention to the flow of aether. The aether continued to sip into his body, even though it was very minuscule.


    ''Is this? Can this be the special constitution that is triggered by the mandrake?'' Amon thought. Normally one needed to consciously suck in the aether from the surrounding environment. That was what cultivation art was for. But now, his body was doing it by itself.


    He thought about the implication. If this was true, then it would be as if he continued to cultivate all the time. Even if the aether absorbed with this passive cultivation was minuscule, it was still better than none. He already did not need sleep due to his demon body and could cultivate while others were sleeping. With this additional passive cultivation, his cultivation speed would not lose to the youths of the rich and famous ns who were regrly supplied with cultivation pills and resources. Added with the spirit herbs and spirit fruits from the ntation in his ck space ring, and the boost from the ck aetherium stone, he might even overtake those youths.


    However, he thought that the benefit of this passive absorption of aether didn''t stop only at cultivation speed. It would greatly help hisbat prowess as well. One of the problems forbatants was aether reserve. Every art consumed aether. The stronger the art was, the more aether was needed as fuel. During a fight, it wasn''t effective to use cultivation art to absorb aether. Hence, once one''s aether reserve was depleted, he or she won''t be able to perform any more arts. It was like a fighter who had run out of stamina, one would be a sitting duck that way. But with this passive aether absorption, his reserve would be continually refilled during a fight. Even if the refill was slow, it would still help himst longer than anyone with the same cultivation level.


    Amon was excited by this improvement in his body. He was wondering though, why this change didn''t cause any sensation? The book described that one would clearly feel the transformation, many described the experiences as very painful even. Yet, he never felt a thing. If he didn''t actively check his aether flow, he probably won''t notice this change for some time.


    He thought about it for a while. Could it be that his demon body was already considered a special constitution? He thought. The mandrake didn''t trigger any transformation because he already had one. So, instead of triggering a special constitution, the mandrake simply upgraded the one he already had.


    He had no way to know if this was the case. That was not important. All he cared about was that he had acquired an additional edge in both cultivation andbat.

 96 Chapter 96

    Amon spent the next few days just resting and cultivating. It wouldn''t be long now before they exited this dungeon. Once his body was fit enough to travel, he resumed his operation in erging the spirit ntation within his ck space ring.


    He resumed his routine of working on his ntation during the daytime and cultivating during the nighttime. All the while paying attention to his surrounding to make sure no other youths came near him. Especially the lot from Pai Wuci. Even if they won''t recognize him as the person who had taken the mandrakes under their noses, it was still best not to make any contact with them.


    Since he knew their time within this dimension was not long anymore, he reorganized the loots he had collected all this time. Aside from the ones he had gained himself, he had also collected many loots from the other youths who had the misfortune of crossing his path.


    He checked what they had gotten and made an estimate of the normal gain one was expected to get during their stay here. He couldn''t show too few loots, the White Cloud people would suspect that he was trying to hide some loots. They would put him under search then. He didn''t want that. Additionally, His target was to be within the top ten, so he had to give them enough goods for that to happen.


    However, he preferred to not give them too many as well. Several youths had died. If he presented too many goods, there might be a chance the White Cloud people will get suspicious as well. After all, what happened inside was unknown to the outside. Everyone knew there would probably be some bloodshed in thepetition for the loots. As long as there was no witness or evidence, no one would make a hassle about it.


    He collected what he thought was a reasonable amount inside his normal space ring, and kept the rest in his ck space ring. Most of the goods he had put aside to be given to the White Cloud Sect were engraved weapons, spirit herbs, spirit fruits, spirit beast''s parts, and some books containing martial arts, arcane arts, and cultivation arts.


    He had no interest in these books because the library he had gotten from the pyramid legacy already contained books with better arts. The only book he kept that was not from the pyramid legacy was the Poison w book he obtained from Pai Ning. Firstly, because that was a book from a White Cloud sect''s disciple. If this book was seen amongst his belongings, he would be easily identified as having something to do with Pai Ning''s not returning. Secondly, he was interested to learn this Poison w art. If hebined this art with one of the poisons from 101 Primal Poison Tome, it could be another of his trump card.


    There were also a few pieces of Aetherium Stone amongst the loots. He had tested their effects. They were not as good as his ck Aetherium Stone that he buried outside his house on the Lin n''s estate. So he kept two pieces for reserve and put the remaining pieces with the other tributes he had prepared for the White Cloud Sect.


    After sorting out everything. He wore the normal space ring on one finger and then put the ck space ring on the next finger, just the way before he entered this dimension.


    "Any day now," Amon muttered.


    He continued with his routine. One day, when he was in the middle of sharpening his throwing knives using a whetstone, he heard something in the vicinity. Amon looked over in that direction. The sound didn''t approach. After a brief thought, he decided to head over. As he got nearer, he identified the sound as one of struggle. A struggle between a girl and a beast.


    Amon hid behind arge rock and peeked out. He recognized the girl. She was Yang Li, the nless girl. She was currently fighting against a weird-looking spirit beast that had two heads, or at least it appeared to have two heads. The beast was almost three times her size, yet the girl didn''t show any fear.


    Yang Li fought using a pair of w weapons. The weapons looked crudely made with the ws probablying from a spirit beast she had defeated before.


    The spirit beast was ferocious. It looked strong and its two heads had big mouths with big teeth. Its hide was also thick, Yang Li''s w could only cause light wounds on its body. It was slow, though. Yang Li, on the other hand, had fast movement and reflex. She easily dodged the beast''s assault. She also had a good memory. After dodging the beast a few times, she seemed to have memorized its attacking pattern. She started counterattacking with her ws. Her martial art allowed her tond rapid strikes with her ws. Her fighting style was crude but she was precise.


    However, Amon thought she did too many unnecessary movements. She wasted too much energy that way. She might appear to be at an advantage against the beast now, but Amon doubted that the situation would stay that way.


    Amon pondered about the situation while watching the battle. After a while, he decided toe out of hiding. He walked calmly towards where the two were fighting. Yang Li noticed Amon and was immediately on alert. It almost caused her to get bitten by the two-headed beast. She dodged the beast''s relentless assault and took a position away from Amon, cing the beast in between her and Amon, so that she could monitor Amon as well.


    Amon came to a decent-sized rock still a distance away from the two, so he didn''t attract the beast''s attention. He then sat upon the rock.


    Yang Li was bewildered by Amon''s act. The boy showed himself and now just sat and watched her fight?


    Amon indeed did just that. His eyes stared at Yang Li. The cold stare unsettled Yang Li. She was just thinking about luring the beast towards Amon, but the stare made her cancel the attempt. She was worried this was a trap. What if the boy attacked when she was approaching.


    Yang Li also thought about running away but was simrly anxious. What if the boy sent her range attacks when she turned her back? She couldn''t run while worrying about the boy and the beast.<sub> </sub>


    With the uncertainties, she became distracted. Her movements were not as sharp as before. One of the beast''s ws scraped her arm, causing a deep wound. She gnashed her teeth, impeding a scream that almost came out of her mouth. Amon, who was watching, was impressed by her grit.


    She focused her attention on the beast again. But with Amon still there, she couldn''t fully focus. She could only dodge without sessfullynding any counterattack.


    With the pressure of Amon''s presence, what he suspected was happening sooner. Yang Li was getting tired. Her movements slowed. She ended up receiving another scratch from the beast''s w, this time on her leg. Blood dripped from her wounds. She was also full of sweat. Amon could see that she won''tst long. Yet, the girl''s eyes didn''t give in.


    Amon was expecting the girl to cry for help already, but it seemed more and more likely this girl would prefer to die before that happened.


    Amon grinned. She was perfect.


    A knife appeared in his hand. With one smooth motion, he threw the knife. It flew andnded a bit below the left head''s snake. The beast''s hide was thick, but at that part, Amon''s knife prated easily. While he was sitting and watching, he had looked for the information about this beast in his spirit beast encyclopedia. The spot where Amon had targeted with his knife was the part where its hide was the thinnest.


    The two-headed beast stopped after the knife lodged inside it. It coughed for a bit before twitching and then fell to the ground. The knife that Amon had used was his poison knife.


    Amon then walked leisurely towards the fallen beast. Yang Li was panting, her eyes remained on Amon as he approached. She backstepped a few steps but otherwise didn''t show any attempt to run.


    Arriving beside the beast, Amon thrust his hand into the wound caused by his knife. He retrieved his poison knife from inside the beast, wiped it clean, and stored it. He then stared at the girl who was still ring at him. The girl''s wounds were still dripping blood. It was clear that she was struggling even to stand, but her face showed no attempt to back down.


    The two stared at one another for a long while. Yang Li''s continued to lose blood from the wounds.


    A bottle appeared in Amon''s hand. "Recovery salve," Amon said. He uncorked the bottle, pour a bit onto his hand, and wipe it onto his skin. He closed the bottle again and then threw it to Yang Li. Yang Li didn''t catch the bottle, she let it fall to her feet.


    Amon smiled. He took a step back, then another. He then turned around, showing Yang Li his back. His two hands were ced on his back, letting the girl see them. He then stayed still.


    Yang Li frowned. They continued to stay that way for a long time. As she was still uncertain, she felt her legs wobble. She was losing too much blood. She nced at the bottle under her feet. She had run out of recovery salve and pill. She was not like those n youths who brought many recovery items.


    With her eyes still on Amon''s back, she slowly lowered herself and picked up the bottle. She uncorked its lid and smelled the content. It smelled authentic, not only that. The smell told her that this recovery salve was of a higher tier than the one she usually used. And she was confident of her sense of smell.


    She poured some of its content onto her hand. All the while, her eyes never left Amon''s back. She was wondering why this boy was so daring to put his back on a stranger like that. Was he that confident that she won''t do something to him?


    She spread the salve onto her wounds. She winced from the pain, but she uttered no sound. Soon the pain subsided. The salve was authentic. She proceeded to spread the salve onto her other wounds. Amon stayed still.


    After she was done, she asked, "What do you want?"


    Amon turned upon her question. He was grinning.


    "I''m offering you the chance to be my underling."

 97 Chapter 97

    "How absurd! I am my own master! I serve no one!" Yang Li uttered. Her face contorted hostilely. She was ready for a confrontation.


    "Hehe, you are indeed fierce," Amon chuckled. "However, you are alone. You have no n, no backer. You are indeed impressive to be able to get here by relying on your own. But one person has its limit. I''m sure you understand that as well. That''s why you join this tournament, don''t you? You wish to join the White Cloud sect, am I right?"


    "So, what if I am?" Yang Li said, her face showing defiance.


    "You think that entering the sect is better than entering a n because a n prioritized heavily on their direct descendants. Outsiders will only get minimum attention. If you are lucky, maybe you will get married to one of these descendants and your offspring will get the full benefit of being in the n. But not you, you will always be an outsider. However, the White Cloud sect is different because it is not formed based on blood rtions. Anyone who joins has the same chance to get better treatment, as long as one is capable enough. That''s why you want to join the sect. You want to use your own strength to climb thedder of power within the sect, am I right?"


    "Hmph, so what if I do?" Yang Li said again.


    "Well, then. Let me ask you a question then. Do you truly believe that bullshit?"


    Yang Li''s face contorted. She didn''t say anything, but she red at Amon sharply.


    Amon chuckled. "In this dimension, I''ve met a boy and a girl from the sect. When I stumbled onto them, she was being raped by the boy. The girl is the daughter of someone with a high position in the sect, while the boy is a nobody who joins the sect thinking that he can make a name for himself just by relying on his ability. Apparently, the boy was raping the girl because she had been bullying him openly in the sect. She is weaker than the boy but she is still able to exert her dominance, simply because she is the direct descendant of a person in power within the sect. As you see, the tale that you heard is just that, a fairy tale. Wherever you are, whatever organization you join, rtions matter. You won''t get far just by relying on your own capability."


    Yang Li was silent, but Amon could see from her eyes that she was having an internal debate. Amon let her think. He folded his arms and waited.


    "Hmph, maybe it''s true the sect is as you say, but so what? They are still better than a n," Yang Li said. "As you say, I won''t go far being by myself. I have tried it, training on my own. No matter how hard I train, I can''t catch up to those n and sect youths. I have to steal and do unscrupulous deeds just to get enough to buy the minimum resources for cultivating. The sect might not be as good as they say they are, but I''m willing to give it a try. Otherwise, what choice do I have?"


    "That''s what I''m offering you here, a choice. This is your chance to be my underling," Amon said.


    Yang Liughed at his words. "You? And who do you think you are?"


    "The future ruler of this world," Amon said with a grin.


    Yang Li was stunned by his words. She wanted tough again, to show him how absurd she thought his words are. However, her words were stuck in her throat. She had dealt with a lot of people. Good ones, bad ones, smart ones, stupid ones, or simply the naive ones. She could guess someone''s intention just by looking at the person. And right now, all her experiences told her that the boy in front of her was serious. The boy truly believed the words he just said.


    Even so, this just meant that the boy was one very confident boy. An overconfident boy, if she might add. Associating with him would bring nothing but trouble.


    "Thank you for the offer. I''ll pass," She said.


    "All right. Even so, I would like to bestow you two gifts," Amon said. He was not perturbed by the girl''s rejection.


    "What gifts?" She asked.


    "The carcass of this spirit beast," Amon pointed to the fallen two-headed beast.


    "I fought that beast!" Yang Li uttered.


    "And yet, I am the one who killed it," Amon returned. "As for the second gift, here."<sub> </sub>


    Amon threw a book in her direction. She caught it. She read the title and was surprised to find that it was a book containing cultivation art.


    "That is a high-tier practitioner-grade cultivation art," Amon informed. It was one of the many cultivation books he had gained from the pyramid legacy. "In case you don''t understand what the grade means, that cultivation art can help you cultivate until the Mystic stage of the Martial Realm."


    Yang Li''s eyes bulged hearing that. She knew that most youths only have cultivation art for the Human realm. The cultivation art she had at the moment was a low-tier art she bought from the market after working very hard. Her current art only helped her cultivate until her current stage, the Strength stage. That''s why she was desperate to join a sect.


    Cultivation Art that could help one break through to the Martial realm was normally only reserved for the important members of ns or sects. Even if she joined the White Cloud sect, the best she could hope for was getting a cultivation art that helped her cultivate until the peak of the Transformation stage of the Human realm.


    She had difficulty believing the book in her hand was a cultivation art that could be used until the Martial realm as Amon stated.


    Amon saw the disbelief in her eyes. He chuckled and said, "It''s up to you if you don''t believe me. I have said already it was a gift. Do with it however you like. However, you should know that everything you get in this dimension will be confiscated by the sect. So, I suggest you learn the art fast. You have a good memory, you should be able to learn it within the few days we have left here. Afterward, you just need to practice based on your memory. That book could even let you earn enough points to impress the sect so they give you better treatment when you join them."


    Yang Li looked at Amon, back at the book, then at Amon again. "What do you want in return?"


    "Hehe, I said already. I would like you to be my underling," Amon replied. "But I understand if you are unwilling at the moment. Tell you what. Take that book as an incentive. In exchange, two years from now. Apply for the right to study at the Royal Academy."


    "Royal Academy?"


    "You should have heard something about that academy, haven''t you? It is a ce owned by the kingdom that nurtures talented cultivators. White Cloud Sect should be given some spots by the kingdom as well, but as I heard, they didn''t value this spot much. They are not a group tied by blood, so their bond is less strong. If they send their most talented youths to the academy and the youths are impressed by the generosity of the kingdom. It will just mean they give their assets to the kingdom. A n is different, even though the kingdom gives you much benefit, blood rtion is still stronger. n youths will still act for their n''s benefit even after joining the kingdom. This means thepetition to apply for the royal academy will be less fierce in the sect, because the sect will just choose mediocre disciples for the academy, simply to give face to the kingdom. You should be able to secure a spot if you insist on it."


    "Why would I want to join the academy?"


    "First, that ce should be a better option if you wish to climb to power by relying on your own strength. Secondly, because I will join the academy as well."


    "¡­ Is that so?"


    "I will give you the chance to be my underling again if we meet at the academy," Amon said. "And note this, being the first of my underlings means you have a higher chance to be my right-hand woman, which means you have the highest position avable when I be the ruler of this world. Now, practice better. If we meet again at the academy and I find that your improvement is disappointing, the offer is off. So, don''t disappoint me."


    Amon then turned and left.


    Yang Li watched him leave in bafflement. ''Is that boy for real?'' She thought. However, she couldn''t deny the confidence and power Amon projected. It was as if she could also believe that Amon would one day be the ruler of the world.


    She shook her head. That was absurd, she thought to herself. She then looked at the book in her hand.


    "Whatever, first thing first, I will take whatever valuable parts that spirit beast has, then I will study this cultivation art before the time limit ends," She said to herself.


    Before she started dissecting the beast, she gave Amon onest nce. She wondered if she should try joining the academy two years from now.

 98 Chapter 98

    Amon spent the remaining days with his routine, erging his ntation during the day and cultivating at night. He didn''t meet any other youths again after his encounter with Yang Li.


    He had collected many different nts that contained ingredients described inside the first few pages of the 101 Primal Poison Tome. With this ntation, he should have renewable ingredients to continually experiment with the first few poison recipes in the tome.


    One day, eighty-nine days after he woke up inside the Mind Demon''sir, he felt the air around him vibrate. It was as if the space itself was getting loose. He then watched the space around him being literally torn apart. The pieces dislodged slowly until everything around him became nothing but void. Then he felt himself getting sucked by a strong force, simr to when he entered this dimension. His body turned into light and he traveled through something like a wormhole.


    Before he knew it, he found himself inside therge spherical hall with the stone formation. He was standing on his feet but he felt a sudden sense of vertigo. He quickly took hold of his senses and rebnced his body. He saw many other youths were back in this hall as well. All of them were either sprawling, sitting, or kneeling on the floor. Only he remained standing.


    Some White Cloud disciples were checking the youths as well as counting them. Not everyone came out from the dimension. Pai Kuan was standing near the entrance overseeing the process.


    A disciple came to Amon and was rather surprised to find him to be able to stand straight. He asked for Amon''s wrist. Amon extended his hand. The disciple held Amon''s wrist and checked his blood pressure.


    Lei San was the next to stand. Pai Wuci of the White Cloud sect saw the two and forced himself to stand, but fell again soon. He looked at the two with disbelief. How could these two from inferior ns be able to recover so fast? The next to stand was another White Cloud youth named Pai Siwang.


    Amon observed everyone while waiting. Most everyone had scars that were not there when they entered the dimension. He guessed everyone underwent conflicts inside the dimension.


    Not long after, more youths started to be able to stand as well. The White Cloud disciples were also done with their checkings then. After receiving the reports from these disciples, Pai Kuan approached the youths.


    "Congrattions for surviving the dimension. There are casualties, but this is expected. Such is the price for growth," Pai Kuan told the youths.


    Amon was amused. The people of this world threw their underage youths into a foreign ce with deadly beasts without any supervision and called it a process of growing. Amon felt right at home here.


    "Now, we will be collecting your spoils," Pai Kuan said. "First, the White Cloud youths, stand in formation, please? Go one by one to that table."


    Pai Kuan pointed to a table that had been prepared. Behind him were several White Cloud elders. There was a high stand with a curtain next to them.


    "The rest of you wait," Pai Kuan told the n youths.


    Amon made a count. Out of the White Cloud youths, forty-two returned. That meant eight had perished. While out of the fifty finalists from the White Cloud tournaments, only thirty-seven remained.


    One of the elders near the table took the space ring from the first youth, who was Pai Wuci. Pai Wuci was ushered by another elder to behind the stand with the curtain. From the silhouette on the curtain, Amon saw Pai Wuci was told to undress. All the things he had carried out of the dimension were being checked thoroughly.


    The elder who checked the ring made some notes,paring them to the note that had been taken before Pai Wuci entered the dimension. Everything not on the list was taken away.


    After the long checking process, the clothes were returned with the space ring, minus all the loots Pai Wuci had gathered inside the dimension.


    "Pai Wuci, six hundred and twenty-two points," The elder holding the note announced.


    While the White Cloud youths underwent checking, Pai Kuan exined to the n youths. Those points would be the way everyone who entered the dimension was ranked. The more ones'' loots were, the more points they were given. For White Cloud youths, these points would determine the rewards they received from the sect. As for n youths, the ns with youths that produced high points would earn White Cloud''s favor. The ns with youths that reached the top ten would have the right to get the top ten treasures gathered within the dimension.


    Lin Fen lifted her hand to ask a question, "How do we know what are the top ten treasures?"


    "After we collect all the treasures you have gathered, we will appraise them one by one. Once we have finished with our appraisal, we will inform your ns of the result," Pai Kuan answered.


    "Then¡­ how do we know if they are truly the top ten?" Lin Fen asked again.


    "¡­ You just have to trust us," Pai Kuan answered.


    Lin Fen was about to open her mouth again, but Pai Kuan''s cold stare stopped her.


    Amon made a mocking grin. He thought nothing strange about this arrangement. It was the strong who made the rules. The weak could only follow. This tournament final was nothing but getting freebor for the White Cloud sect to collect the treasures inside the secret dimension. They might entice the ns with top ten treasures but in the end, the top ten were decided by the White Cloud sect. They could take a mediocre treasure and call it the number one treasure found in this run, and no one couldin about it.


    Amon believed the ns should also be aware of this, but they still went along with it. To them, this tournament was just a venue to curry favor with the sect while training their potential youths at the same time.<sub> </sub>


    The checking proceeded slowly. It took around three hours for the checking process of the forty-two White Cloud youths. After that, it was the n youths. They also went one by one. Amon stayed at the back, letting the others go first.


    During the checkings, there was one boy who was told to open his mouth after undressing.


    "Why?"


    "Open it!" The elder who gave the order said curtly.


    ? The boy opened his mouth. He tried to act normal but cold sweat started rolling down his forehead.


    "Wider!" The eldermanded.


    The boy widened his mouth slowly.


    "Pull up your tongue," The elder asked.


    The boy froze.


    "Pull up your tongue!" The elder asked again.


    The boy shook his head. He was then awarded a punch in the gut. The air was forced out of his mouth as well as a metallic object. It dropped to the floor with a clink. It was a space ring.


    The elder picked up the space ring and checked its content. He then red at the boy who had dropped to the ground. "You dare to keep the treasures?!" The elder bellowed. "Take him away!"


    A White Cloud disciple came and grabbed the boy. Still naked, he was dragged away.


    "No! Please! I''m sorry! I realize I''ve done wrong, please give me a chance!" He pleaded.


    None of the White Cloud people gave his beggings any mind. He was dragged out of the hall while continued to beg.


    "Foolish boy," Pai Kuan scolded, then turned to the rest that had yet to be checked. "I hope none of you are having the same stupid idea. We can detect unusual items that contained aether. You have better not try to trick us."


    Several of the youths seemed to be uneasy. Perhaps they had been thinking of hiding something as well.


    ''Detect items that contained aether?'' Amon thought. He looked at the ck space ring on his finger. ''Can they detect if the aether content within this ck space ring is more than before?'' He hoped not. It''s toote to back out now, he could only leave it to fate.


    The checking continued sluggishly. After what seemed like a long time. It was Amon''s turn.


    By now, the highest score was held by Pai Siwang, at Eight hundred and forty points. The second ce was Lei San, the Lei n''s prodigy, who had also gotten the Thousand-Year Mandrake. Amon wondered if Lei San had sessfully gained a special constitution. Lei San''s score was eight hundred and fifteen points.


    Two other youths that Amon knew also got good scores.


    Yang Li had gotten a rather high score at seven hundred and fifty points. Arge portion of the scores was due to the cultivation book that Amon had given her. Amon hoped that she had finished memorizing the book because it was unlikely the White Cloud sect would let her read the book again.


    Xin Wuming, who had followed Amon during the preliminary round of the tournament, had also gotten a good score. His score was seven hundred and ten. Amon considered it a ster achievement considering he was from a small n.


    Both Xin Wuming and Yang Li were in the top twenty. But if considering only the n youths, they were among the top ten.


    Amon took off both his normal space ring and the ck space ring and put them on the table for the elder to check. Then without going behind the curtain, he just undressed there and gave his clothes to the other elder to check. Some of the girls turned away due to the scene, some made disapproving chatters, while the others admired Amon''s body, which was full of muscles. Most of the boys threw Amon irritated res for his antics.

 99 Chapter 99

    The elder who was checking Amon''s space ring frowned after his checking. He nced at Amon, who was standing beside him, naked, with folded arms. Amon was staring back at him. Their eyes lingered for a while. Perhaps he thought the boy would look away after being intimidated by his stare, but Amon did not. Amon maintained his gaze without any expression.


    "Are you done checking?" Amon asked when the elder continued staring at him.


    "Hmph!" The elder simply harrumphed and returned to his checking. He seemed to check for a long time. He frowned, nced at Amon, then returned to check again. The other youths who were paying attention felt the elder was acting weird. He didn''t take that long when checking theirs.


    After a while, the elder put down Amon''s space ring. He then held Amon''s ck space ring. His frown went deeper this time. He twirled the ring a few times.


    "That is just a normal ring," Pai Kuan said to the elder. He hade to the checking table.


    "Normal? I sense traces of aether from it," The elder said.


    "It is normal in the sense that it is not a space ring. The material itself is indeed abnormal. I''ve checked it before."


    "It''s a memento from my grandfather. It is made from an unusual alloy. The ring is purely ornamental," Amon said.


    "Perhaps we should confiscate it for further study," The elder said to Pai Kuan, ignoring Amon.


    Pai Kuan nced at Amon, before saying, "There is no need for that. The ring is his, we can''t just take others'' belongings as we wish. How is his score."


    "His points¡­," The elder trailed off. "It''s difficult to believe but I''ve checked it again and again, so I''m sure I make no mistake. The treasure quality is not much higher than the rest, but it is the quantity¡­"


    "What is his score?" Pai Kuan repeated his question.


    The elder took a deep breath, before announcing, "Lin mo, one thousand seven hundred and ny points!"


    The other youths'' eyes bulged after hearing it. Amon''s score was more than twice the current highest record. Pai Siwang''s face was scowling.


    ''Hm¡­ Perhaps I have put in too many things inside that space ring,'' Amon thought. He indeed gained many things. Mainly the goods from the youths he had killed, engraved weapons, beast''s parts, books containing arts, aetherium stones, and other trinkets. He also spared a few of the spirit herbs, fruits, and spirit beast parts that he had collected. In the end, it was as the elder said, the quantity was a lot.


    "You are indeed unusual," Pai Kuan said. "I do notice we have slightly fewer youths that returnedpared to the past. Did you happen to meet any of them during your time inside?"


    "No," Amon answered.


    "Anything unusual from the treasures in his space ring?" Pai Kuan asked the elder.


    "Aside from the unusual amount, nothing to write about," The elder answered.


    Pai Kuan nodded. "Return his belongings then. We will conclude this."


    The elders gave Amon back his clothes, ck space ring, and the normal space ring after emptying the content. Amon wore his clothes and put the rings back on his fingers. His face remained neutral and his heart rates steady throughout the exchanges just now, but he was relieved that Pai Kuan didn''t request further investigation.


    Pai Kuan asked the n youths to line up. They were then blindfolded again like the time they were brought here. Everyone was then ushered a long way. Amon noticed the way they took this time was slightly different.


    When their blindfold was taken off, they found themselves in a different hall than when they were first blindfolded. He saw Lin Bubai sitting on a row of chairs on the opposite side of the room along with other n representatives. Wei Linkun and Lei Tong were there as well.


    "This is the ranking of the White Cloud Tournament this year," Pai Kuan announced. Two White Cloud disciples were bringing arge wooden que. This wooden que was then fixed to the wall. Amon noticed that besides this que, there were other older ques lining the wall. Ten names were carved on each of these ques.


    Amon saw the name Wei Linkun on the que right next to the new one that was being fixed. His name was the third one from the top. The new que, however, had Amon''s name at the top. Lei San''s name was below Amon at the second. The White Cloud only carved the n youth names, they didn''t include White Cloud youths. Hence, Pai Siwang who had gotten a higher score than Lei San was not here.


    Wei Linkun stood from his seat when he saw Amon''s name. He tried to keep a calm expression, but then he noticed another thing. Wei Lun was nowhere to be seen. It was pretty clear what had happened. Wei Linkun couldn''t keep his calm expression anymore. He gave Amon a hateful re before storming out of the hall. There was no point staying around.<sub> </sub>


    The other top n representative, Lei Tong, simrly wore a displeased expression. The reason was that their top prodigy, Lei San, was in second ce below the youth from the Lin n. Lei Tong had acted arrogantly before the start of the tournament but now he had ended up losing face.


    Not only that, he noticed one of the Lei youths was missing as well, Lei Muyin. She was a cherished daughter of an elder within the Lei n. Her death would bring him many headaches. He would have to ask Lei San about what had happened inside the secret dimension.


    ? After the que was properly fixed, Pai Kuan addressed the youths, "I congratte all of you who have survived the secret dimension. More so the ten of you whose names are now immortalized in this hall. Everyone will remember you as the champion of the White Cloud Tournament. The rewards will be given to your ns. I''m sure that your ns will reward you as well for this achievement. You are free to leave now if you wish. As for you who have no n, stay around, we will give the reward to you directly. You are also wee to join our sect as has been mentioned before the finals."


    ''Heh, we bleed while the n reaps the rewards,'' Amon chuckled within. However, he guessed for many, this was considered fair. Most of the youths could reach the height and be the finalists all due to the n''s support. While those who were nless, got less chance due to less support. But if they win, they received the rewards directly. So, it''s fair.


    As for his case, his achievements were all his own. The Lin n almost never helped except by providing a safe ce for him to grow. But he didn''t mind, all the rewards he needed were already inside his ck Space Ring.


    Pai Kuan then went and met the n representatives to discuss the rewards. Some youths stayed with those representatives, while some left. Amon was among those who left. Yang Li, whose name was also on the que at the fifth ce, watched Amon as he walked out. Her eyes lingered at Amon''s back for a while before he went to one of the White Cloud disciples there. "I wish to join the White Cloud sect," she said.


    Amon exited the White Cloud estate. Yet, he didn''t go back directly to the Lin estate. He stayed outside the entrance of the White Cloud estate, waiting. After some while, the person he was waiting for finally came out of the estate. Amon called him, "Wuming!"


    Xin Wuming''s name was also on the que. He was ranked six under Yang Li. He was amongst those with the most scars on his body. Amon assumed the guy must have gone through many fierce battles inside the dimension.


    Xin Wuming turned to Amon''s voice and was slightly surprised to find Amon there. "Brother Lin Mo, is there anything I can help you with?" He asked.


    "Come with me," Amon said and walked off without waiting for Xin Wuming''s response.


    Xin Wuming was rather confused by Amon''s invitation, but he followed. Amon took him to a nearby tavern. This tavern wasrge enough and it had private rooms for rent. Amon rented one of these rooms. He and Xin Wuming entered the room.


    Amon made sure the room was locked before he came next to Xin Wuming who had sat down, but Amon didn''t take a seat.


    "What can I help you with, brother Lin Mo?" Xin Wuming asked again. "Why do you bring me here?"


    Instead of answering his question, Amon asked another question, "Are you satisfied with your n?"


    Xin Wuming was taken aback by the question. He was unsure how to respond. "I¡­ Brother Lin Mo, that is a private matter. I can''t say anything that¡­"


    "I know you want something more," Amon cut Xin Wuming''s words. "I can see your talent and your will to improve. You will be wasting yourself if you stay in your small n."


    "Brother Lin Mo¡­ This¡­"


    "I can help you grow out of this little town. I can help you be someone that stands at the top of this country. I can help you be an important person in this world."


    Xin Wuming''s mouth was opened, but he didn''t utter any more words. He was at a loss hearing Amon''s deration.


    "Do you wish all that?" Amon asked. He was standing there with his arms folded, staring down at Xin Wuming.


    "I¡­ Yes¡­ Yes, I do!" Xin Wuming uttered. His voice turned determined by the end. "What do you need me to do?"


    "Simple. Swear your allegiance to me," Amon said.


    There was a slight hesitation in Xin Wuming''s eyes, but it was soon gone. He rose from his seat and then knelt before Amon. "I follow yourmand. From now on, you are my big brother. I willy my life for you."


    Amon grinned. He then took out something from his ck space ring.


    "This is a Thousand-Year Mandrake, consume it. It will help you be stronger."

 100 Chapter 100

    Amon helped Xin Wuming prepare the Thousand-Year Mandrake. He boiled it until the mandrake''s poison was gone. He then handed it to Xin Wuming.


    Xin Wuming knew what this Thousand-Year Mandrake could do. He was stunned that Amon had the mandrake. He was sure that Amon had gotten this mandrake from the secret dimension. What puzzled him was, how did Amon smuggle such a valuable thing past the White Cloud''s inspection? Furthermore, Amon even gave such a valuable treasure to him. He was extremely touched by this. He knew then that following Amon was indeed the correct path.


    Xin Wuming consumed the mandrake without hesitation. Amon wanted Wuming to do it right here because if he took it back to the n, there was a chance of the mandrake being discovered and taken by someone else in his n.


    After finished consuming the mandrake, they just sat there and waited silently.


    After a while, Amon saw the change in Xin Wuming''s expression. Xin Wuming''s face changed to a grimace. He soon started clutching his body and uttered a repressed groan. When he couldn''t take it anymore, he started screaming. He fell to the floor and curled up in pain.


    Amon just watched him silently without expression. ''Good,'' he thought. The Thousand-Year Mandrake was not wasted.


    Xin Wuming felt that the painsted for a very long time. It felt like hours, but Amon who watched the progress knew that it onlysted for around five minutes. After enduring the extreme pain, the pain suddenly vanished just like that. Xin Wuming sat up from the floor and inspected his body. He was full of sweat. His shirt was also in tatters because he had ripped it apart when he was in pain.


    "What kind of special constitution have you gotten?" Amon asked.


    "I¡­ I''m not sure," Xin Wuming answered.


    Amon didn''t find this strange. Most who had gotten a special constitution didn''t know it until a specialist check their body. Or when they found out they could do something others normally couldn''t. For those who managed to trigger the emergence of their special constitution, every single one was unique.


    Xin Wuming then noticed Amon was still watching him. He felt embarrassed about his appearance.


    "I''m sorry!" He said. He hurriedly got up and turned around. He took off his tattered clothes and cast them away. He took a cloth from his space ring to wipe his sweat before taking out a clean set of clothes to wear.


    While he was doing that, Amon''s eyes never left his body.


    "Hm?" Amon''s brows were lifted. Xin Wuming''s body had lots of scars when they entered this room, testaments of his experience inside the secret dimension. But now, his skin was as smooth as a newborn baby''s.


    Xin Wuming went back to sit beside Amon after he was done donning new clothes.


    "Thank you, big brother Lin Mo. I''m forever in your debt. If you need anything¡­"


    Before Xin Wuming could finish his sentence, the Swan Dagger appeared in Amon''s hand and he shed it without warning. Xin Wuming''s exposed right arm was shed, resulting in a long cut along the arm. Blood spurt from the open wound.


    Xin Wuming reflexively jumped back in consternation while holding his wounded arm. "Bro¨Cbrother Lin mo¡­! What do you mean by this¡­?!"


    Amon didn''t answer. His gaze stayed on the cut he had caused.


    "Bro¡­ Brother¡­!" Xin Wuming called again.


    Instead of answering, Amon pointed at Xin Wuming''s right arm. Xin Wuming looked down. The long cut that he was holding, was closing at a speed visible to his eyes. Blood had stoppeding out. Xin Wuming also realized he no longer felt the pain, just a faint tingling as his wound was closing. Not long after, the long cut waspletely closed and just a long scar was left. He moved his arm near his eyes to have a better look. Soon, that scar was also gone.


    "This¡­," Xin Wuming was lost for words.


    "It seems that you have gotten a rather interesting special constitution," Amon said. "Your body can heal at an extreme speed all by itself. You will be a very hard person to kill from now on."


    After hearing the exnation, Xin Wuming immediately went down on all four before Amon. He lowered his head and said, "My debt to big brother is one I won''t be able to pay for my entire life. If big brother has any needs, just say the words."


    "For now, keep this ability to yourself," Amon said. "Although you are hard to be killed, you are also still very weak. Exposing it will only bring trouble if someone else captures you to study your ability."


    "I¡­ I understand," Xin Wuming understood what Amon meant.


    "I understand your n will have spots for the entrance to the royal academy two years from now, am I right?" Amon asked.


    "One," Xin Wuming answered. "My n is a small n, so we are only offered one spot."


    "Fight for that spot. I will be going to the royal academy. I want you there as well," Amon said.<sub> </sub>


    Xin Wuming bowed. "I will make sure I am there for big brother," he promised.


    "Good. Now, take this as well. I believe you don''t have one yet," Amon took out one of the two normal aetherium stones he had smuggled inside his ck space ring.


    "That... That''s an aetherium stone!" Xin Wuming uttered. "My n has one but it is reserved for our n''s head. This thing is very expensive. Only the most wealthy ns have ones to give to their top prodigies."


    "Take it," Amon handed the aetherium stone to him.


    Xin Wuming looked at Amon with eyes full of admiration. He slowly epted the stone. While still holding the stone, he knelt and bowed to Amon again, without saying anything this time.


    "Use it to increase your cultivation speed, but use it discreetly. You should know it will just get confiscated if your n finds out," Amon said.


    "I understand," Xin Wuming answered, his head still bowing.


    "Good," Amon stood and went to the door. He opened it, but before he walked through, he called without looking back, "Wuming."


    "Yes, big brother?" Xin Wuming said while still kneeling.


    "Do not disappoint me."


    Amon then left.


    *


    When Amon arrived back at the Lin estate, the first order of business was going to the spot in his courtyard where he had buried the space ring that contained all his belongings.


    "Hm?" He noticed the grass that he put in ce was no longer there. It was an exposed ground that had a trace that it had been dug.


    Frowning, Amon dug the ground. He dug until he reached the depth where he remembered he had hidden the space ring, but it was not there. He continued digging. Nothing.


    Someone had taken the ring.


    While he was making an estimation as to who had the ess as well as the intention toe to this ce, his ears picked up footsteps approaching. He recognized the footsteps. He closed the ground he had dug and walked away from the spot before the person entered through the entrance of his courtyard.


    "Mother," Amon greeted.


    "You''ve returned," Madam Lin replied the greetings with a smile. She came over and hug him. "I am very d. From what my brother told me about the finals, I understand not everyone returns from that secret dimension. Come, tell me all about your adventure inside."


    They sat under the gazebo in the courtyard. Amon recounted his tale as Madam Lin requested. But of course, he left out the parts where he had killed the other youths. As well as the part about the Thousand-Year Mandrake or the pyramid''s legacy. He mentioned his harvesting of the various spirit herbs, nts, and fruits, but he didn''t mention that he kept all those things. He also mentioned his fights with the numerous spirit beasts.


    "That dimension is indeed a dangerous ce," Madam Lin touched the scar on Amon''s right arm, where the arm was severed when he was fighting the Ethereal Bronze-skinned Snake. "It was a good thing you found that regrowth pill. Those pills are very expensive. They are also very rare, even if I have enough aer stones to buy them, there is no guarantee that a stock is avable."


    "Unfortunately, I have to give the remaining pills away to the White Cloud sect," Amon lied.


    "It can''t be helped," Madam Lin said.


    "Mother, do you know who hase to this ce when I''m away?" Amon asked.


    "I don''t let anyone enter your ce except for me and the maids who keep this ce clean," Madam Lin answered.


    "I wish to know the names of the maids who have cleaned this ce during my absence."


    Instead of answering, Madam Lin pointed to the spot where Amon had hidden the space ring which was now gone. "I saw you walking from there when I entered," She said.


    She then ced a space ring on the table. "Are you looking for this?" She asked.

 101 Chapter 101

    Amon kept his expression t. All space rings looked alike but he somehow knew that the space ring on the table was the one he had hidden in the courtyard. He kept silent and didn''t answer Madam Lin''s question.


    "I know this housingplex. I will know if a piece of furniture is moved or if a stone is turned. I will also know if someone had dug the ground even if it was hidden by ayer of grass," Madam Lin said when Amon didn''t say anything.


    She pushed the space ring to Amon. "If you need something for safekeeping, you can alwayse to me. There is no need for you to hide it in the ground. Someone else might identally find it."


    Amon''s hand went near the ring but didn''t touch it.


    "I never look into the ring. Whatever you keep inside, I respect your secrecy," Madam Lin said.


    Amon looked at her. ''Is she telling the truth?'' He wondered.


    Madam Lin didn''t say anything more. So, Amon grabbed the ring. His consciousness entered the ring. Everything was there.


    "Nothing is missing, right?" Madam Lin asked.


    "I''m sorry, mother, it''s just some personal things I need to keep safe as I cannot bring them into the secret dimension," Amon answered.


    Madam Lin nodded. "Next time juste to me, don''t hide it in unsafe ces."


    "Yes, mother," Amon said. He was still wondering if Madam Lin had truly not checked inside this ring. But if she did, it didn''t make sense for her to just leave them. There were just too many valuables inside. Valuables that would make even Lin Weida forget his manner if he found out.


    "Get some rest, you must be tired already," Madam Lin said and stood up.


    "Thank you, mother, for your concern," Amon said.


    "That''s what a mother does," Madam Lin patted Amon''s head. She then left.


    Amon watched her leave. His instinct told him that she was telling the truth, but could that be the case?


    *


    The next morning, Madam Lin came to visit again when Amon was inspecting his alchemist apparatuses. They had been left alone for a while. He was checking and cleaning them to make sure they were still viable to be used.


    "Good morning, mother," Amon greeted when Madam Lin entered.


    "Good morning. You didn''t tell me yesterday that you get the first ranking in the secret dimension," Madam Lin said.


    "It''s not worth mentioning," Amon said, acting humble. Yet, he truly didn''t consider the ranking as a big deal. He then remembered Lin Weida had promised him something if he got into the top ten, so he asked. "Can I meet the n head? I have a deal with him in case I get to the top ten in the finals."


    "You can call him grandpa," Madam Lin said.


    "I don''t think he will like that. He didn''t think of me as a family member, not like mother," Amon returned.


    Madam Lin sighed. She didn''t continue the issue. "Let''s go. I will bring you to him now," she said.


    It won''t be easy for a lowly n member like him to meet the n master, that''s why Amon took the opportunity when he was with Madam Lin. Madam Lin obliged and brought Amon to her father''s abode.


    Lin Weida''s housingplex was surprisingly more modest than Lin Bubai''s. Even Madam Lin''s one was better. Lin Weida''splex only consisted of a single small house with a courtyard. There didn''t seem to be any maids around.


    "Little Xi, what brings you here today?" Both Madam Lin and Amon heard Lin Weida''s voice but they didn''t see the person anywhere. The voice sounded as if they came from everywhere.


    Amon didn''t detect any presence nearby. This must be voice projection delivered using aether.


    Madam Lin bowed in the direction of the house. Amon followed suit. Madam Lin then uttered, "Father, Lin Mo wished to meet with you."


    The door to the house opened. From inside the house, Lin Weida, who was in a cross-legged sitting position, floated out. His eyes were closed. He floated slightly above the two before opening his eyes and gazing down.


    Acting as if such a deity, Amon scoffed in his mind.<sub> </sub>


    "Lin Mo, I heard about your exploit in thepetition. Very good, very good. You have brought much honor to this n," Lin Weida said. "Tell me, what are you looking for me for?"


    ''This geezer is acting as if he doesn''t remember his promise to me,'' Amon thought. Since that was the way, Amon didn''t feel the need to be courteous. "I want to enter the Lin Tome Chamber."


    "Lin Tome Chamber?" Lin Weida asked with a questioning tone.


    ''Heh,'' Amon snickered inwardly. He then said with a pretending cute manner, "Grandpa is very forgetful. Did you forget already that you promised me the gift of entering the Lin Tome Chamber if I perform well in the White Cloud Tournament?"


    Lin Weida''s one eyebrow lifted as he stared at Amon. He thenughed. "Hahaha. You are right. I did forget. Now that you reminded me, I have remembered. Come, I will bring you there now." He floated down and walked past Amon and Madam Lin. He then stopped. With his back to Amon, he said, "Oh, another thing, Lin Mo."


    "Yes, grandpa?" Amon asked.


    "Don''t call me grandpa," Lin Weida said without turning back. He then continued walking.


    Madam Lin sighed again hearing the exchange, while Amon snickered in the open this time. The two then followed after Lin Weida.


    They soon arrived in a structure not less impressive than the n mission center. It was thest of the threergest buildings that were visible outside the estate, the one with nine floors. However, it was much less bustlingpared to the n mission center. This was because only certain people were permitted to enter this building.


    "I will wait outside," Madam Lin said. Outside the Lin Tome Chamber was arge beautiful garden, she went and sat on one of the benches around this garden.


    ''So, even Madam Lin is not permitted to enter as she wished?'' Amon thought.


    Two guards were guarding the entrance, Amon''s instinct told him that these guards were much stronger than him. They should be at least at the transformation stage.


    When he entered the lobby, there was an old man at the reception. This man had long white hair and a long white beard. His demeanor was like an otherworldly man currently having a brief visit to this world. He smiled amiably when Lin Weida entered.


    "Weida, what brings you here today?"


    Lin Weida gave the old man a polite salute. "Uncle, I am bringing a member who had done a great aplishment for the n. He will be entering this tome chamber to select one book inside." To Amon, he simply introduced, "This is the steward of our Lin Tome Chamber. You have better show him respect."


    ''Uncle?'' Amon thought. This geezer was older than Lin Weida? This meant his cultivation should be at least the level of Lin Weida as well, the spirit stage of the Martial realm. His instinct did re when he entered this lobby, telling him not to approach the old man behind the reception desk.


    "I see. May I know what is his aplishment?" The old steward asked.


    "He is the first ranker to the White Cloud Tournament," Lin Weida answered.


    "Oh? Lin Xi''s adopted bastard?" The old steward said curtly.


    ''Heh,'' Amon again snickered inwardly. This old man was straightforward, or maybe he simply didn''t care if Amon felt offended or not. Amon also didn''t truly care. They could look down on him for all he cared. As long as they didn''t hinder his progress, he wouldn''t bother to try to change their opinions of him.


    "He is not officially of our n. I can''t let him go up more than the second floor," The old steward said.


    Lin Weida turned to Amon and said with a shrug, "You heard the man. You can only look for books on the first and second floor."


    Amon nodded. "Am I free to roam around? Or will someone be escorting me?"


    "As long as you didn''t go to the third floor, you are free," Lin Weida replied.


    "I can only allow you two hours inside, though," The old steward said. "Pick a book ande out here before the time limit. If I have to go in to find you, you will regret it."


    "I believe our agreement has been concluded, I will leave you here then," Lin Weida said. He flew out immediately without waiting for Amon''s reply.


    "Go in. Your time inside starts now," the old steward said. "Just because there was no one escorting you, doesn''t mean no one is watching. If you dare to try to sneak to the third floor, you won''t be let off with just a scolding."


    Amon felt a heavy pressure on him then. The old steward must have released his aura to intimidate him. Amon maintained a t expression. He nodded and walked in without a word. The old steward watched Amon walk past him.


    ''Hm, he is as I have heard¡­ Is he truly just a fifteen years old kid?''

 102 Chapter 102

    Amon walked around reviewing the titles of the books on the first floor, he spent half an hour down there before going up to the second floor. He spent an hour roaming around the second floor to check the books. The ce wasrge. Normally, if one was to check the books'' quality in detail, they would need at least one day. Amon could do it in a short time because he simply gave each book a short nce, he didn''t even take them out from their shelves to check in detail. It was apparent that the two hours given by the steward were obviously nowhere near sufficient.


    ''Hehe, doesn''t matter. These books are all trash anyway,'' Amon thought. He might not have thought this way if he hadn''t gotten the pyramid legacy inside the secret dimension. But since he did, he could see that the quality of the books here was nowherepared to the library from the pyramid legacy.


    At least in this way, he could see that the Lin n''s treatment of him still didn''t change despite the aplishment he had achieved. It''s better this way. Although he would not hesitate to betray someone for his own benefit, he still didn''t enjoy the feeling that he was indebted to someone else. Wiping out the Hei n was necessary but it did leave some bad aftertaste.


    He was just about to leave the ce when someone he knew came up the stairs.


    "You? What are you doing here?" Lin Xiaolong uttered. "This is not a ce that a fake n member like you is allowed to enter."


    "Then, are you suggesting that I get past the steward in the lobby without his knowledge?" Amon said mockingly.


    "You should learn to watch your mouth when talking to your senior," Lin Xiaolong said.


    "Hehe, how about another round in the training arena? We haven''t fought in a while," Amon proposed with a grin.


    "Hmph!" Lin Xiaolong didn''t bother entertaining Amon any longer, he walked up the stairs to the third floor.


    Amon was just about to leave, but he caught sight of a book titled The Geography of Echos.


    Echos was the name of the country they were in. Amon had a book from the pyramid legacy that contained information about thend he dwelled in. However, that book was made at least three million years ago. Thendscape and the forces in thisnd had changed since then. If ording to the book from the pyramid legacy, this country of Echos used to be called the Tyraa Province. Based on his chat with the spirit that oversaw the pyramid legacy, the old world of three million years ago used to be ruled by a single force. Unlike the current time where the world was ruled by multiple countries.


    Amon took the geography book from the shelf. If he couldpare this book with the one he possessed, he would have a better understanding of thisnd, both its past and its present situation. With the book in his hand, he went back to the lobby on the first floor.


    "I would like to take this," Amon showed the book to the old steward, who frowned after seeing the book. He was probably wondering why Amon used his one chance to take such a useless book instead of books containing martial, arcane, or cultivation art.


    He looked at Amon who stared right back at him. He jotted down the title of the book in his record and said, "All right. You can keep the book for two days. Return it here before the time limit. Don''t make mee to your ce to take the book back, I will take more than the book if that happens."


    ''Two hours in the library and two days for studying the book, heh,'' Amon sneered within. For normal people, two days would hardly be enough to study a book in detail. Especially if he had taken a martial art, arcane art, or cultivation art book. This old man must have made up this rule just for him.


    Amon simply nodded. He went out to the garden outside the building. Madam Lin was still there waiting. Amon came and sat by him, he said, "Mother, I will be reading this book here. It will be some time. If you have something else to do, you can leave first."


    "That''s fine. I enjoy the scenery and the fresh air here anyway," Madam Lin answered. "But why didn''t you take it home to read? You can keep the book for two months, right?"


    ''Two months, eh?'' So, it was as he thought. Amon simply smiled and shook his head. "I don''t feel like wasting my time to take a trip back here. I will read this book now and return it after I finish."


    Madam Lin looked at the title of the book. It was not an art book, but it was still thick enough that he knew one wouldn''t be able to finish it in a day. Unless one was simply skimming it for leisure and not trulymitted its contents to memory.


    Amon started reading the book. Madam Lin just sat there quietly without interrupting him.


    "Mother can cultivate if you want, it won''t interrupt me. It will also keep anyone from disturbing mother," Amon said without stopping reading.


    Madam Lin smiled upon the idea. She said, "It wouldn''t be appropriate for me to do that here. You see, my cultivation art is best if I do it without having any clothes on my body and if I have at least one male partner with me."


    "Hm?" Amon stopped reading after hearing it.


    "It''s called dual cultivation. When youe to my house with Lin Dong. I''m doing dual cultivation with my other husbands."<sub> </sub>


    ''Those sex acts? No wonder I sensed weird aether movements at that time.'' "So, you mean you can''t cultivate on your own?" Amon asked.


    "The result won''t be as good," Madam Lin said.


    "Such an ineffective cultivation method," Amonmented.


    Madam Lin giggled. "But enjoyable. Perhaps I should teach you the art?"


    "Not interested. I dislike it if my personal growth has to rely on another person," Amon said and returned to his reading. He already had a special constitution that helped his cultivation. He was cultivating even now, albeit very little. His demon body constantly absorbed aether even when he was reading the book. He was not interested to experiment with an unorthodox cultivation method like what Madam Lin offered.


    Seeing Amon''s attention returned to the book, Madam Lin also didn''t speak anymore. She returned to enjoying the view in silence.


    Two hourster, Amon closed the book and stood up.


    "Are you finished?" Madam Lin asked.


    "I have," Amon answered and walked away.


    Madam Lin stood and was about to follow Amon but she saw him walking into the tome chamber building. She stopped herself. She thought Amon had grown tired of reading here and had decided to return home and continue reading there.


    ''When he said he had finished, did he mean that he had finished the whole book?'' Madam Lin wondered with surprise.


    Inside the lobby, the old steward was simrly confused that Amon had shown up again so soon.


    "What do you want?" He asked.


    "I''m here to return this book," Amon said.


    The old steward frowned. "Are you changing your mind and decided to change to a different book? I''m afraid I can''t allow you to do that. You have only one chance to pick a book. You already did, so you can''t change for another book anymore."


    Amon snickered. "I''m not here to change a book. I''m here to return this book. I''ve already finished reading it. Do I have to put it back on the shelf or can I just leave it here with you?"


    The old steward was speechless for a while. He then took the book from Amon and said, "You can just leave it here."


    Amon turned around. As he was walking out, he heard the old steward''s loud voice, "Sigh, the kids these days. Wasting a rare chance like this. Picking a useless book only to just leaf through it. The n head is correct to not nurture a hopeless kid like that."


    Amon''s walking pace didn''t change despite the mocking. He had no interest in dealing with this kind of issue. He certainly won''t waste the time exining to the old steward that he had indeed finished studying everything inside the book. He could memorize almost everything with a single nce. If he had to respond to everyone''s mocking, he wouldn''t have the time to do his own things. When he stood on top of this world, those mockings would disappear on their own.


    He came out of the building and found Madam Lin near the entrance. "You have returned the book?"


    "I have," Amon answered.


    Madam Lin had a questioning expression, but then she smiled. She patted Amon''s head and said, "That''s my boy. Let''s go home. I have asked the maid to prepare delicious meals. We will have lunch together."


    Amon felt a strange feeling from the pat. He dismissed it and walked after Madam Lin.

 103 Chapter 103

    In the following days, Amon focused on cultivating and training his arts. He no longer had to do missions to collect the required monthly points. Madam Lin had negotiated this with her father. One-time ess into the Lin Tome Chamber was hardly a proper reward for a member who had scored first ce in the White Cloud Tournament for the Lin n. She argued that if outsiders hear of the Lin n''s treatment of the youth who had taken the first rank, it would harm the Lin n''s reputation.


    After a debate, Lin Weida gave in to his daughter''s demand. Not only did Amon no longer need to do the missions, but he was also granted monthly wages. Although the wages only gave out a small number of aer stones, Amon didn''tin. He had stolen a decent amount of aer stones from the secret dimension.


    Amon weed the freedom, he had less than two years to prepare for the royal academy.


    His daily routine was training martial and arcane arts in the morning, experimenting with poison tome in the afternoon, and cultivating in the night.


    Aside from training his avable arts, he also tried to learn the remaining two arcane arts from Hei Gong. They were arcane arts of the fire and metal elements, respectively called me Lance and Iron Fist. These arcane arts were still tooplicated for him, arcane arts would be easier to learn after he reached the Transformation stage. He only managed to grasp the most basic understanding of them, getting into the Beginner mastery. He needed to focus a lot of time if he wanted to master them enough to be able to properly use them in a battle, like what he did when he learned the Water Slicing Ring. He didn''t have that luxury of time at the moment, so he put their study on hold.


    Instead, he studied three new arts. The first was the Concealed Ghost Body, a transformation art that he had nned to learn when he browse through the pyramid legacy. He reached skilled mastery rather fast. At this mastery, he could mask his presence to cultivators of the same stage.


    Of course, on the surface, this art was rather pointless considering those in the Human realm had not yet developed the ability to sense other cultivators'' energy. But Amon had experienced some cultivators who had the arts to detect someone despite being in the Human realm, such as Lei San and Si An. Thetter was the failed assassin sent by San Guo to assassinate Amon in the past.


    With this Concealed Ghost Body, he would be able to hide from someone who had those kinds of detection art.


    The second new art was Infinite Phantom sh. It was an art utilizing a dagger or a short sword. It was simr to the Endless Concealed sh that he had gotten from Lin Weida. But after he had a better understanding of arts, he estimated the Endless Concealed sh was only a low-tier practitioner grade, which was the lowest grade. No wonder Lin Weida gave the art to him.


    The Infinite Phantom sh, on the other hand, was of the high-tier practitioner grade. Since the two arts were simr, his understanding and expertise in Endless Concealed sh helped him to quickly learn the Infinite Phantom sh. In just a short time, he had reached the Expert mastery of the art. At this level, his dagger sh out rapid ten shes with unpredictable angles and covered arge area around him.


    This art also used minimum aether, so he could execute them often. This would be his main art when in a melee confrontation using weapons.


    The third andst new art that he learned was the Poison w art. This art was considered a transformation art more than a martial art because it transformed one''s hands into a poisonous weapon. The lethality of this art depended on the poison it was infused with.


    The higher one''s mastery of this art, the stronger the poison that one could infuse with the art. When he was only at the basic mastery, he found that he could only infuse this art with the weakest of poison. Only after reaching Skilled mastery that he could infuse the first poison he had learned from 101 Primal Poison Tome, the ck ughter Poison.


    The process was simr to when he was engraving the poison into his throwing knives. Except in this instance, he was not carving a word of power onto his hands. The Poison w art he trained served as a substitute for word of power. The art made the skin and flesh of his hands be absorptive of the poison. He had to submerge his handspletely into a liquid that had been fused with the poison of his choice. He would then leave his hand submerged for a long period while circting the aether on his hands following the art''s instructions.


    If the poison was too strong, his hands would be ruined by the poison instead. Thus, he would need to carefully gauge the level of the poison he could absorb.


    He would have to do such training daily for a long period until the poisonpletely fused with his art. After months of non-stop training, his hands finally absorbed enough essence of the ck ughter Poison. The poison hid under his skin and would be excreted when he executed his Poison w art. His hands would turn ck then.


    Amon continued training the art until he could turn his hands poisonous in a split second. His opponents would be caught off-guard if they dared toe near. Still, his ws'' prative ability was not as good as his knives. So, against enemies who had strong defensive arts, his ws might have trouble breaking through the skin to inject the poison.


    He saw some offensive w arts in the library within his ck space ring, he wondered if he couldbine one of those arts with the poison w to make it more deadly. But he put the n on hold first until he got used to this Poison w art.<sub> </sub>


    His poison study also underwent a significant advancement. The ntation inside his ck space ring was still at its infant stage, but some of the ready ingredients he had harvested inside the secret dimension allowed him to do lots of experimentation. With increased knowledge, he could understand more of the recipes in the 101 primal poison tome.


    He crafted the Thousand Dream Poison which used the Phantom Inducer Pouch, a poison sac that he harvested from the Mind Demon who had trapped him inside an illusion world when he first entered the secret dimension. This was a non-lethal poison that caused strong hallucinations. This poison was effective against the Mystic stage. Even the Spirit stage would be affected to a certain extent, but only for a short duration.


    He sessfully engraved this poison into three of his throwing knives. This hallucination poison might be useful to create a distraction.


    Another non-lethal poison recipe from the 101 primal poison tome that he had managed to produce was Fragile Bone Muscle Poison. This poison weakened the target. It could affect up to the Mystic stage as well.


    Amon didn''t engrave this poison into his throwing knives. He didn''t see the point of weakening his enemies when he could have killed them with the same strike.


    Another recipe that he had learned was a lethal poison. It was called the Cold Stiff Poison. This poison used all three ingredients he had acquired from the secret dimension, the Three-legged toad''s poison sacs, Four Seasons Worm, and its main ingredient, ice lotus. The ice lotus was a poisonous nt that released deadly poison clouds at night. He had harvested this lotus during the day and also taken some seeds and nted them inside his ck space ring''s ntation.


    This Cold Stiff Poison was deadlier than the ck ughter Poison. While ck ughter Poison was useless against the Spirit stage cultivator, this Cold Stiff Poison could still affect them to a degree, even if it could not kill them as well. Those who died of this poison would have its body turned extremely stiff and also very cold, as if frozen.


    Amon tried to fuse this poison with his Poison w art at first but found that this poison was too strong for his current mastery of the art. So, he kept practicing with the ck ughter Poison.


    Amon managed to engrave four of his throwing knives using this Cold Stiff poison.


    With this, in his arsenal, he had eleven poison knives. Fourced with ck ughter poison, three with Thousand Dream poison, and another four with Cold Stiff poison.


    Because his engraved throwing knives were getting fewer, he went and bought new ones. But he only bought normal throwing knives, because the engraved ones were rare and expensive. He applied the engraving process by himself, imbuing them with a word of power that enhanced their sharpness. Although it was only a low-tier engraving, it would have to do for now. After he was done with the engraving process, he had thirty engraved throwing knives aside from the eleven poison knives.


    He also bought more wooden bolts and applied engravings on them, increasing their sharpness so they could puncture their targets more easily. The engraving process took much time and meticulous work, but Amon persevered. He never had a problem focusing when needed.


    With these arsenals, his fangs were now sharper.


    Inside the library in his ck Space Ring, there were also some books about talisman creation. However, he decided to not dabble in that field yet. Spending too much time on too many subjects would just reduce his time on the others. Perhaps if he had hit roadblocks on the others then he would start touching on the subject.


    As for his cultivation, one year after he came out of the secret dimension, he finally reached the peak Strength stage. He was now at the same level as the Lin n''s youngest top prodigy, Lin Xiaolong.


    It was one and a half years since the White Cloud Tournament. Only half a year left before he attempted to enter the royal academy.

 104 Chapter 104

    Madam Lin continued to visit Amon daily. Amon also continued to produce the poison that Hei Pho used to sell to Madam Lin monthly. With his increased understanding of poison, he could now discern the effect of this poison. This poison caused intense pain without endangering its victim''s life.


    Amon still wondered about the reason why Madam Lin ordered this poison regrly. He happened to find out about it today.


    During Madam Lin''s daily visit for a chat, Amon noticed that she was not in her best mood today. Pretending to be a concerned son, Amon asked for the reason. Amon was hoping that Madam Lin would just say that it was not something a kid like him should concern about, but instead, she told him the reason.


    "I never told you my position and job in this n," Madam Lin said. "I think it''s time that you know. I''m in charge of the n''s prison and sometimes, extracting valuable information from particr prisoners."


    Madam Lin observed Amon''s expression before saying, "Do you understand what I mean?"


    "Does mother mean torture?" Amon asked with a t face.


    <o>,m Madam Lin nodded. A glint of surprise in her eyes. "This drug that you make for me regrly, that Hei Pho used to make, is used on those particr prisoners. It helps us in forcing information out of them without harming them physically."</o>


    "Rather civilized. I thought as one of the top ns of this city, this n won''t care whether these prisoners are harmed or not," Amon said.


    "Most of the time we don''t, but we still have to be careful with some individuals. In case we need them for a leverage or prisoner exchange," Madam Lin said.


    "Then, what is the problem this time? Since mother told me about this, I reckon mother''s worry has something to do with this job."


    "You are right," Madam Lin sighed. "Father has tasked me to extract information from one of the Lei n''s prisoners. It is vital information that my father allowed me the freedom of taking extreme measures on the prisoner. However, I need to get the information within this week. This is a crucial time, some elders have been questioning my ability and pressuring my father. These elders are unhappy with me and have been waiting for an opportunity for quite some time to cause me trouble. This is their chance. There is a high chance that I will be reced if I fail this task."


    "There are people who dare to be unhappy with mother?" Amon asked.


    "There are," Madam Lin didn''t borate.


    "What can mother tell me about this Lei prisoner that you want to extract information from?" Amon asked.


    "Are you going to help mother with this problem?" Madam Lin chuckled.


    "Probably," Amon asked.


    Madam Lin watched Amon''s serious expression and knew that he was not kidding. She thought for a bit before telling him what she knew about the Lei prisoner.


    The prisoner was named Lei Pang, one of the Lei n''s young prodigies. He was one generation as Wei Linkun from the Wei n and also had his name immortalized as one of the top ten in the previous White Cloud Tournament. His cultivation was at the peak Transformation stage of the Human realm and was believed to almost break through to the Martial realm. The Lei n had high hopes for him. He had been captured by the Lin n during a mission to eradicate a bandit base that has been active near a vige not far from White Cloud City.


    As fate had it, a group of the Lin n was also hired by a different vige to take care of this bandit base. The two groups of the Lin and Lei n happened to assault the base at the same time from different entrances. They managed to destroy the base and killed all the bandits, but the two groups ended up in a quarrel to decide who should take the bandit leader''s head to im the mission bounty. The quarrel escted into a fight.


    The Lin n came out on top. All the Lei n''s cultivators were killed except for the leader of the Lei group, Lei Pang, who was then captured. My brother, Lin Bubai, upon learning of Lei Pang''s capture, saw this as an opportunity, because Lei Pang was a newly appointed co-leader of the Lei n''s spywork. If they could learn about the Lei n''s spies, they could remove the Lei n''s spies inside the Lin n. He immediately had the bandit base sterilized to erase any indication that the Lin n had been there. Even all the bandit''s and Lei people''s bodies were destroyed.


    "What about the vige who gave the mission request to the Lin n?" Amon asked.<sub> </sub>


    "The vige was destroyed," Madam Lin answered tly. "We make it seem as if the bandit survived the Lei''s attack and had decided to flee. They rampaged through this vige as a result. No one should be able to trace Lei Pang''s disappearance to us."


    Ruthless and efficient, Amon thought in approval.


    Madam Lin continued her story. Lei Pang had been in their hands for a few days. The elders argued that they would need to get information about the spies as soon as possible. The Lei n is sure to start thinking of a way to rece their spies after Lei Pang''s disappearance, but they dare not pull all their spies in such a short time, that would be the same as revealing the spies themselves. Not to mention the Lei n didn''t know who had Lei Pang. But the longer they wait, the Lei n would have a better window in recing their spies one by one without notice. That''s why it''s crucial to extract information from Lei Pang as soon as possible.


    The elders had pressured Lin Weida that if by the end of this week, which was four days from now, Madam Lin was still unable to get the information, they would have Lin Wng take over the task. If that happened, Madam Lin''s power within the n would decline.


    Amon knew that Lin Wng was Lin Wuli''s father. Hearing that, he had a hunch that whatever caused these elders to be unhappy with Madam Lin had something to do with him. He didn''t truly care about helping Madam Lin. His initial thought was that if Madam Lin lost her position, it would be more difficult for her to defend him during the remaining half year before he applied for the royal academy. Now that he suspected that the group causing trouble to Madam Lin also had a grudge against him, he figured it was more essential to help Madam Lin keep her position.


    "How is Lei Pang''s poprity in the Lei n? Arerge-scale searches being conducted upon his disappearance?" Amon asked.


    "It does. Almost all the higher-ups in the Lei n have high hopes for Lei Pang. The Lei n is not subtle in doing their search. They have been causing havoc in the city for a few days. The White Cloud sect has to step in so they didn''t go too far. If the Lei n somehow finds out that we are the one holding Lei Pang, they won''t mind going into an open war with us to rescue him."


    Amon pondered for a bit after hearing it, he then asked again, "This Lei Pang, how do you describe his personality?"


    "He is a very proud and confident person. He had the opportunity to flee during the fight at the bandit base, but he refused to do it even when it was clear that they were outnumbered. He is most proud of his cultivation speed. He always tells his nspeople that he should be able to break through to the martial realm within three more years. If he managed to do that, he will be the youngest Lei member to achieve that in history."


    "Does he have anyone he loves? Like, truly love that he is willing to sacrifice himself."


    "I don''t think there is any. He has a few wives inside the Lei n but he treated them more like ythings. The one he truly loves is himself."


    "Can I go see him?" Amon asked.


    "¡­ I don''t think it is a good idea for a kid to go there," Madam Lin said.


    "Don''t worry about me, mother. I have seen plenty of blood," Amon said.


    Madam Lin was reminded again of the time when Amon had executed Wei Feng. Amon had also gone through many conflicts during the mission and tournament. "The ce I''m in charge of is not anything like the battlefield. The blood you have seen before won''t guarantee you to be able to cope with what you see in my workce."


    "Believe me, mother. I will be able to cope with whatever is in this ce you are overseeing," Amon replied calmly.


    Madam Lin was still hesitant, thinking that Amon was just being overconfident. As a matter of fact, she was not even sure why she told him all of this. Perhaps she was just too stressed that she needed to confer with someone. Lin Dong was usually the husband she spoke with the most regarding her work. Buttely, she found that talking to him or any of her husbands was not as productive as it used to be. Those husbands were only good for dual cultivation now. She felt her daily talks with Amon were much more pleasant. Perhaps that''s why she had chosen to convey her current problem to him.


    Madam Lin inspected Amon''s gaze, who showed no hesitance. She still thought that the kid was being too overconfident. That he didn''t know the darkness of this world. She decided that showing him a glimpse might do the boy some good.


    "All right. Come with me," Madam Lin said.

 105 Chapter 105

    Madam Lin and Amon came to an unremarkable small house that was situated in arge empty plot ofnd. But Amon knew it was just made to look like that. He spotted several ces that hid onlookers as he passed by. This ce was carefully watched. The empty plot will let any escapees be easily spotted.


    Madam Lin opened the door to the unremarkable house. Inside was just an empty room except for one desk, one chair, and arge trapdoor with arge lock in the middle of the floor. A rough-looking man was behind the desk. He immediately rose from his chair after seeing it was Madam Lin who entered. He gave a salute.


    "Open the door. We are going to enter," Madam Linmanded.


    The man''s eyes darted to Amon for a bit with a questioning nce. When he saw Madam Lin''s frown, he threw away the query in his mind and quickly took out the key to unlock the trapdoor. There was a long stairway that descended into darkness.


    "I will inform Lin Guo," the man said as Madam Lin and Amon entered. The trapdoor was closed after.


    Madam Lin took out a bright re stone to light the way. The stairs went down a long way without any lighting. The stairs stopped and they walked through a narrow corridor. They came to an intersection and Madam Lin turned. They came again to several intersections and turned a few times. It was a maze and there was absolutely no lighting. Amon figured that this was so that it was difficult for the prisoners to escape.


    Amon soon saw a corridor with lighting in the distance. They walked in that direction and Madam Lin stored her bright re stone. The corridor with lighting was much wider than the one they walked through just now. Lin Guo was there waiting for them at the entrance.


    "Ma''am!" He greeted with a salute. His eyes nced at Amon with a surprised glint.


    "We wish to see Lei Pang," Madam Lin said.


    Lin Guo''s eyes again darted to Amon as if asking, ''We?'' But his mouth didn''t utter anything. He just nodded and led the way.


    They walked following Lin Guo. The corridor had only stone walls for a long way before they came upon prison cells with barred doors. Some of these cells were upied. Amon saw the people who upied the cells. They were not in a good condition. Most of their faces showed hopeless and terrified expressions.


    There was another intersection. Lin Guo took a turn and brought them to a steel door with a guard standing beside it. Lin Guo took out a key and unlocked the steel door. When it was opened, Amon heard all kinds of screams from the inside. Amon felt oddly familiar with the noises.


    The three of them went in. There was again another corridor filled with rooms with barred doors on one side. The rooms that were upied had people strapped in all sorts of positions with at least one person attending to each of them using different kinds of tools.


    There was one person whose left eye was in the process of being plucked out. The nerve that stuck to the eye was still there holding the eyeball onto the eye socket. The person was shrieking as his right eye looked at his left one which was being held by a pincer. He was helpless as his hands and feet were tied to a chair.


    Another person in the room next door had all his left-hand fingers missing. His right hand still had three fingers left at that moment. The next second he might have only two because one of the remaining three was in the process of getting sawn off.


    Another one was being strapped naked on a wooden bed, having his chest''s skin peeled off slowly using a peeler. Another one had his feet submerged in a bucket of boiling water while strong pressure of hot water was spraying from above. Another was being hung upside-down while being whipped using a scourge. Pieces of his flesh were hanging from the wounds. There was arge bowl put below the head to collect the blood dripping from the wounds.


    Wails of pain and terror, begging for mercy, and the stench of death filled the air. Amon supposed these prisoners here weren''t the ones who had the luxury of getting his drugs.


    Both Madam Lin and Lin Guo turned back to look at Amon. They saw the boy watching each scene with indifference. The boy didn''t even flinch. Madam Lin Had aplicated expression after seeing Amon''s t face, but she stayed silent and returned her attention to the front.


    They soon arrived in front of a room that was not open to the outside. It had a stone wall and a wooden door. The three entered the door to find a small room with a ss wall on the opposite side from where they entered. Inside that room was arge and plump man watching the scene from the other side of the ss wall.


    Amon thought that the ss wall looked like the modern ss from his previous world. Everyone from this side of the room had a clear view of the other side of the ss wall, which was another room. Inside that room was a half-naked man being chained standing to the wall. Another man was with him, holding a hot iron that was currently being used to burn his chest. There were lots of burn scars on his bare chest.


    "GRRHHH¡­.!!!"


    They could hear the bound man enduring the pain. He was clenching his mouth so that he didn''t scream.


    "Tell us what we want to know!" The one holding the hot iron yelled.


    "GRRRHH¡­. NEVEERRR¡­!!!" The bound man screamed.<sub> </sub>


    The hot iron was left burning the man''s chest for a little more while before the man holding it pulled it away. The bound man copsed, his head dropped and his disheveled hair covered his face. Only the chains kept him standing.


    "I take it that is Lei Pang?" Amon asked.


    Therge fat man who was watching from behind the ss wall turned upon hearing Amon''s voice. He was at first startled by Amon''s presence and was just about to yell at the kid but Madam Lin''s presence was soon registered.


    "Ma¨CMadam Lin!" He uttered. "My apology! I didn''t notice you enter."


    Madam Lin waved him off. "How is the progress?" She asked.


    "Madam¡­ This kid¡­," the fat man asked.


    Madam Lin red at him. "I asked a question!" She uttered.


    At this time, the bound man behind the ss wall lifted his head. He seemed to have regained some of his strength. He then spat at the person holding the hot iron andughed. The person responded by pressing the hot iron onto his chest again. The bound man tried his best to stillugh under the pain.


    "I''m sorry! As you can see, he is still resisting. I''m requesting permission to start applying more severe methods."


    "Permission granted," Madam Lin said. "Do whatever you must, just don''t let him die. We need to get the information by the end of this week!"


    "Yes, madam!" The fat man''s eye darted to Amon again.


    "This is Ta Fei. He is my warden," Madam Lin introduced the fat man to Amon. She didn''t do the same to Ta Fei.


    Seeing that Madam Lin didn''t say anything to introduce the kid, Ta Fei bowed and excused himself. He went to the room behind the ss wall through a small side door and then whispered something to the man holding the hot iron. Afterward, he came back again.


    While he was away, Madam Lin confirmed to Amon, "Yes, that bound person inside is Lei Pang."


    Amon watched Lei Pang''s eyes who watched Ta Fei returning to this room. His eyes were still following Ta Fei before he entered the side door, but afterward, his eyes just stared ahead. No apparent focus on any person inside the room here.


    ''The ss wall is see-through only from this side?'' Amon thought.


    Afterward, everyone just stayed silent as they watched. The torturer inside put down the hot iron. He was now holding a metal plier. Lei Pang continued throwing insults and tried to spit again. The torturer had to gag him with a cloth. The torturer then proceeded to use the plier to pull the fingernails of Lei Pang''s right hand one by one. After he was done with one hand, he took off the cloth covering Lei Pang''s mouth and asked, "Are you ready to talk now?!"


    "Hahaha, when my n finds out about me being kept here, and they will! You Lin n will get what''sing for you! Marks my words! I will kill you all with my hands¡­!!"


    Lei Pang then ended his speech with another spit.


    The torturer covered Lei Pang''s mouth again and continued his work on the fingernails on Lei Pang''s other hand. When Lei Pang didn''t submit, it was his feet''s fingernails next. After that, the torturer took a hammer. He proceeded to strike Lei Pang''s fingers, breaking his finger bones one by one. All the while continued asking if Lei Pang was ready to talk.


    He was not.


    This continued for some time while the others watched from behind the ss wall.

 106 Chapter 106

    "This is not working," Amonmented after a long time. The torturer inside had changed to using a small knife to cut Lei Pang''s flesh little by little.


    "Little kid, please don''t say things you don''t understand," Ta Fei uttered. He was not in a good mood. Madam Lin had given him quite a pressure with this Lei Pang. Now this kid was mocking him.


    "You should show this kid respect," Madam Lin reprimanded. "He is my son. If you disrespect him, you disrespect me."


    "He is¡­," Ta Fei looked at Amon with wide eyes. He then bowed and said, "My apology, young master."


    However, Amon could see the disdain in Ta Fei''s eyes. Amon could guess this fat man''s thoughts. ''What right did a bastard like him to be respected? He did not even have a drop of Lin''s blood inside him.'' But Amon didn''t care about what Ta Fei might be thinking.


    "You won''t break him like this," Amon said.


    "Everyone has a breaking point," Ta Fei said. He tried to be respectful but his tone said otherwise.


    "That is true, but the objective is to break him before the end of this week. This man''s pain tolerance and determination will not let you achieve that target."


    "If so, then I will just have to use a more extreme method!" Ta Fei announced. He then turned to Madam Lin, "Permission to¡­"


    "You still won''t make him talk in four days even if you apply more drastic torture. You might kill him instead," Amon cut Ta Fei''s words before he finished.


    "Then what do you suggest?! You are just a little kid! What do you know about torturing people?" Ta Fei had finally lost his patience. All the stress was getting to his nerves.


    Amon didn''t answer Ta Fei. He instead turned to Madam Lin. "Mother, can you let me try?" He asked.


    Madam Lin looked at Amon with a frown. She was honestly also unsure about Amon''s suggestion. She was not sure what she was expecting by bringing Amon here. But after looking at Amon''s confident eyes, she said, "What do you propose?"


    "I want to go in for a bit," Amon said. "It should be safe, right?"


    "His cultivation was suppressed by the chains, he won''t be able to do anything," Madam Lin answered.


    Amon nodded. "I will borrow this," he said and took one of the chairs in the room and walked to the door that connected to the room behind the ss wall.


    Ta Fei was standing in front of that door. He was hesitant at first until Madam Lin nodded at him. He opened the door for Amon. The torturer inside was in the middle of hammering Lei Pang''s fingers. He stopped when he saw a teenage boy enter. His gaze went to Ta Fei who nodded an acknowledgment and signaled for him to stand aside.


    He did so. His face was full of questions, though. Lei Pang, who was still gagged, had a simr expression.


    Amon put the chair right next to Lei Pang and stood on it. The chair brought his short body to the same height as Lei Pang. Amon then ruffled through Lei Pang''s head. He turned Lei Pang''s head around and scrutinized it.


    ''What is this? Some kind of new torture?'' Lei Pang thought in bafflement.


    A scar, Amon thought as he saw the mark below Lei Pang''s left ear. It was not a fresh mark. Not recently caused. So it was safe to assume this mark was not due to recent tortures. Seeing that it didn''t heal, Amon assumed it must be an injury that urred when Lei Pang was still a kid before he formed his energy core and entered the cultivation way which could slowly mend all injuries if given time.


    Amon also checked behind Lei Pang''s head, under his hair. After a while, he went down from the chair, took it with him, and returned outside. He saw the supposed ss wall on his way. It was a stone wall if seen from this room. Even more advanced than his previous world, he thought.


    After arriving back in the previous room, Amon said, "I will need a few things." He then whispered something to Madam Lin.


    Afterward, Madam Lin said to Lin Guo, "Follow Lin Mo and do all that he asks." To Amon, Madam Lin said, "You can trust him."


    Amon nodded. He opened the door but stopped before leaving. He then said to Ta Fei, "Before I return, do not apply any more tortures on Lei Pang. Instead, give him good treatment. Let him rest and give him good food."


    Ta Fei turned to Madam Lin with disbelief. Madam Lin seemed to have some internal struggles before saying, "Do what he says."<sub> </sub>


    *


    Inside the torture room, Lei Pang was gazing at the stone wall opposite him. He was sure that the wall was made of special engraved stones that allowed the people from the other side to observe this room. He was sure that fat fucker was behind that wall enjoying the scene. Was that weird teenage boy there as well? What was that all about just now?


    He then felt a jolt from one of his fingers. He bit down on the cloth in his mouth to endure the pain. The fucker before him had just broken another of his finger bones. He looked at the man who was torturing him. He burned the man''s face into his mind. He swore he would bring down sufferings on this man ten times what the man was doing to him once his n rescued him.


    The man saw the defiance in Lei Pang''s eyes and mmed the hammer on another part of his finger.


    "Grrhhh¡­!" Lei Pang groaned through the cloth. Almost all the fingers on his right hand were broken now. The torturer shifted position to move to his left side.


    The torturer released the cloth from his mouth and stood a bit further. He was ready in case Lei Pang wanted to spit at him again.


    "Ready to talk?" The torturer asked.


    "I am looking forward to returning this favor, to you and that fat pig out there!!" Lei Pang yelled.


    The cloth was shoved back into his mouth. The torturer then used the hammer and resumed breaking the finger bones on his left hand.


    Lei Pang bore the pain while continuing to convince himself. This was only temporary. It would be over once his n found out about him. They woulde to save him, and then together with him, they would enact revenge on this Lin n''s atrocious acts.


    With each shattering of his finger bone, he said the same thing to himself. It was like a mantra to him. He looked at his broken fingers. It didn''t look like fingers anymore.


    This was only temporary, he thought again to himself. All this could be healed. The recovery medicines in the Lei n could easily undo all this. It was nothing to worry about. All he needed to do was just endure the suffering and waited for the rescue. He could do this all week, all month if he needs to. Even a year, if that was what it took. But he was sure he would be rescued sooner orter.


    All he needed to do, was wait.


    Then the door opened. The disgusting fat fucker came in again. His torturer was just about to smash another bone in his finger, but he stopped when the fat fucker uttered, "Stop!"


    The torturer looked at the fat fucker in confusion. The fat fucker said, "Gather up your things. We are done with him."


    The torturer was still confused, but he followed themand. He packed up his torture tools and left.


    Lei Pang was also confused. What was this fat fucker up to now? Was he devising more painful tortures? Bring it on! Lei Pang thought defiantly. The fat fucker just stood there and looked at Lei Pang with a weird stare. He then approached and removed the cloth from his mouth, before walking back out the door again.


    Lei Pang was left alone in the room, with multiple broken fingers and a confused mind.


    *


    Lei Pang let himself rest while no tortures came to him. He had been enduring pains non-stop. They didn''t let him rest much. Only enough to not let him die of fatigue. He closed his eyes and rested.


    He didn''t know how long he rested. He didn''t even know if he slept at all. He was made aware when the door to this room opened again. A person who he had never seen before entered.


    A different torturer? What kind of different methods were they up to now? Lei Pang wondered.


    The new person was bringing a bag. It must be filled with torture tools, Lei Pang thought. The person then went to Lei Pang''s right hand where his fingers werepletely ruined. The person opened his bag. When Lei Pang expected the person to take out pliers or scissors or a hammer again, the person instead took out a bottle and a bandage.


    The person opened the bottle and poured its content into Lei Pang''s broken fingers, before bandaging them.


    Was it some kind of pain-intensifying ointment? Lei Pang thought with worry. Never mind. Whatever pain they inflicted on him, he would take it like a man.

 107 Chapter 107

    But after a while, no pain came. Rather than pain, his bandaged right hand felt slightlyfortable. The man moved to his left and started doing the same to his left hand.


    After finishing, the man stood up and took out a water bag.


    "Drink," he said and put the opening of the water bag to Lei Pang''s mouth.


    Lei Pang was unwilling to at first. But he was indeed thirsty. They didn''t let him drink much. Whatever, if it was poison to hurt him, he would just endure it as well. So, he drank the liquid greedily. It tasted like water, but he was having trouble believing it was water.


    When the water bag was emptied, Lei Pang still try sucking it. Hoping that he could suck the remaining droplets inside. The man had to tear the bag out of his mouth forcefully.


    The man then stored his things back into the bag and walked out.


    Lei Pang only watched the man with a questioning mind.


    *


    Not long after, the door opened again. The same person who had bandaged his hands entered. Lei Pang looked at his bandaged hands. It had been quite a while and no pain was felt. He had a problem believing that what was applied to his hands was healing ointment, but it was also difficult to refute thefort the ointment had induced.


    He looked back at the approaching man. The man was now carrying a closed tray. He was still expecting to see torturing tools inside the tray. When the man opened the lid. It was a cooked chicken. The man tore one of the chicken legs and offered it to his mouth.


    As before when he offered a drink, he hesitated for a bit. Thinking that it was poisoned food. But then he thought, if they wanted him dead, he would be dead already. He was not afraid of death. If they wanted to kill him, so be it. When their n found out about his sacrifice, he would be a martyr to his n. Everyone would remember his name, and they would pursue revenge in his name.


    He bit on the chicken leg and ate it without ceremony. Only after the meat entered his stomach that he realized how hungry he was. After there was no more meat on the chicken leg, the man took the other one and offered it again. Lei Pang continued to wolf down the food ferociously. The man continued to feed him until the whole chicken became bones. The man then left.


    *


    This condition continued every day. Lei Pang kept on thinking it was a trick, that when the door next opened, it would be a torture session again. But it never did.


    Until the third day since this strange peaceful treatment began. The door opened. This time, that weird teenage boy was back.


    The door was closed. The boy was alone in this room with him. The boy just stared at him with a weird stare. Lei Pang was unsure what to make of the boy. Was the boy fascinated by a bound person? Was the Lin n trying to groom this boy to have him get used to torturing prisoners?


    "Why don''t youe closer, boy? I won''t bite," Lei Pang said. His words indicate friendliness, but his tone and expression were not. He was trying to scare the boy. But contrary to expectation, the boy grinned instead.


    "Oh? You think you are so tough, eh?" Lei Pang uttered. His anger rose because he felt mocked by that grin. How could he stay calm when a small boy who probably just hit puberty looked down on him? "You Lin youths think your n is the best because of your sheltered and privileged lives. Come into the open, our Lei youths will wipe the floor with your heads."


    "Funny you should mention that," Amon finally opened his mouth. "I bring a head as well."


    Huh? Lei Pang finally noticed that the boy didn''te empty-handed. He was carrying arge sack with him. A round thing seemed to be inside that sack. A round thing the size of a person''s head. Could it truly be a head inside that sack? Lei Pang dismissed that notion. The kid must be messing with him.


    Amon walked closer.


    As the boy approached, Lei Pang made a show as if he wanted to lunge at the boy. He was trying to scare the boy. But the boy continued walking as if nothing happened, the boy''s eyes didn''t even blink.


    The boy stopped right in front of him. The boy was still grinning with eyes staring directly into his eyes. He rattled his chains, trying to act like the aggressor despite being restrained, but something primal inside him told him that his acts only made him a buffoon before this boy.


    He stopped. He finally gave the boy a serious expression and said, "What do you want?"


    "I''m going to give you an option. But first, I want you to understand the option that you have and do not have," Amon replied.<sub> </sub>


    "What do you mean?" Lei Pang asked.


    "I''m going to show you the head inside this shack," Amon opened the sack and took out the thing inside.


    ''By the Gods, it truly is a head,'' Lei Pang uttered within. What was this little boy doing with a man''s head? He even treated it as if it was nothing. Like it was any other object.


    Amon was holding the head by its hair. He lifted the head high so that it was closed to Lei Pang''s face.


    "What do you want showing me this head?" Lei Pang uttered. "If you think you can scare me with it. You are seriously just a stupid kid. How many dead heads do you think I have seen? I have even cut off aplenty. If you want to threaten me with death, then just go ahead and kill me! There is no need to waste anyone''s time here! Go ahead and kill me if you dare! My Lei n will surely avenge me!"


    "Are you done rambling?" Amon asked after Lei Pang stopped talking. "Take a good look at this head."


    Lei Pang was bewildered by the request. Did the head belong to someone he knew? Was the Lin n trying to intimidate him by going after someone important to him? But there was no such person. He looked closely at the head in front of him. After a while, his eyes turned wide.


    "This¡­," He couldn''tplete his sentence.


    "It took us some time to find someone with a face simr to yours," Amon said. "But with the Lin people''s resources, we managed to find a candidate. Of course, we do it discreetly so the Lei n is unaware of this. This is just a nobody who will cause no rm when he disappeared. After we found this person and took his head. All we need to do is just work him up a bit. The parts that differed the most from you are covered with wounds."


    The head did have several wounds that make some features unidentifiable.


    "But it should be enough for anyone to mistake it for you," Amon said. He turned the head to the side to let Lei Pang see the scar below the head''s left ear. It was one identical to his.


    "I caused this scar and then used medicine to make it seem as if it has healed for some time. Those who truly know you will be certain that this head is yours," Amon said.


    "What are you going to do with that head?!" Lei Pang yelled.


    "I''m going to have someone ce it in front of Lei''s estate. Together with a letter that said this is the consequence for daring to hunt the Wolsh Brothers."


    The Wolsh Brothers were the name of the bandit gang that both the Lei and Lin ns targeted during the mission, the one where Lei Pang had been captured.


    "We have removed their bodies. No one knows if they are still alive," Amon said. "After this head is delivered to the Lei estate, your Lei n will think that they still are. But most important thing is, do you know what this means for you?"


    Lei Pang was silent, but Amon could see from his pale expression that he did.


    Amon put the head back into the sack and knocked on the door. Lin Guo appeared and took the sack from Amon''s hand. He then closed the door again.


    "The head will be en route to the Lei estate now," amon said as he walked back to Lei Pang. "After this, no one from the Lei n will be looking for you. They will be instead looking for the non-existent bandit outside of this city. The save that you are hoping toe your way. It will nevere. You are stuck in this hole forever."


    Lei Pang didn''t say anything. His expression was hollow. He didn''t want to believe the kid''s words.


    "And this," Amon took out a dark red pill from his space ring and held it close to Lei Pang''s face. "Do you know what this is?"


    Lei Pang''s gaze was unfocused at first. It took him a few breaths before he could give the pill in Amon''s hands a good look. Aside from its unique dark red color, there was also faint red smoke that seemed to constantly swirl around the pill.


    "This¡­ It''s¡­ It''s a core destruction pill¡­!" Lei Pang uttered in horror.

 108 Chapter 108

    "Yes. This is one rare pill. Our Lin people have to go to the white cloud''s auction house and spent a lot of aer stones to purchase this," Amon said and moved the pill closer to Lei Pang. "We intentionally purchase this pill just for you. You should feel honored, shouldn''t you?"


    Lei Pang turned his head away. "Get that thing away from me!" He yelled.


    "Well, I guess one such as you will be very familiar with what this pill does," Amon said. "Those that consume this pill, will have their energy core shattered. All the cultivations they had umted all this time, gone. A spirit stage cultivator can do this feat without using this pill, but of course, it''s not like we can invite any spirit stage cultivator just to deal with you. So, this pill will have to do. Now then, how about you open your mouth and let me feed this pill to you?"


    "Get away! Get away!" Lei Pang screamed. His scream was borderline frantic.


    Amon''s hand shot up and mmed Lei Pang''s cheeks. Lei Pang was startled to find how strong Amon''s hands were. Although his cultivation was suppressed by the chains, his innate physical strength was still not something a teenage kid should be able to overpower, but he felt his face lose strength in Amon''s grip.


    Amon had targeted the pressure points on Lei Pang''s face. Hence, he was able to ovee Lei Pang''s strength. Lei Pang''s mouth was opened wide due to Amon''s grip. Amon''s fingers that were holding the red pill slowly approach that opened mouth.


    LeI Pang mumbled something hysterically, but because his mouth was force-opened, his words were undecipherable.


    Amon let go of his grip. "Are you trying to say something?" He asked.


    Lei Pang gasped for a while. His eyes stared at Amon. The defiance that he showed at the start was no longer in those eyes. Instead, terror and helplessness filled them.


    "Why¡­ Why don''t you just kill me?" Lei Pang asked.


    "We won''t. We will keep you alive for as long as possible. You, a cripple that is of no use to your n anymore, and you will suffer torture for the rest of your life. And don''t think about trying to bite your tongue to kill yourself. You know we can heal you back to life. You won''t die until we allow you to."


    After another moment of silence, Lei Pang asked with difficulty, "If¡­ If I talk¡­ Will you let me keep my cultivation?"


    Amon nodded. "If you cooperate. We will ce you in a different cell. You will no longer be subject to torture. You can also keep your cultivation. So, what do you say? Will you talk?"


    Lei Pang was silent.


    Amon lifted the pill again. "You see, I don''t have all day. So¡­"


    "I¡­ I will talk¡­," Lei Pang said weakly.


    Amon nodded. The red pill was back in his space ring. "Another person wille here and give you the questions. Please answer them truthfully."


    Amon turned and walked towards the door. He stopped midway and looked back. "Oh, one more thing. Please cooperate fully in answering all questions. If you make mee back into this room again, there will be no more negotiation. Do you get me?"


    Lei Pang nodded weakly. He could see the coldness in this boy''s eyes. He had seen it the first time heid eyes on the boy, but his disbelief prompted him to ignore it. He could now see more clearly the abyss within those eyes. He couldn''t believe the person in front of him was a teenage kid. That was impossible. This boy was a demon in disguise.


    Amon walked out the door.


    When he was back in the room. Madam Lin, Lin Guo, Ta Fei, and the torturer from before only stared at him in silence. Thissted for a while until Amon asked, "So, who will go and question him? Better do it fast while his fear is still fresh."<sub> </sub>


    Hearing Amon''s words, Madam Lin signaled to the torturer. "Go, you already have the list of what to ask, right?"


    "Ye¨CYes, madam. Right away!" The torturer uttered and hurriedly went into the room with Lei Pang.


    "How¡­ How do you do that?" Ta Fei finally said.


    Amon smiled. He said, "There are two things that supported people who are under torture. The conviction that their suffering is only temporary and the confidence of not losing anything precious permanently."


    Ta Fei''s questioning expression remained, so Amon borated, "You are correct that everyone has a breaking point. But how long and how soon is that breaking point? A person''s pain tolerance is a factor. For ones with high pain tolerance, if they are sure that they will be rescued and that all the injuries that they receive will be reversible, then they canst truly long. Maybe indefinitely for as long as those beliefsst. But the reverse is also true. If you take away those beliefs. They will crumble faster even if they have a high pain tolerance."


    Amon pointed at the sack that was still in Lin Guo''s hand. "Lei Pang believed that his n is fiercely searching for his whereabouts. He believes that sooner orter, they will find out where he is held and that he will be rescued. That head destroys that belief."


    "While for the other belief, you can pluck his nail, crush his fingers. Heck, you can cut his cock, but he knows those are all reversible. He knows that as long as he is back in his n, he will be able to buy a regrowth pill. Although the pills are very rare, with his n''s resources and his position in the n, he is sure the n will be willing to spend for him. He will then recover all the limbs and parts that have been lost. Perhaps if he has someone he loved, then we will be able to use that. Capture the ones he loves and threaten him with their deaths. There is no pill for resurrection, so their loss will be permanent. But he has no such attachment, so we can''t use that method."


    Amon showed them the red pills. "Which brings us to the next best thing, his cultivation. He is proud of it. Losing cultivation is not something that can be recoverable with a simple pill. He will have to cultivate back from the beginning. However, he is already an adult. The most effective cultivation foundation was tempered during the young formative age. If one only starts cultivating when he is already an adult, his progress will be limited. He will be lucky to break through to the Strength stage, much less return to his current peak Transformation stage. Someone like him who is hailed as a prodigy will lose all privileges. He will just be a nobody even if he returns to his n. That is something worse than death for someone like him."


    Ta Fei looked at Lei Pang who was now conversing willingly with his underling. It was difficult for him to admit, but the result was there. "What about treating him well before youe and threaten him? What purpose does that serve?"


    Amon chuckled. "Nothing," He answered. "I am simply trying to prove my points. If you continued to torture him and then Ie and he breaks, you might argue that he has simply reached his breaking point. That I simplye at the right time."


    "But of course, there is still a chance that he continues to be stubborn after I show him the head and feed him this red pill," Amon said. "However, with those two beliefs gone, he will be more susceptible to breaking. When that happens, I will then ask you to continue your tortures. Without his convictions supporting him, I reckon he will break in one day the most, if not one hour. Still within the requested time limit."


    Ta Fei showed aplicated expression. He had been doing this for a long time, he couldn''t believe that he was bested by a teenage kid.


    "Don''t feel bad about it," Amon said, understanding Ta Fei''s thought. "You are simply too used to giving physical torture. But you have to understand that the point of torture is never to break their bodies, it''s their minds. Well, of course, if you are a sadistic person that reveled in pure suffering, that''s another matter. But if it is information you want, it is always more effective to target their minds rather than their bodies."


    "I¡­ Thank you for this enlightenment, young master," Ta Fei said with a bow.


    Amon nodded. He then said to Madam Lin, "Mother should have no problem answering to the n head now, right?"


    Madam Lin nodded with a warm smile.


    "Then I have no more business here, I will excuse myself," Amon said.


    "Let me send you out," Madam Lin said.


    Lin Guo wanted to apany them but Madam Lin said that he had other tasks to do. The Lei n still actively searching for Lei Pang''s whereabouts. The head trick was not just to influence Lei Pang, it could indeed be used to send the Lei n into a wild goose chase.

 109 Chapter 109

    "Thank you," Madam Lin said while walking beside Amon.


    "I am happy to be able to be of use to mother," Amon lied. If it was not because Madam Lin might lose her power, Amon wouldn''t have bothered. He still needed her as a powerful backer within this n. Otherwise, his freedom would be affected. There was only half a year left, but he was not someone that let his guard down just because the objective was close. If anything else, he should be more vignt.


    "How do  you know so much about torture?" Madam Lin asked. "I don''t see the Hei n as a n that toils in this field."


    "It''s not that I know so much about torture, I just have a better understanding of the human''s minds," Amon answered. "All thanks to the books that mother allowed me to read."


    "Since you like books so much, you should build your own library. I know the monthly wages the n provided as a reward for you winning the White Cloud tournament is not much. I will add my aer stones into those wages. You can use them to buy any books you like in town."


    "Thank you, mother," Amon said politely. Any additional ie was wee. Although in reality, he already had a different avenue of acquiring aer stones inrge quantities.


    *


    Amon was back to his routine.


    Even though Amon was no longer required toplete missions, didn''t mean he coop up inside Lin''s estate all the time. He still went out from time to time. He always wore a disguise when he went out though. It would be careless to just wander around in the open. He knew he had enemies. Especially that hag, Wei Sui. Amon knew that the woman would continue to seek vengeance on him until one of them died. Unfortunately, he had no opportunity to deal with her yet. So, all he could do was just hide.


    *


    During one night, in a secluded warehouse. A bunch of people was working to unload boxes from several carts onto the racks that filled up the warehouse.


    Their chief, who was counting and recording the boxes that were put on the rack, looked at his workers and uttered, "Where is Wu Lao?"


    "He went to the restroom, sir," One of the workers answered.


    "Restroom? How long ago?"


    "Um¡­ Since we arrived."


    "That''s a long time already! Go find him! Lazy ass punk! Tell him if he doesn''t return now, I''ll dock his pay!" The chief bellowed.


    "Ye¨CYes, sir!" The worker replied and immediately went in direction of the restroom.


    After that worker left, the chief returned to counting the boxes. "Hey! Handle it carefully! These goods are more precious than you!"


    After a while, when only one cart remained to be unloaded, the chief looked around. The worker who he had sent to find Wu Lao had not returned yet. Now, he had two people abandoning their duties.


    "Motherfucking useless dickheads. You two! Go and drag them back here. Give them a beating first. The more ck and blue they are, the more bonus I will give you."


    The two who had received the order were ecstatic. They were at the peak mortal stage, while the ones they were supposed to bring back were at the intermediate mortal stage. This task was easy money.


    After the two scurried off, there were only two workers left. But since only one cart was left, these two were sufficient.


    The chief was sullen. He was supposed to attend a feast in the Wei n''s house, but because many of his associates had gone missing, he had to do all the things himself. He was worried about these missing associates. Something about their disappearance didn''t feel right. He had asked the Wei n for additional funding and manpower, but it didn''t seem like he was being taken seriously.


    His operation had been growing after receiving the Wei n''s backing, but howe the people he worked with ran off? It was good money. Everyone was so excited when they joined this operation, but where are they now? Things were bing difficult because he wascking manpower. He couldn''t handle everything himself. He might need to go recruit new people soon.


    Thest of the boxes were finally finished being unloaded. The two workers were now pushing the empty carts back out. The chief went to a nearby desk. He sat on the chair behind this desk and log in the inventory record. He then reviewed all the records of today''s works.


    It took him a while to finish his task. When he finally closed his book, he stood up and was ready to call it a day, but then he felt strange. Where was everyone? The two who pushed the carts out should return after finishing their tasks. Why were they not back yet? Also, where were those two buffoons who he sent to drag the other two buffoons back?


    "God! It''s so difficult to find good help these days!" He muttered and decided to go and find these people himself. He hoped they were ready for a beating. This would teach them not to mess with someone like him who was at the intermediate Strength stage.


    As he walked past the racks, he didn''t see a shadow behind one of these racks. This warehouse''s lightings were rather dim. This shadow moved once the chief''s back was to it.


    The chief continued to walk unaware. He suddenly felt a prick on his back. He looked down and saw the tip of a de protruding out from his belly. The de was retracted. He felt it leaving his body. Before he could react, he felt cold on his neck.<sub> </sub>


    *


    In the basement underneath Impure Desire, a clothing store owned by San Guo, San Guo was scribbling something on his desk.


    He was startled by something that was suddenly ced on his desk. He looked at the person who had put the sack. It was Amon. The boy then sat opposite him.


    San Guo opened the sack. Inside the sack was a head.


    "Ma Tie," San Guo said after seeing the head.


    "His warehouse is empty now, I''ve put all the goods there into our warehouse. You can have people started distributing the products," Amon said.


    "I am wondering, how are you able to transport that many goods? Even the best space ring I know doesn''t have enough space for a whole warehouse."


    "I brought many rings," Amon replied.


    "Well, as long as it gets the jobs done, it doesn''t matter."


    "That''s the spirit. Now, how is the arrangement with our personnel? Have you organized them following my instruction?"


    "I do. I must admit the sess rate on their tasks has increased greatly. How do you do that? You have never met these people. All you do is read their information that I provided you."


    "I have experience with managing people," Amon replied simply.


    "Managing people? How old are you?" San Guo asked.


    "You won''t believe me even if I tell you," Amon said, and then added, "As long as it gets the job done, ain''t it?"


    San Guo nodded with a chuckle. He then looked at Ma Tie''s head. He put it back inside the sack.


    "Now that another of ourpetitors was gone, our hold on this city''s underworld had expanded," San Guo said.


    "Remember, don''t get too greedy. This city has an overlord, after all," Amon said. "If we grow unchecked. White Cloud Sect wille knocking sooner orter."


    "Actually¡­ They have," San Guo said.


    "And¡­?"


    "They demanded tax. Thirty percent from all ies."


    "Very greedy of them. What is your answer to them?"


    "I said I will need to discuss with my associates first."


    Amon nodded. "Agree with them."


    "Thirty percent? I have a feeling that I can negotiate for a lower fee."


    "Too troublesome. They might decide to teach us a lesson about who is the boss. We don''t need that heat. No need to bother with them. As long as they didn''t bother our operation, our profit is enough to pay them. I have a long-term n. This city is just the start. As long as you follow me, I can guarantee you that this world will be ours. At that time, it is us who will demand tax from the likes of White Cloud sect."


    San Guo stared at the boy in front of him unblinking. If any other kid uttered these words, he would haveughed it off as a little kid who enjoyed daydreaming and didn''t know about reality. But after working with Amon all this time, he somehow believed that this boy might have the ability to realize that dream.


    He was just d that he didn''t decide to take revenge on what Amon had done to him and his family. When Amon approached him again after their incident, he was hesitant to associate with the boy. Amon asked for some missions. He was tempted to send Amon on a suicide mission. But he had learned that crossing this boy was not a wise move. So, he gave Amon some easy missions for a start. The boy continued to impress him. So much that he ended up consulting him on many management affairs. Before he knew it, he listened more to Amon''s instructions than Amon to his. Yet, he didn''t feel that it was inappropriate.


    "All right, I will agree to them," San Guo said.

 110 Chapter 110

    "How is our production speed on the Thousand Dream Powder?" Amon asked.


    "We have hired ten new alchemists with the potential to be pill masters. They have managed to drive up the productivity by thirty percent," San Guo reported. "We should be able to sell more."


    "Don''t put too much in the market. Keep selling at the same pace. We don''t want to flood the market. We have to keep this product exclusive, so that we can drive the price higher. Here, these ingredients should be enough tost for one year of production."


    Amon handed a space ring to San Guo.


    "One year?" San Guo asked. He usually received the stock monthly.


    Amon nodded. "I am leaving White Cloud city after next month."


    "Where are you going?"


    "Qishurg City."


    "Qishurg city? Wait¡­ Are you joining the royal academy entrance test that takes ce every five years?"


    Amon nodded. San Guo had a widework of information. Amon didn''t think it strange for San Guo to guess his intention. San Guo''s wits were his strong point, Amon wouldn''t have considered the man to be his business partner otherwise.


    "The Lin n sent you there?" San Guo asked.


    "I''m sending myself there. This city is too small for me. The Lin n also didn''t offer much opportunity," Amon answered.


    "They are willing to rmend you to the royal academy?"


    "I will make them."


    San Guo chuckled as he took the space ring from Amon. "You know I never truly understand your rtionship with the Lin n. You carried their name, but you never seem to act in association with them. When you brought me this Thousand Dream Powder, I thought at first you wanted me to work with them, or give them some special cut for the products, but you never did. We treat them like any other customer."


    "As it should be," Amon said. "I''m not one of them. I simply borrow a temporary living ce."


    "To which you will change residence by next month."


    Amon nodded.


    San Guo sighed. Although he thought it was a pity to lose a capable helper, he couldn''t exactly stop Amon from leaving.


    "By the way, you never told me about how you get that Thousand Dream Powder recipe. Since you are leaving, how about you share the story? Its effectiveness was much better than any recreational drug on the market. Those that had experienced the drug were instantly hooked on it. By now, we already have many people craving it. So many that we have been selling the drugs at ten times its production cost and it still sells like hot cakes."


    "Spread it out then. Increase its scarcity and drive the price higher," Amon said.


    "We have some high-ups in the White Cloud sect, Lei n, and even your Lin n, who have be addicted to it. The Lei n had tried to sniff around our turfs to steal the recipe. But since the White Cloud sect protected us for monthly free batches of the powder, the Lei n couldn''t do much. Imagine their surprise if they managed to get the recipe only to find out that it needs a key ingredient that can''t be found anywhere else, except through you."


    Amon gave him a silent smile. The Thousand Dream Powder was actually a weakened version of the Thousand Dream Poison. Amon stumbled upon this when he was experimenting with the recipe by recing the ingredients. He didn''t have a continuous supply of Phantom Inducer Pouch, which could only be harvested from a Mind Demon. So, he tried using an ingredient from one of the spirit nts inside his ck space ring''s ntation that carried simr hallucinogenic property. The nt was called Wet Dream Flower.


    After several trials, he found the right proportion andbination could create a mild hallucinogenic drug that create a hallucination that induced euphoria. He immediately saw the potential of this as a marketable underworld product. He was already working with San Guo at the time, so he gave this drug to San Guo for him to work with.


    It was an overnight sess. The demand was so high that they had to hide first since they had not enough drugs to sell. Amon gave the recipe to San Guo and had him hire alchemists so he could train them to do the drug production. Amon was not worried San Guo would leave him on the side after knowing the recipe because only he had the Wet Dream Flowers. He had checked the market, no one even knew the existence of this flower.


    "Let''s just say I stumble upon it due to luck," Amon answered San Guo''s question.


    San Guo wasn''t offended. He didn''t expect Amon to just reveal his secret like that. He asked a more important question. "One year is short. What will I do if I run out of the ingredient?"


    "Send someone you trust to find me in Qishurg City. I will pass the stock for another year''s worth," Amon replied.


    "All right. Here, this is your share," San Guo passed Amon a different space ring.<sub> </sub>


    Amon epted the ring, inspected the content, and nodded.


    "I must say, you are probably the richest youth in White Cloud City. The aer stones you possessed might rival a small n now."


    "Money is just a means to an end," Amon said and stood up. He turned but didn''t leave.


    "San Guo," he called.


    "Yes?"


    "I am leaving but part of this operation is mine as well. Do not screw me over my share. You stay loyal to me and there will be benefits for you down the road. You might even expand your operation to Qishurg City, andter, this country. Probably the whole world. Don''t let short-term profit blinds you from the long-term one."


    After saying his piece, Amon left without waiting for San Guo''s response. The older man was left pondering the young man''s words behind his desk.


    *


    Amon put on his cloak and disguise again before leaving through the back door. It was already nighttime, so he just chose to follow the deserted alley in the direction back to the Lin estate. He was morefortable if he was alone in the dark.


    ''Hm?'' Amon felt that he was not alone.


    He had learned in his past life that ignoring his instinct was a very costly mistake. He dashed forward at high speed.


    As he did, he heard movements from above the roofs of the house that lined up the alley. That was confirmation that his instinct was not wrong. There was more than one pursuer. He wondered who were they? Were they sent by Wei Sui?


    As Amon was pondering, he heard sounds from the front. He stopped. He was surrounded!


    His pursuers finally showed themselves. There were six people. The six jumped down from the roofs towards him from different angles, covering all his escape paths. All of them brandishing weapons.


    Amon had no time to analyze the situation. These six were not here to talk. They attacked the moment they revealed themselves. The swan dagger materialized in Amon''s hand. As it did, it turned into shes. Ten shes crisscrossed around him. All the shes traveled in different angles, they also covered all three hundred sixty degrees of his position.


    Sounds of nging were heard, followed by sparks of light as the shes shed with the six''s weapons. The six were forced back.


    As they did, Amon jumped forward while spinning. His left hand threw six throwing knives at his six opponents. The knives forced all six to defend while Amon rushed through. It was not prudent to fight these opponents. He didn''t know their capabilities while they might have gathered some information about him before they targeted him. He was in the light while they were in the dark. So, he decided to flee when there was a chance.


    The six were rather startled that not only their prey survived their sudden attacks, but also had been able to repel them and created an opportunity to escape. They immediately gave chase.


    Amon looked back. The six were not slow-pokes. They recovered fast from their unexpected debacles and reacted ordingly. He didn''t manage to put much distance between him and the six.


    His left hand readied the Poison Cloud Bullets. It would be difficult for the six to dodge these smoke bombs in this narrow alley. These bullets should be able to buy him time to escape.


    But before he could throw the bullets, he felt danger from the front. A feeling that was soon followed by a heavy pressure that hampered his movement. He inadvertently stopped.


    Sensing the pressure, the six didn''t lunge forward. They stopped a distance behind Amon.


    A figure floated down in front of Amon.


    "Impressive. You surprise me during the tournament. You still surprise me now. You not only blocked thebined ambush from the Six Knives of Low Cloud, but you also managed to stop their movement and created an opportunity to escape. You are also already in the peak Strength stage at such a young age. Hahaha. I am indeed not wrong about you."


    Amon looked at the person. He recognized this man. The man was the referee during the White Cloud Tournament, Pai Kuan.


    "What do you want with me?" Amon asked. He didn''t understand why this man''s antagonism. He never offended the White Cloud Sect. There was no reason for this man to target him.


    Pai Kuan smiled. "I am here to decide your fate."

 111 Chapter 111

    "My fate, that sounds ominous," Amon remarked.


    The person in front of him did have the qualification to do that. Pai Kuan was a Spirit Stage cultivator. Amon was as if an ant to him. Amon''s mind dove into his ck space ring and readied the four throwing knives containing the Cold Stiff Poison. This was his strongest poison at this time, but even this poison won''t be able to kill a Spirit Stage cultivator. The description did mention it could weaken the cultivator, though. To what extent, Amon couldn''t tell. He hoped it was enough for him to make an escape.


    "Of course, that all depends on you," Pai Kuan said. "However, I mustpliment you. You are a very difficult man to track. Your disguise and movement are all well and good, but I''m more interested in your ability to cloud your presence. You are using an art for that, aren''t you?"


    Amon nodded. He figured it was better to be honest with this person. He still hoped he could talk his way out of this. The poison knives were ast-ditch effort. If he used them, it was as good as sealing his option to either seed or die. He must admit his chance if it came to that was slim at best. Whether his poison was effective enough for Pai Kuan was one thing, but he had to first wound Pai Kuan with the knives, and that was something that bordered a miracle.


    "I usually can sense a person of the same cultivation or below from a distance of around five blocks," Pai Kuan continued. "But when ites to you, I can only start sensing you from around two to three blocks. Even right now, your aura was slightly murky. This concealment art of yours is truly profound. I don''t think they are taught to you by the Lin n, do they?"


    "Why can''t you believe it is Lin''s art?" Amon asked back.


    "We know about your situation in the Lin n. It is unlikely for them to teach you such a high-grade art. It''s the same with that de art you used to repel my Six Knives. What is that art called?"


    "Infinite Phantom sh," Amon answered truthfully.


    "Hm¡­," Pai Kuan ced a hand on his chin.


    "Isn''t it unseemly for an elder of the Martial realm to bully a junior of the Human realm?" Amon said.


    Pai Kuan chuckled. "I don''t see anyone witnessing this. Do you?"


    "So, how will you be deciding my fate?" Amon asked. He didn''t feel the need to prolong this chitchat any longer. Might as well get this over with, one way or another.


    Pai Kuan smiled again upon the question. His expression then turned serious. He stared at Amon''s eyes and asked, "Are you interested to join our White Cloud Sect?"


    "No," Amon replied without hesitation.


    Pai Kuan was slightly surprised by how fast Amon responded. The boy gave the impression that he understood what could happen if he answered the question wrongly, but he still did? He was not even taking a moment to consider his answer.


    As if reading Pai Kuan''s mind, Amon added, "But I can be of use to the White Cloud Sect in another way."


    "Hm?" Pai Kuan''s brows were lifted. Was this boy trying to negotiate with him?


    "Are you saying this so that I spare you?" Pai Kuan said.


    "If I want that, I will just agree with whatever you ask. Such as joining your White Cloud Sect. How can you tell that I''m not lying if I say yes to joining your sect just now?"


    "We Martial realm cultivators have acute senses. We can detect the changes even within your body. We can tell if you are lying."


    ''A human polygraph, eh?'' Amon thought. To Pai Kuan, he said, "So, am I lying when I said that I can be of use to the White Cloud sect?"


    Pai Kuan again put his hand on his chin. He said, "Continue."


    "I have no interest to be tied to any particr n. I don''t even consider myself to belong in the Lin n. Even if I join the White Cloud Sect, you won''t be able to be sure that I will remain loyal to the sect. So, why bother? However, despite not being part of the sect, I can be an asset to the sect, as your sect to me. We can benefit one another. Isn''t this mutual interest more reliable than a simple pledge of loyalty to the sect?"


    One of the Six Knives standing behind mocked, "Who do you think you are? You are just a little nobody kid. On what ground do you think you have the qualification to be a mutual interest party to our sect?"


    "On the ground that right now the White Cloud Sect sends six experts and one Spirit Stage cultivator to intercept me," Amon replied.


    "Zing, please don''t interfere," Pai Kuan said.


    "I¨CI''m sorry, master¡­," Zing uttered.


    "Tell me how we can benefit each other," Pai Kuan said.<sub> </sub>


    "I understand your main interest lies in the desire to remain as this city''s ruler," Amon said. "You will face no trouble from me in that regard."


    "How so? Are you going to stay impartial if the Lin n decided to fight over the control of the city in the future?"


    "I won''t be in the Lin n for long. As a matter of fact, I won''t stay in this city for long."


    "Oh¡­?" Pai Kuan muttered with raised eyebrows.


    "I will be going to Qishurg City in one month, to join the Royal Academy."


    "Royal academy¡­? Yes. They will indeed hold an entrance exam soon. However, even if you be a student in the royal academy, you can still benefit the Lin n. Top alumni of the royal academy mostly hold prominent positions in the kingdom''s court. If, and only if, you get chosen into one of these positions, your influence might allow you to support the Lin n into bing a hegemony within this city."


    "I have no interest in doing that. You said before you know my situation inside the Lin n. Then you should know that I don''t owe them anything."


    "Except for your adopted mother," Pai Kuan reminded.


    "Except for her," Amon admitted. "As long as you didn''t target her, I don''t see us having a problem. When I acquired this prominent position in the kingdom, I will prefer a business partner such as the White Cloud Sect rather than an orthodox organization like the Lin n. In fact, I already showed my preference for your sect over the Lin n."


    "Oh? Did you?"


    "You catch me here meaning you know where I came from. I believe your sect kept a close eye on San Guo''s venture. You should have also found out about my involvement, haven''t you? If I support the Lin n, why do you think San Guo chooses to work more closely with your sect?"


    "Because we are strongest in this city," Pai Kuan stated.


    "Exactly. You be the overlord of this city for a reason. The members of your sect are not tied by blood but you can still hold everyone together and maintain control over this city for one thousand years. That is not a simple feat. I only choose to work with the best. I don''t choose my partner based on sentiment. You are the best group for me to consolidate my influence on this city in the future."


    "I must say, you are one very self-assured kid," Pai Kuan remarked. "You talk as if you are sure to gain that important position in the kingdom."


    "Oh, I will do more than that," Amon said with a grin. "I won''t say it if I can''t do it."


    Pai Kuan''s hand was still on his chin. He was caressing it as he pondered.


    "You know. It is safer for me to just erase you here. You are one risky variable," He said.


    "Only with high risk can one attain high gain," Amon said. "With my help, the White Cloud Sect can grow to a better height than they are now."


    "Is it? Hm¡­ To tell you the truth, the most fascinating thing about our conversation is not the things you said. It''s your calmness. I don''t feel any nervousness at all from you even though I can kill you instantly if I decide not to go along. And most of all, you actually believe all those things you said. I don''t sense any sign of lies from you, which kind of entices me to believe you as well."


    "So? Are we in an understanding?"


    "Tell you what, I will go along if you can give me one thing," Pai Kuan said.


    "What is that one thing?" Amon asked.


    "A proof of disloyalty to the Lin n."


    "How do I give you this proof?"


    "Why, of course, by murdering Lin n''s people."


    "Do you have a target in mind? Or am I allowed to choose the target?" Amon asked.

 112 Chapter 112

    Pai Kuan paused a bit hearing Amon''s response, he then burst into augh, "Hahaha. You don''t even show any hesitation. It is both impressive and frightening. Let''s say if we work together as you said, how do I know you won''t backstab our sect in the future?"


    "As long as you continue to prove useful, there is no reason for you to worry."


    The six behind Amon fidgeted. The words and tone that Amon used were as if he was above their White Cloud Sect. They were so very eager to tear this cocky boy apart right now. However, they didn''t move a muscle or utter a word. Pai Kuan had reprimanded one of them before. If their master had to do it the second time, it would not be a simple admonishment.


    Pai Kuan, on the other hand, kept a t expression. It''s no telling if he was offended or not by Amon''s words.


    "All right. I will let you choose the target. But I won''t ept it if you choose a random nobody from the n. It won''t prove anything if you killed a servant from your n. It has to be someone that is of prominence."


    "As long as it is not my mother, No one else is of concern to me," Amon said. But in reality, if the target needed to be Madam Lin, he doubted that he would hesitate. He was saying that not because he cared about his adoptive mother. It was simply to give Pai Kuan the impression that although he didn''t care about the Lin n, he was not someone ungrateful who would murder the one who had been kind to him. If Pai Kuan saw him as someone like this, Pai Kuan might deem him too dangerous to work with. Someone with no attachment like this was too untrustable.


    "Of course, I don''t think it will be reasonable to ask me to take out the big shots of the Lin n," Amon continued. "Firstly, those big shots have too high a cultivation. They are too strong for me. Unless you help me, there is no way I can seed. Secondly, it will ruffle too many feathers. I don''t think you want the Lin n''s investigative team to sniff your hands in this matter, do you?"


    "You present a reasonable argument. So, who do you propose?" Pai Kuan asked.


    "Someone important but of the young generation, around my age," Amon answered.


    "Oh? How about Lin Xiaolong?" Pai Kuan offered. "He is the current top prodigy of the Lin n''s young generation. I will be happy if you take him out. With your talent, he won''t be a match for you, would he?"


    "He won''t. I will be happy as well to take him out. However, I advised against it."


    "Why?" Pai Kuan asked with a smile.


    "Same as the second reason to the big shots. He is too important for the Lin n. If he is murdered, the investigation that follows won''t be simple. Every stone will be turned. It might be a problem where you have to work hard to hide the evidence."


    "Evidence such as you, you mean?"


    "Yes. So, you see. I say it for my own benefit as well."


    "This one cannot, that one cannot. I have a feeling you are just making excuses," Pai Kuan said, still smiling.


    p "Lin Zuyi," Amon said.</anda>


    "Zuyi? Hm¡­" Pai Kuan massaged his chin.


    "He is the son of one of the Lin n''s big shots. A direct descendant of Lin Weida. He is an important member, but not that important since his cultivation is so-so. His passing will be mourned, but it won''t anger too many people."


    "I take it you have a history with this Lin Zuyi, don''t you?"


    "I also have a history with Lin Xiaolong. You said you have information about me inside the Lin n, right? So, you should know I didn''t offer Zuyi just due to a grudge."


    "Hm¡­ All right, but if it is Zuyi, then I ask for two targets. You need to take out another Lin youth to show your resolve that you will work with us instead of the Lin n."


    "Lin Xiaoying then. He is the brother of Lin Xiaolong. So, he can be considered important. But his cultivation has been stagnant for a while, so not many see him in the same light as his brother."


    Pai Kuan burst into augh again. "I am genuinely impressed. There is no pause. You said it as if you have expected me to ask for an additional target. Fine, we will go by your proposal, Lin Zuyi and Lin Xiaoying then. My six knives will look for their whereabouts. In the meantime, you follow me. Can''t let you go before you give us your proof of disloyalty now, can we? You can just make this up so you can go back and hide inside the Lin n."


    Amon shrugged. "Lead the way."<sub> </sub>


    The six knives left after Pai Kuan gave the order. Amon followed Pai Kuan to a secluded house at the edge of town. Amon stayed there and cultivate while Pai Kuan watched over him. Pai Kuan''s eyes were not on him, but Amon knew from his instinct that Pai Kuan''s senses were all over him. The instant he made a suspicious move, Pai Kuan would react.


    Amon didn''t n to do anything suspicious. He was telling the truth when he said he wanted to work with the White Cloud sect. It was not a fixed n originally. But since this disaster struck, might as well turn it into an opportunity. White Cloud sect might even give San Guo more leniency in developing his influence in this city after this. This would benefit him in the long run.


    *


    A day passed. One of the six knives, who was called Zing, came to the house where Amon and Pai Kuan were at.


    "Report, master. We have tracked the two brats. We have found out that they are nning to go to a brothel called Sinner''s Bliss tonight. Luckily, they nned to go together. However, they will be bringing one bodyguard. The other knives were keeping an eye and will let us know once they left the Lin estate."


    Amon didn''t find the report strange. He knew that the two had be best friends for a while. They often went out together. That was also the reason Amon suggested the two of them. Shorten his time. It would take a longer time if he had to do two separate hunts.


    "How strong is this bodyguard?" Pai Kuan asked.


    "Intermediate Transformation stage," Zing answered.


    Pai Kuan nced at Amon. "One peak Strength stage, one beginning Strength stage, and one Intermediate Transformation stage. Can you take care of them? Or should we wait another time when they are alone?" Pai Kuan asked.


    "No need to wait. I don''t have the luxury to wait. I will deal with them tonight," Amon replied.


    "Are you sure?" Pai Kuan asked again.


    "If you give me aid, I''m sure everything will go smoothly," Amon returned.


    Pai Kuan chuckled. "Then it won''t be a test then, would it? Tonight it is, then. However you do it, it''s up to you. We will be watching from afar. We won''t interfere no matter what happens. Even if you end up getting killed, we won''t provide any assistance. I hope we are clear on that."


    "We are," Amon replied.


    "Also. Remember that we are watching. Don''t try to use the chance to escape."


    Amon simply sneered.


    *


    Amon wasying low on a roof that oversaw one of the streets that led to the district where Sinner''s Bliss was located. He was wearing a hooded ck cloak that gave him good cover at night. His face was also covered with ck cloth, leaving only his eyes. It was his standard getup for an assassination mission so that no one could identify him.


    He normally disliked going on an assassination mission without preparation. He usually did days of scouting to understand his prey before taking action. However, unbeknown to Pai Kuan, Amon had actually done his homework on these duo.


    Since gaining San Guo''s underworldwork, he had put some of the operatives there for gaining information for his private use. Especially information about the mission San Guo had ced on his head. He had known that it came from the Wei n. The reason for the Wei n to target him was because they knew that Wei Feng died because of Amon.


    His question was, how did they know? Madam Lin had demanded silence on the matter, which meant someone from the Lin n had secretly leaked this info.


    After some digging, he finally found out that it was due to Lin Zuyi. Further investigation revealed that the three trios who tried to kill him during the Greasy Horned Weasel mission were also Lin Zuyi''s underlings. Some of the servants Amon questioned had also revealed that Zuyi had visited Lin Fong several times just before that mission.


    This meant that Lin Zuyi had tried to kill him twice. Such an act couldn''t go unpunished.

 113 Chapter 113

    In his past life, Amon had punished people for slight offenses, much less an attempt for his life. However, it didn''t mean he was a maniac who would get back at people for whatever small vition they did to him. If he was such a person, he wouldn''t have the time to do anything else because he would have to kill everyone.


    He was never a person controlled by emotion or grudge. He simply took the chance if the opportunity presented itself, like the time with Wei Feng. If not, he wouldn''t force himself to take revenge. The same thing could be said with his current situation. He did investigate and learned about Lin Zuyi''s two attempts on his life, but he never did anything about it. If Pai Kuan didn''te knocking, he probably would just leave the matter to ater time when he could destroy the Lin n with ease. But since Pai Kuan did, he figured he would just use it as a chance to settle these old grudges.


    Despite never nning to take action, he still learned all he could about Lin Zuyi. Before Zing came back with his report, he had known that zuyi and Xiaoying would visit Sinner''s Bliss tonight. The two did the same routine every week. The same day, the same time. They also take the same street to that ce, which was the one that Amon was watching at this moment.


    The street was empty. They took this street because they visited the brothel under disguise. They were prominent youths of one of the top ns in the city. It was unbing to openly tell people that they frequent brothels. Their preference for taking this quiet street had given Amon the most suitable location to carry out his assassination. There was no one in the immediate surroundings. Even the house on which roof he was hiding was deserted.


    Amon had also learned about their fighting capabilities. Lin Xiaoying''s cultivation had increased to the beginning Strength stage since thest time they fought, but in terms of his arts, he was not much different than then. Amon had defeated him when his cultivation was weaker, what more now when his cultivation was higher. Xiaoying was not a problem.


    Lin Zuyi rarely fight in the open, but Amon had gathered the info about his style. His martial art mostly used fists. He had a fire-based arcane art, which should be easily countered by Amon''s Water Slicing Ring. Zuyi''s cultivation was the same as Amon''s, at the peak Strength stage. Amon didn''t see him as much of a problem as well.


    The one that he was most concerned about was the bodyguard. Not much info was known about this bodyguard other than his cultivation was at the intermediate Transformation stage. Some rumors mentioned that this bodyguard''s fighting style revolved around long-ranged styles, but it was not definite. Under normal circumstances, anyone would avoid picking a fight against someone with higher cultivation and an unfamiliar fighting style, but Amon was not anyone. He had a poison weapon that could kill anyone below the Martial realm. All he needed was a chance tond a hit.


    *


    After some waiting, he saw a light signal from one of the six knives in the distance. That was confirmation that his targets would show up soon. Opposite the street was a wide unattended grass field. Tall wild grasses grew there. He used his crossbow and shot at something inside the grass field down there.


    Not long after, his three preys finally showed themselves. Amon was circting his Concealed Ghost Body art. Even if the three had detection art, they wouldn''t be able to notice him.


    He let the three pass the house on which roof he was hiding.


    The ideal n would be to take out the strongest member first, the bodyguard. He only had one ambush chance. This one chance needed to be maximized so the remaining fights were easier. However, being Amon, he decided to go even further. Why ambush only one when he could ambush all three at the same time?


    In his past life, three marks were viable ambush targets. He coulde up behind them and do a rapid triple tap with a gun. Each bullet would urately hit each of the three targets'' skulls. His crossbows couldn''t do this rapid tap, but it was an easy task for him to throw three throwing knives simultaneously with excellent uracy.


    He readied three poison knives containing the ck ughter Poison. This poison was enough for the three.


    He waited as the three continued walking. He had made another preparation. The crossbow that he shot before was to activate a contraption he had prepared. This contraption ignited the long wick of a firecracker, which he had timed to coincide with the walking time from here to where the six knives who gave him the signal were positioned.


    When the burning wick reached the firecracker, it alighted with an attention-grabbing disy. The three stopped and looked at the firework that suddenly appeared on the grass field beside them.


    Amon took action then.


    It was much easier to hit a static target than a moving one, even one that was moving at a slow walking speed. Additionally, his target''s attention was currently drawn to the firecracker. His thrown knives despite being faster than normal due to the effect of his martial art, were still slower than the speed of a handgun''s bullet. Not to mention that the cultivators in this world had a faster and more acute reaction. So, the distraction of that firecracker was also to dull their response to this ambush.


    His three knives flew at extreme speed while leaving three trails of light.<sub> </sub>


    Lin Zuyi and Lin Xiaoying were looking at the firecracker and werepletely unaware of the iing danger. The bodyguard was also looking, but he seemed to realize the attack. He grabbed Lin Zuyi and yanked. But he was toote. One of the knives grazed Lin Zuyi''s belly. Another struck Lin Xiaoying''s back, the poison seeped in at once and killed him instantly.


    As for the bodyguard, he could have dodged the knifepletely if he had moved himself instead of trying to save Lin Zuyi. Because he did, the knife struck his back.


    ''Sess!'' Amon uttered in his mind. He jumped down and readied a dagger while running toward the three. Not the swan dagger. The swan dagger was too recognizable. Anyone would know his identity if he used the swan dagger. The one he was holding was another engraved dagger he had bought. Not as good quality as the swan dagger, though.


    Amon had prepared to follow up with further assaults in case any of his targets managed to dodge his knives, but none of them did.


    Lin Zuyi, who was grazed, survived longer than Lin Xiaoying. But the result was the same, he was trembling as ck blood came out of all the holes on his head. He soon fell to the ground. Amon was amused, if Lin Zuyi wasn''t that fat, the poison knife would have failed to graze him when he was pulled away by the bodyguard. It''s due to his wide girth that the knife could still manage to make contact with him.


    Amon stopped some distance away. He was sure the mission waspleted already a second ago, but not so now. The bodyguard was kneeling beside Lin Zuyi''s body, holding him. That''s odd, the ck ughter poison should be equally lethal to a Transformation stage as it was to a Strength stage cultivator.


    Then Amon saw the knife that was supposed to stab into the bodyguard, slowly slid, and dropped to the ground. His clothes were cut due to the knife. From the cut fabric, Amon saw a metallic surface.


    ''Does he wear a protective inner mail as I do?'' Amon thought.


    Then the bodyguard stood and turned around. His face revealed metallic skin.


    It was an art! One that turned the bodyguard''s skin into metal. Simr to Amon''s Hardened Bronze Body, but seemingly a much stronger art. Considering the bodyguard was still standing without any symptom of being poisoned, his knife hadpletely failed to prate the metallic skin.


    Unlike Amon''s Hardened Bronze Body, the bodyguard seemed to be able to maintain the state continuously. The bodyguard was currently staring at Amon with a t expression, no sad or angry expression despite that he had just lost his master.


    Amon nced at the two bodies on the ground. He had settled his old grudge, as well aspleted the requirement Pai Kuan demanded of him. There was no need for further risk, he should flee now. However, he was unwilling to leave his three poison knives. Those were his trump cards. Not to mention that someone might connect the knives to him. No one yet knows of his expertise in poison, but he had used such throwing knives frequently in public, albeit the non-poison ones.


    So, Amon stayed.


    "Who are you?" the bodyguard asked.


    Amon didn''t answer. The bodyguard might recognize his voice.


    "Hm¡­ Fine. Let me capture you. You can help me reduce the punishment for failing to protect these two."


    A handful of tiny metal balls appeared in the bodyguard''s hand. With deftness, he flicked one of them.


    Amon had been paying attention. He felt the danger apanying that movement. His body instinctively shifted to the side, just as he heard the sound and felt the wind of a small projectile passing by his side. He was familiar with this feeling. It was the sensation when a bullet passed him by in his past life. The speed of the bodyguard''s attack just now was as fast as a speeding bullet!

 114 Chapter 114

    It was simr to Wei Lhosa''s stone pellet art! Amon thought after seeing the attack. The wind that the bullet produced when it passed by made Amon think that it was even faster than Wei Lhosa''s art.


    Amon activated his Hardened Bronze Body just as he dodged that first shot. A strong impact hit his chest right then. The impact sent him flying backward.


    Amon fell to the ground on his back, but he didn''t fight the force, he backflipped and was back on his feet in an instant. The pain in his chest was stinging, but he was relieved that nothing was broken. Thebination of his defensive art and the self-adjusting chainmail he wore inside his suit had saved his life.


    Amon glimpsed a surprised expression on the bodyguard''s face, but it soon disappeared. That surprise had made the bodyguard pause. He must have expected the sessful hit to have finished Amon. That confidence had caused him to stop attacking when Amon was down.


    Amon jumped to the side just as his feet touched the ground. The bodyguard made another flick then. He missed. Amon used the same tactic as when he fought Wei Lhosa during the tournament. He did a constant zig-zag move, making him a difficult target.


    The nimbleness of the bodyguard''s fingers when flicking the metal ball was extraordinary. Amon almost could not catch the telltale sign as to when the ball was shot. The bodyguard''s hand didn''t move much when he did his finger flick. Thus, it was difficult for Amon to predict the bullet''s trajectory. Despite Amon being much faster now than during the tournament, he was having a more difficult time dodging simr attacks this time. It waspletely different fighting an inexperienced kidpared to a real expert.


    Yet, unlike during the tournament, this time Amon could retaliate with long-ranged attacks as well. As he dodged the bullets, his hands also threw several knives. Normal knives, however, he was keeping the remaining poison knives for a sure-kill attack.


    However, the bodyguard acted as if he didn''t see the iing flying knives. He let the knives hit him. The knives stayed hanging at the point of impact for a few seconds before falling down. The bodyguard waspletely unharmed.


    Seeing that, Amon conjectured the bodyguard''s defensive art didn''t fully act like metal. It had the ability to absorb impact force. That''s why the knives didn''t just bounce off when they failed to prate the bodyguard''s skin. Amon thought it was a very advanced defensive art. This art would perfectly block both sharp and blunt attacks, which meant his Bone Shattering Shadow Fist won''t be effective as well.


    Since the bodyguard didn''t worry about Amon''s attack, his hand continued shooting the metal balls non-stop.


    Luckily, Amon had run into the grass field. The tall grasses helped to obscure him, making it even more difficult for the bodyguard to aim at him.


    However, he won''t win if all he did is dodge. Because the art that this bodyguard was using, although simr to Wei Lhosa''s Earth Bullet, was also inherently different. What Wei Lhosa used was an arcane art, it produced the bullet from nothing, so it was never considered a weapon during the tournament that prohibited the use of weapons. The aether consumption of that arcane art was tremendous, so Amon could just rely on his dodging to tire Wei Lhosa.


    What this bodyguard used, however, was a martial art. It used a real metal ball as its projectile. The aether used was just the energy to generate the propelling force. It didn''t consume much aether. Hence, as long as the bodyguard had enough stock of the metal balls, he might be able to go all day with this attack. The metal ball was small, Amon suspected the bodyguard to have a ton inside his space ring.


    Amon knew he needed to find the weakness in his opponent''s defensive art. Otherwise, he had no choice but to flee and epted the risk of leaving his knives.


    Amon again threw his flying knife from inside the grass field. He was aiming at a specific spot this time. When the bodyguard saw the iing knife, he tilted his head. The knife hit the side of his face.


    ''Okay, his eyes are vulnerable,'' Amon said in his mind. That thrown knife just now was aiming for the bodyguard''s left eye.


    Amon waited for the next time his opponent fired the metal ball. At the same time, he threw a simr tiny ball. The bodyguard was extremely confident in his defensive art, he never showed any sign of dodging an attack except for the one aiming for his eye. Still, Amon didn''t take any chance. He threw his Poison Cloud Bullet at the same time as his opponent''s attack to make sure that his opponent couldn''t dodge.


    The two opposing balls flew passed one another. Due to Amon executing an attack at the same time as his opponent, he failed to dodge the metal ball. The metal ball hit his body. Amon had activated his Hardened Bronze Body and nted his feet firmly on the ground. He wasn''t thrown away by the impact like before. It hurt like hell, though. He thought some of his bones were cracked this time. He ignored the pain and dashed forward.


    At the same time when Amon was hit by the metal ball, his Poison Cloud Bullet also hit the bodyguard''s body. The bodyguard saw the iing bullet but remained confident in his defense as before. Only when purple gas erupted from the point of impact that he became rmed.


    ''Poison?!'' He thought in a panic. He hurriedly closed his eyes and mouth and forcefully blocked his nose and ears with aether. At the same time, he jumped back.


    His fast response protected him from inhaling the poison. He didn''t dare to open his eyes so soon. He continued to jump back several times. Until he felt he was a safe distance away from the poison cloud that he dared to open his eyes.<sub> </sub>


    Amon was nowhere to be seen.


    He looked around, trying to find his opponent. Suddenly two hands came from both sides of his head. Two hands covered with ck skin.


    The hands grabbed his head, with the middle fingers jabbed into his eyes. He screamed as the pain red.


    He jerked around with hysteria. mming his elbows repeatedly at the opponent behind him. He heard cracking sounds from where his elbows had struck, but the hands that grabbed his head remained firm. The fingers that were inside his eyes even stabbed further in.


    Amon had used the Poison w art to turn his hands into poisonous weapons. He didn''t release his hold on the bodyguard''s head despite the stinging pain from his waist. The bodyguard struck with the strength of a transformation stage cultivator. Every hit broke one or two bones. If Amon didn''t have strong enough willpower, he might have fainted from the pain.


    But the ck ughter Poison delivered by Amon''s Poison w worked fast. The bodyguard soon lost strength after hitting Amon three times. His body trembled as ck blood started oozing from the orifices on his head. His body lose strength and slumped. Amon kept holding him for another minute to make sure that he was truly dead.


    Amon released him then. The bodyguard''s body fell to the ground, unmoving.


    Amon was panting. His entire body hurt like hell. He tried very hard to not fall unconscious. He popped a recovery pill into his mouth. He then walked slowly to where Lin Zuyi and Lin Xiaoying were lying. Every step caused him extreme pain, but he persevered.


    He slowly collected all his knives and stored them, before walking away. This street was deserted, but it was better if he moved away as soon as possible. Too bad he could only walk due to his wounds.


    After a safe enough distance, he went into a dark alley and sat on the floor. Leaning on the alley wall, he ate another recovery pill to boost the effect. He then steadied his breath and rxed his body. He activated the Nine Moon Restorative Mantra to assist his healing.


    ? Someonended beside him.


    ''Asshole. Now only you show up,'' Amon cursed in his mind.


    "As impressive as ever," Pai Kuanplimented. "Winning against an opponent whose cultivation level is above you. That is no easy feat. However, I am curious about that poison w you used. Where have you learned it?"


    Amon had expected this. He had made a blunder. The fight with the bodyguard had been too dangerous that Amon had no luxury to consider too many things. He had used the Poison w because that was the art that was most convenient for him to secure a victory at the time. Only after he won that he remembered that this art was originally from a white cloud sect disciple, Pai Ning, who died inside the secret dimension.


    Amon was not someone who panicked just because of a mistake. He replied calmly, "I learn it from inside the secret dimension."


    "Really? Then why we didn''t find a book on that art from the goods you''ve submitted after exiting the dimension?"


    "Because during my time inside. I saw a girl of the white cloud sect using the same art. I''m afraid that if I bring the book back, it might create a misunderstanding with the White Cloud sect, so I toss the book away."


    "And you sessfully learned the art during the short time inside the secret dimension?"


    "I memorized the book and continued learning it aftering out from the dimension."


    Pai Kuan was massaging his chin while staring at Amon. Amon stared back at him.

 115 Chapter 115

    "You know, your story sounds a bit too convenient," Pai Kuan said. "However, I can''t detect any changes in your body, which suggest that you are telling the truth. All right. I will believe you. That art the white cloud girl used was originally an art her ancestor recovered from inside the dimension. Perhaps you have found the art from the same ce."


    "Perhaps," Amon said. Those acute senses that a Martial Realm cultivator possessed had instead helped him to convince Pai Kuan about his story. In his past life, it was child''s y for him to fool lie detector machines and polygraph experts.


    "That girl didn''te back from the secret dimension. Do you by any chance know what happens to her?" Pai Kuan asked.


    "No. I only saw her that one time from a distance. I avoided everyone during my time there," Amon replied. "So, have I proven my disloyalty to the Lin n?"


    "Hm¡­," Pai Kuan was massaging his chin again. "All right. We will also have some youths joining the royal academy. They will make contact with you. I hope you can cooperate nicely."


    Amon simply nodded.


    "I look forward to our future cooperation. I hope for your sake, you don''t let us down."


    After saying that, Pai Kuan flew up and disappeared into the dark sky.


    <o>,m "Hmph, being a weakling is indeed annoying," Amon muttered.</o>


    *


    Amon spent a couple of hours stabilizing his condition using Nine Moon Restorative Mantra before journeying back to the Lin estate. He changed into another disguise before returning. His body was still hurting, but at least he could walk properly.


    Arriving at the estate, Amon heard muchmotion. They must have found out about the two Lin''s demise.


    Amon ignored them. With his normally cold attitude, he didn''t draw attention by behaving this way. He went directly to his house and resumed his recuperation there.


    There was only one month left before enrolling in the Royal Academy. He needed to be in top condition at the time. So, he focused on recovery.


    *


    One monthter, inside Lin Weida''s office, the n master was reading several report papers from behind his desk. His first son, Lin Bubai was sitting in front of him in silence.


    "Has anyone found out the culprit behind Zuyi and Xiaoying''s deaths?" Lin Weida asked.


    "No, father. Our investigations haven''t turned out any result. There is, however, a rumor about activity by White Sect''s disciples around the vicinity of the crime scene during that day."


    "If it''s them, we can''t make a move without solid proof. Continue the investigation."


    "Yes, father."


    "Hm?" Lin Weida''s eyebrows were lifted after reading one of the papers on his desk.


    "Something the matter, father?" Lin Bubai asked.


    "The enrollment for the royal academy is this year? Time sure flies," Lin Weida said.


    Lin Bubai nodded. "It sure is. Although that enrollment is not something that''s super important to us, we still have to send our candidates to give the royal family a face. Therefore, we only send those with talents butck support. This way, we can spare our resources for our top geniuses, and let these second-rate talents grow using the royal academy''s resources. Those reports are the candidates rmended by the prominent families in this n. The royal academy only provided four spots for our Lin n, but this year we have twelve candidates being nominated. I''m also surprised to have seen the number of applicants."


    "The quantity is not the reason for my surprise," Lin Weida said. "Have you read all the candidates nominated here?"


    "I haven''t seen them all in detail," Lin Bubai answered.


    "Then you don''t know that Lin Mo is one of the candidates, do you?"


    "Lin Mo¡­? No, I don''t know. It is truly surprising. With how protective Lin Xi is of that boy, I''m surprised she let him go."


    "The thing that surprises me is not Lin Mo''s name here. It''s the name of the person who nominated him," Lin Weida said.


    "What does father mean? Isn''t it Lin Xi who put in his name?" Lin Bubai asked.


    "No, It''s Lin Fong."


    "Lin Fong¡­? Is he trying to get rid of Lin Mo? But¡­ There need to be signatures from both the candidate and the one who references him. If it is only him, we can just dismiss the application."


    "That''s what surprises me as well. Both of them signed this paper."


    *<sub> </sub>


    Outside Amon''s house, Amon was having his regr chat with Madam Lin inside the gazebo. Amon was pouring tea into Madam Lin''s cup.


    "Thank you," Madam Lin said. She sipped the tea before saying, "Look at you. How fast you have grown. I remembered you are still a tiny boy when I first see you. Now, you are already taller than me. It is surprising how time flies. You are seventeen years old now, an adult. You should think about your future. You need a permanent post in our Lin n. How about you start bying to work for me in the prison, you have proven to be a more than capable interrogator."


    Amon smiled. He was actually fifteen years of age, but his body wasrger than a normal boy''s, so his age misunderstanding was never truly suspected. He was more than 1.7 meters tall now with a broad shoulder to match.


    "Actually, mother, that is what I wish to talk to you about," Amon said.


    "Do you wish to work with me?" Madam Lin asked, beaming.


    "I''m sorry, that''s not what I mean. I mean I have been thinking about my future, and I feel like it''s time for me to venture out for an improvement."


    "What are you saying?" Madam Lin asked, her smile waning.


    "I want to enroll in the royal academy," Amon said.


    "What? No! Why would you want to go there? The royal academy is in another city. You should stay here, in this city."


    ''This is expected,'' Amon thought. He said, "There is a time where every son has to go their own path, every mother has to see her son leave. This is an inevitable process of parenthood."


    "Are you teaching me how to be a parent?" Madam Lin chided.


    "What I''m trying to say is, I''m truly grateful for all that you have done to me. You are a mother every son can ask for. I will never be able to repay your care and kindness, but it is time for me to forge my own path. I believe I can reach further heights if I spread my wings outside."


    "Are you saying the Lin n is not good enough for you?"


    "Yes."


    "How dare you!" Madam Lin mmed the table and stood up, her breathing rapid.


    "Mother, please don''t be angry," Amon said calmly. "You should know, the only one good to me here is only you. I don''t me them. I am already d that they allowed me to live here all this time. But I can''t grow any further in this ce. I need to go out to look for my own opportunity. I promise once I have achieved something, I will return to bring you with me. We can be together again then, on our own terms."


    "I''m happy here. Why would I want to leave?" Madam Lin said, her breathings were still rapid.


    "All right. In that case, once I''m strong enough, I will return to this White Cloud city and stay here. We can be together again, but at that time, I will not be looked down on by the others from the Lin n."


    Madam Lin''s breathing slowed down a little. She did admit her other n members were not that weing to Amon. She had tried to smooth things over by bringing some families here to socialize with Amon, but Amon was simply too much of a loner. It was a difficult thing to work on.


    "I won''t sign the application paper, if that''s what you ask of me!" Madam Lin uttered. Although she understood why Amon wanted to leave, she still couldn''t force herself to let him go.


    "That''s not what I''m asking. I''m simply telling you so you know," Amon said.


    "What do you mean, someone had referenced you for the enrollment?" Madam Lin asked.


    "Yes."


    "Who?" Madam Lin demanded.


    "Uncle Fong," Amon answered.


    "Him?" Madam Lin frowned. Since when did these two be close? "I''ll talk to him!" She said as she strode away.


    "It''s pointless. The application with both our signatures is already at the n master''s office."


    Madam Lin stopped after hearing it.


    "How dare you two conspire behind me!" Madam Lin turned back and scolded.


    "I''m sorry, mother. I know you won''t let me go. That''s why I have done this without your consent. I''m truly sorry, but I have made up my mind. I will go to the royal academy one way or another. Even if the Lin n decided to not approve of sending me there, I will find my own way."


    Madam Lin stared at Amon. She could see the resolution in Amon''s expression. She knew then that she could not prevent this. The only way was forcefully restraining Amon. But what good would that do? He would no longer see her the way he used to. She sighed. Perhaps it was a mother''s fate to see her offspring leave the nest sooner orter. It was just a foolish dream to thought otherwise.


    "Do what you like," Madam Lin said weakly and walked away.

 116 Chapter 116

    Amon watched Madam Lin walk away.


    ''This is easier than I thought. Heh, I was worried for a second that I still need to pathetically argue with her,'' Amon thought with a grin.


    Now that the matter of Madam Lin''s objection was solved, it was time to deal with the issue of making sure he was picked for the spot. From what Lin Fong had told him when they signed the application, twelve candidates were being rmended for the four spots. This meant he had to fight against eight others to make sure he was selected.


    He asked Lin Fong how the selection was done. Lin Fong said that was up to the n master. Sometimes it was done by simple sparring, another time it was by a different type ofpetition. They would know byter today.


    Without realizing it, Amon''s gaze stayed on Madam Lin''s back. A strange kind of feeling was lingering inside him as he watched her. The feeling was too alien so he dismissed it. Unbeknownst to him, the feeling was a tinge of guilt.


    *


    At the center of the great hall in the Lin n''s main building, twelve youths were standing. Lin Weida was sitting on his throne with Lin Bubai by his side. There were several others in the hall but not as many as the time when Amon first met the n master.


    Lin Weida watched the twelve youths in silence. After a while, he pointed his hand at the youths. "You, you, and you. Go away! Sending the three of you will just be a disgrace to our Lin n. You are still at the beginning Strength stage."


    The three that were pointed out by Lin Weida walked away with depressed expressions.


    ''Five more to go,'' Amon thought in his mind. He was among the youths that stood at the center of the hall. Now there were nine of them. The entrance spots for the Royal Academy were only four.


    Lin Weida gave the remaining youths another observation. He again pointed to one of them, "You,e forward. There is no need for you to go through the selection process. You are already at the Peak Strength stage."


    The one who Lin Weida had picked was named Lin Baxiong. He walked forward with a proud expression.


    "The rest of you will have to go through a selection process," Lin Weida uttered.


    ''Asshole,'' Amon said in his mind. He was also at the Peak Strength stage. The n master surely could sense his cultivation level, he was not using his concealment art to cloud his cultivation. Not that it could deceive someone at Lin Weida''s level anyway.


    "Do you have something you want to say?" Lin Weida asked. He didn''t point at anyone in particr but his eyes were on Amon.


    Amon sneered. He didn''t show any facial discontent just now, Lin Weida was just guessing his discontent. Still, since the n master had asked, he won''t shy away.


    "I am also at the Peak Strength stage. May I ask why I need to go through the selection process while he doesn''t?" Amon asked.


    "How dare you! It is the n master''s right to decide how he likes. Who are you to question the n master''s decision?" Lin Baxiong uttered. Now that he had been given the special privilege and stood near Lin Weida, he considered himself special and above the other eight youths. He was gazing at them with contempt.


    Amonpletely ignored Lin Baxiong. His eyes never left Lin Weida. This irritated Baxiong.


    "Hahaha," Lin Weidaughed. "Yes. You are at the Peak Strength stage. However, Baxiong is one year younger than you, which makes him a more talented cultivator. He deserved the special treatment."


    In reality, Amon was the one who was one year younger. Everyone in the Lin n still mistook him for being two years older than he actually was. However, Amon understood it was just an excuse. He knew Lin Weida intentionally want to put him through the selection process. The age issue was just a convenient excuse.


    "Hmph! Just because you managed to be a peak Strength stage, don''t think that you are special," A girl''s voice chided Amon from the side. It was Lin Fen, who was the White Cloud Tournament finalist together with Amon. She was another youth who had been nominated for the spot to partake in the Royal Academy entrance exam.


    "Sister Fen is right! You don''t deserve this spot," said Lin Cang, who stood beside Lin Fen. "You might have cheated your way inside the secret dimension during the White Cloud Tournament, but the Royal Academy is different. The entrance exam is not something that will let a cheater like you pass. Giving the spot to you will just be a waste."


    Amon breathed out heavily. He was a calm person, but these kids were starting to test his nerve. In his past life, he would have executed them on the spot.<sub> </sub>


    "What''s the selection process? Let''s just get this done with," Amon said.


    Lin Fen and Lin Cang were vexed by Amon''s attitude. They were just about to scold him when Lin Weida''sughter echoed through the hall.


    "Hahaha¡­ Good! Now, the eight of you, follow me!" Lin Weida uttered as he shot towards one of the side doors of the hall."


    Amon and the others ran over following the n master. When they arrived outside, they saw in the courtyard that lots of wooden poles had been erected. These poles were different in length and size. The poles nearest to them were thergest and shortest, while the furthest ones were smaller and taller. The tallest ones seemed to reach almost thirty meters in height.


    The poles were arranged in a particryout that made it look like a maze, but it also looked like stairs where it started from a lower elevation and gradually became higher as one proceeded further. There were three tallest poles. Above each of these three, was a piece of red paper hung from a rope. The ropes were tied to two pieces of long bamboo that were fixed to a nearby tall building.


    These pole structures and the red paper reminded Amon of the Lion Dance ceremony from his old world. Amon could hazard a guess as to how the selection process was carried out after seeing this setup.


    Lin Weida was standing beside the row of the lowest andrgest poles. When the eight youths arrived, he said to them, "You see those three red papers hanging above the highest poles? Whoever holds those papers will have the right to go to Qishurg City to participate in the Royal Academy''s exam. This ce will be the starting point. You have to climb up there racing the others and take those papers. Anything you do is fine. You can even attack the others on your way up. But no weapons, just use your body and your arts. On my mark, the selection process will begin. Are you all ready?"


    The others who were in the great hall just now had also followed out into this courtyard. They were very eager to watch how the eight youths perform in this selection process.


    "Ready."


    "Ready!"


    Everyone uttered with confidence. Amon simply nodded.


    "Then begin!" Lin Weida uttered. He then floated above. He served as both the referee and the judge of this selection process.


    The eight all jumped at almost the same time. Theynded on the first row of poles and immediately jumped to the next one without pause. Each pole was positioned around two meters away and one meter higher than the rows before, so for Strength stage cultivators who could jump a distance of five meters, this was not a problem.


    However, they soon discovered the distance between each pole is increasing as they proceeded higher. This demanded higher control on the uracy of their jumps.


    Lin Fen seemed to shine in this selection process. Her figure shot from one pole to the next with grace. She soon left the others behind.


    ''A movement art,'' Amon thought after seeing it. The art seemed to lighten Lin Fen''s body mass and allowed her to glide forward as if riding the air.


    From how Lin Fen led the race, no one doubted that she would be the first to get the red paper. But there were three red papers, so the others didn''t worry too much even if they couldn''t chase Lin Fen. All they had to do, was to aim for the remaining two spots.


    In terms of jumping uracy, Amon was ahead of the others. So, he was second ce in the race, although not by much. Lin Cang was the next after him.


    As they neared the middle section, theyout of the poles changed dramatically. There were plenty of poles for everyone during the first half, but in this middle section, there was only one row of poles forming a bridge to the next half. So, everyone would have to jump through this same row.


    This row was located right at the center. Amon started from the right side, so he had to veer to the left to get to this bridge of poles.


    Lin Cang started from the middle, so he was at an advantage as the bridge was directly in front of him.


    Amon who was ahead ended up arriving at the bridge at the same time as Lin Cang because he had to travel that extra distance.


    "Move aside, you bastard!" Lin Cang uttered as he executed his martial art. His fist punched at Amon, creating a loud sound and a visual effect where the air around his fist exploded.

 117 Chapter 117

    Amon had seen the boy''s attempt to attack as he approached. He was ready for it.


    Before Lin Can''s fist hit, the explosive wind produced by his punch had arrived first. Yet, the wind just brushed through Amon. When Lin Can''s fist came, his fist went through Amon as if Amon was made of air.


    Lin Fen was not the only one with movement art. Inside the library Amon had acquired from the pyramid legacy, there were also many books containing movement arts. Amon had picked one for learning. He had not used this art till now because it was not a movement art that was suitable for a long race like Lin Fen''s one. It was an art that gave a short movement boost for a brief instant.


    The movement art that Amon learned was called Lingering Shade Stride. The art made his body lighter as well as gave him a dash of speed for a short period. When he executed this art, it also produced a sh of afterimage.


    What Lin Can''s fist hit was that afterimage.


    Amon was already at the first pole that constituted the bridge. Lin Can was extremely confounded by how Amon dodged his punch. He soon snapped from his daze when he realized the others hade near him from behind. He hurriedly jumped to start crossing the bridge.


    Amon was already at the fourth pole. He suddenly turned back on that pole and made a punch. Lin Can was taken by surprise by Amon''s sudden assault. Lin Can was in the middle of a jump at the time. The energy from Amon''s Bone Shattering Shadow Fist traveled through the air and hit Lin Can in the air.


    ? Lin Can managed to put his arms to his front to protect him from the fist energy, but he bounced from the impact. Since the bridge only consisted of a single row of poles, there was not much footing for Lin Can. Amon had also aimed his punch slightly to the side so that the impact threw Lin Can away from the poles.


    Lin Can fell. His eyes were wide as he stared and Amon and cursed, "You bastarrddd¡­!!!"


    The height of the bridge section was around twenty meters. Lin Can hit the ground hard. He was hurting but otherwise no injury, the body of a Strength stage cultivator allowed one to survive such a fall. He looked up in anger and unwillingness. There was no chance for him to win this selection process anymore. It''s not possible for him to chase after the others if he started from the beginning again.


    Amon resumed jumping poles to poles. He almost arrived at the end of the bridge when he suddenly sensed danger from behind. He ducked at thest second as an invisible wind de sliced past him. His sleeve was torn by the energy and a long cut appeared on his left arm. The cut was shallow, it didn''t hamper his movement.


    Because Amon had made an urgent duck, he lost bnce. But he managed to hold the edge of the pole with his hand and hung by its edge instead of falling. He saw the one that had made the attack was a boy who had first arrived on the bridge after Lin Can had fallen.


    The boy waved his two hands. Amon saw fluctuation in the air around those waving hands and sensed another danger. It was those wind des again. Amon kicked the pole''s side and propelled himself to the next pole, just as those wind des hit the pole he was hanging on a second ago and left several deep gashes.


    The boy continued waving his hands as he jumped forward, sending one wind de after another.


    Amon was ready then. He activated his Hardened Bronze Body. Though the wind des were invisible, Amon could perceive their arrival from his danger sense.


    Every time the wind de came, he struck it with his hardened arms. Loud impact sounds were heard and sparks were created every time that happened. He continued deflecting the wind attacks while jumping through the poles at the same time.


    When Amon arrived on the pole at the end of the bridge, he stopped.


    The boy who had been attacking Amon with the wind des readied himself. He had seen that Amon also had an art that hit from a distance. He didn''t stop throwing his wind des. If he kept on attacking, Amon would have trouble attacking back. At the same time, he was ready to block Amon''s fist attack with his wind des.


    Amon used one arm to block the boy''s wind de and another arm to attack. The attacking arm punched out with Bone Shattering Shadow Fist.


    The boy readied himself to send a wind de to sh with Amon''s fist energy. However, he found that Amon''s fist energy didn''te at him. Amon''s punch was aiming at a lower elevation.<sub> </sub>


    While he was still wondering why his adversary had such a terrible aim, he heard cracks from under him. Soon, he felt his body getting tilted involuntarily. He lost bnce. He held onto the pole with his hands but soon found that the pir had turned sideways.


    Another cracking sound was heard. He saw the parts where the pole had cracked. It was the pole that had received his wind des. This was the same pole that Amon was hanging onto before. His wind des had causedrge gashes on the pole and weakened it. Amon then sent his fist energy on the same spot, causing it to crack further.


    Another boy jumped onto this half-broken pole while he was still hanging. The boy stepped on the pole and immediately jumped away again. The stepping force added by his weight, caused the pole to finally break. He fell together with the pole.


    The others who were still behind, stopped when they reached the pole before the one that had just broken. Since the pole before them was no more, they had to jump directly to the next pole after the broken one. The distance was too great.


    Yet, they saw no choice. The one at the front gathered the aether onto his feet and made a strong jump. He extended his arms trying to catch the pole he was jumping to. He failed to grab the top of the pole. His hands scrapped the side of the pole, trying to stop his descent, but there was no handhold at the side of the pole. He also fell to the ground.


    The remaining two who saw the scene were uncertain of how to proceed. They looked ahead and saw Lin Fen had already stood on one of the poles with the red paper. Amon was en route to the second one. While thest boy that had managed to step on the cracked pole before it broke, was heading towards thest one.


    Even if they were able to pass this bridge, they won''t be able to chase them. All three red papers would have been taken.


    They were powerless as they saw the red papers get taken one by one.


    When thest red paper was taken, Lin Weida''s voice boomed, "The selection process is over! We now have four candidates to go to the Royal Academy''s entrance exam!"


    *


    Everyone was back inside the great hall again. Four youths now stood in the center. Lin Weida was back on his throne. Those who had failed stood at the side with the others. They wore sour faces regretting their failures. Lin Can''s face was especially dark. He stared dagger at Amon, whopletely ignored him.


    The four youths at the center were Amon, Lin Baxiong, Lin Fen, and Lin Anwen. Lin Anwen was thest boy who had stepped onto the half-broken pole. He was also a youth who had joined the White Cloud Tournament with Amon but unfortunately couldn''t be the finalist to enter the secret dimension.


    Lin Bubai came to these four and handed each of them a badge.


    "Those badges were given by the royal family. They represented the four spots that gave you the privilege to enter the Royal Academy''s entrance exam. Those badges have your names carved onto them, so they can''t be used by anyone other than you. However, do not lose them. If you go to the royal academy without these badges, you can forget about the exam. They won''t care whatever excuse you make."


    The four stored those badges in their space rings.


    Lin Bubai continued, "I hope you didn''t bring shame to our Lin n and fail the entrance exam. If you seed, don''t forget your roots. Youe from our Lin n. If you decide toe back here after graduating from the academy, you are always wee. If you don''t, then remember to keep our Lin name in your heart."


    Three out of the four nodded passionately. Amon simply wore a t expression.


    "We will prepare some escorts who will take you to Qishurg City one week from now," Lin Bubai informed. "Settle your affairs within this one week and gathered here in the morning. The journey to Qishurg City will take around two weeks. You should arrive in that city one week before the entrance exam. Do not bete! Anyone who fails to arrive by noon will be left behind. You will then have to travel to Qishurg City on your own. You are dismissed!"


    When everybody started leaving, Lin Weida, who had been silent on his throne, said, "Lin Mo, you stay."

 118 Chapter 118

    Amon stopped. The others nced between him and the n master before resuming their way out.


    "Bubai, you also leave," Lin Weida said.


    "Yes, father," Lin Bubai replied and left.


    Now there were only two people inside thisrge great hall. The two just stared at one another without any word. The silence went on for quite some while.


    When Amon started to think that this was wasting time and was about to ask the n master what he wanted, Lin Weida spoke, "Let me tell you, Lin Mo. I might seem harsh to you, but know that I am this way because I find you the most interesting among our young generation. Unfortunately, there are many people here who dislike you because Lin Xi has treated you as one of the Lin n''s inner family while in reality, you don''t bear any of our blood. I, however, know that you possess great potential. I do not doubt that you will do well at the Royal Academy."


    Amon wasn''t sure where this conversation was leading. It almost sounds like the n master was apologetic. "Thank you, n master, for your kind words. I will try not to disappoint your hope."


    Lin Weidaughed. He came down from his throne. "You can drop the pretense, kid," he said. "We both know my words don''t mean squat to you. Throughout these years, I have known that you are different and you will achieve great heights if you are left alone. I have been trying to make up my mind whether you are a threat to the Lin n or a boon."


    "Have youe to a conclusion?" Amon asked.


    Lin Weida smiled. He now stood in front of Amon. Amon maintained his calm but he was fully on alert.


    "You are tense. But you are always tense. I have never seen you drop your guard," Lin Weida said. "It''s as if you view everyone as your enemies. How do you be like this? I still can''t believe you are a kid."


    Amon didn''t say anything.


    "Someone like you, if there is a chance that I think that you will be an enemy to the Lin n, I would have struck you here and now when you are still weak."


    Amon was still silent.


    "But after observing your time here. Even though you don''t help the Lin n, I believe you won''t endanger it as well."


    Amon raised his brows. "How did youe to that conclusion?" Amon asked.


    "Because of Lin Xi," Lin Weida answered. "You might not have cared about anyone else in this n, but I believe you won''t endanger Lin Xi, who has always treated you as a real son."


    ''You are giving her too much credit,'' Amon thought, but he didn''t say anything. There was no need to antagonize a sleeping tiger.


    Lin Weida continued, "Know that if you decide to return here after the royal academy, I will wee you and give you a good post in this n. If you don''t, if you decide to join the royal kingdom''s force. Well, I hope you can put in a good word on our behalf. If not for the Lin n, then for Lin Xi."


    Amon simply nodded.


    Lin Weida put a hand on Amon''s shoulder. Amon didn''t know what to make of this gesture. The n master then walked out the hall, leaving Amon alone.


    *


    During the one week waiting for the time to depart, aside from making his preparation, Amon spent it learning a new art. It was another movement art.


    After the selection race, Amon understood the importance of a movement art that was meant for a long run, like the one exhibited by Lin Fen. The sudden speed burst provided by his Lingering Shade Stride might be useful for battle, but when it came to chasing and escaping, it was practically useless. He needed something that could give him constant speed for a long period.


    He was about to leave the protective shell of a Lin n. There was no telling what was out there waiting for him. The journey to Qishurg City might not be all that smooth. Even after he arrived, there was no telling if there would be a hindrance before he was epted into the royal academy.<sub> </sub>


    He needed this movement art that could provide him with an option to flee an unfavorable situation if needed.


    After scouring through the library from the pyramid legacy, Amon finally decided on a movement art called Shadowless Sprint. This art aside from increasing his running speed, also gave him the tenacity to maintain his top speed for a long period of time by spending the minimum amount of aether.


    This art when applied, would burn his aether at the start of the run, giving him a speed boost. Once he was at maximum speed, the aether consumption was slowly reduced and only spent on the required parts to maintain the current speed at constant, thus saving his energy consumption. It was simr to the cruise control of a car.


    It took him just a few days to reach skilled mastery. At that time, he tested it by running around the Lin estate''s trainingpound, which covered arge enough area. He ran its outer circle repeatedly. The other disciples were curious about his action at first, but after Amon circled thepound for the tenth time, they lost interest.


    Amon was experimenting with how long he could continue running at the top speed. The speed boost from Shadowless Sprint allowed him to run three times his normal speed. He ran for the entire day and night while maintaining his speed. He only stopped the next morning before the disciples returned.


    He could still go on but if he did, the fact that he didn''t require sleep would be known. He returned to his housingplex and reviewed his capability.


    He didn''t feel tired during the run. He felt like his running movement was on autopilot after the initial sprint. This art was truly good for non-stop run. He checked the aether reserve in his energy core and found that he only spend around one-fifth. Which meant he could continue for another five days and nights before his aether waspletely spent and he had to stop.


    After knowing this limit, he should be able to make a better judgment in case there was a need to use this art. But he suspected that if anyone else used the same art, the endurance it provided should be much less. The reason he could run for five days straight with this art was also because of his special constitution body which continuously absorbed aether. This allowed his fuel to be refilled even when it was spent. But of course, the absorption was too small, it couldn''t offset the consumption. Hence, after five days, he would still run out of aether.


    During the few days that Amon was training the Shadowless Sprint, Madam Lin didn''te to visit.


    Amon reckoned that this stepmother of his was still angry with him. Amon didn''t bother about it too much. If she didn''te to see him until the day he departed, all the better, he didn''t need to pretend it was difficult for him to leave her.


    Amon didn''t realize though, that every time before noon, he always nced to the gazebo and his courtyard entrance. He did that in passing and thought nothing of those actions. He didn''t realize the time when he did those was the time of the day when Madam Lin usually came to visit.


    *


    On the day before he departed with the others to Qishurg City, Madam Lin finally came. She just came in and sat inside the gazebo without a nce at Amon.


    Amon, who was training at the time, stopped his training and instructed a maid to bring tea. He then came and sat opposite Madam Lin.


    Madam Lin simply sat there with her eyes on the flower garden next to the gazebo. She didn''t spare Amon a nce.


    The silence went on for some time until the maid came bringing the tea for the two of them. The maid stood beside Amon''s chair afterward. Amon poured the tea into the prepared cups and started talking, "I understand mother is still upset about my decision. I admit that I should have talked to you about it. I am simply too afraid that mother will reject my request. I''m truly sorry. Please, ept this tea as my apology."


    Madam Lin just gave a long sigh. She neither turned to Amon nor ept the tea that was offered.


    Amon also sighed. He ced the tea in front of Madam Lin, then said, "This is Siau Miu." Amon referred to the maid who stood beside him.


    "She has a talent in the alchemical concoction. She is my assistant when I am doing alchemy work. I have taught her the recipe and technique for concocting the pain-inducing drug you need for your job. She will be able to continue making the drugs when I''m no longer here."


    Madam Lin didn''t answer. Amon noticed a slight frown on her forehead, though.


    Amon took a small box and put it in front of Madam Lin. He opened it and revealed a pill that was emitting a soft warm light.


    "This is a womb-strengthening pill. It is very rare. I managed to get its recipe in a lucky encounter. I''ve learned how to concoct this pill, and so does Siau Miu. She can provide you with a steady supply, I have left the required ingredients for one year worth of usage to her."

 119 Chapter 119

    Amon didn''t find the recipe from a lucky encounter. He had actually used his private wealth to get the recipe. A wealth that he gained from San Guo''s drug trading operation of the Thousand Dream Powder. The pill was indeed very rare, the recipe was even more so. It was San Guo who had acquired the recipe from a ck market auction, under Amon''s request.


    Amon had stopped exposing Madam Lin to the airborne drug that weakened her womb since before the White Cloud Tournament. After dabbling for a long time with medicine, Amon could also make some sort of assessment. He figured that after such a long exposure, Madam Lin''s womb might have been permanently damaged. Even if he stopped exposing her to the drug, she would still not be able to bear a child.


    This womb-strengthening pill could change that, though. Amon had learned about this pill from one of the medicinal books he read, and thus tasked San Guo to find it.


    However, he didn''t do this out of the kindness of his heart, nor was it because of guilt. He did this as a peace offering. He figured that although Madam Lin should be unable to prevent him from going to the royal academy, she could still make it difficult. He was also worried that her motherly instinct might cause her to be irrational ande searching for him in Qishurg City. She might create aplicated situation for him there. Amon hoped that this pill could distract her from him. If she could have her real child, then perhaps she might forget about him. After Amon left this estate, she would have outlived her usefulness. Amon wished that she no longer bothered him.


    "If you take this pill weekly, your womb should be strong enough by half a year. You can then have your own¡­"


    Madam Lin''s hand swiped through and smacked the small box away. "I don''t need another child!" She eximed.


    The box fell to the ground, and the pill rolled out. Siau Miu chased after it, she knew how valuable the pill was.


    ''Hm¡­ This time it''s harder than I thought. Woman''s emotions are indeed unpredictable,'' Amon thought.


    Amon feigned a sad face. Madam Lin''s chest was heaving rapidly. It appeared that she was in turmoil. She stood up and then left without another word.


    Amon watched her back as she left. That strange feeling was there again, but itsted only an instant. Amon didn''t think too much about it.


    *


    The next morning, Amon had settled all of his affairs. It was easy because most of his valuables were inside his ck space ring, which was always on his body, so there were not many that needed packing.


    He left instructions to Siau Miu. Despite Madam Lin''s refusal to ept the womb-strengthening pill yesterday, Amon told Siau Miu to still give the pill to her on a weakly basis. Whether she consumed the pill or not, that was up to her. Amon hope that she would calm down and start taking the pill after a period.


    Amon went to the grand hall where the others were supposed to be gathering.


    When he arrived, he saw Lin Bubai and the three other youths that were supposed to go with him, Lin Baxiong, Lin Fen, and Lin Anwen, were already there. Aside from them, another three adults who Amon had not seen before were there, two men and one woman. Lin Weida was not around.


    "Who do you think you are? Making us all wait?" Lin Baxiong uttered with displeasure.


    Lin Weida only said toe in the morning before noon. This was not yet noon, so Amon didn''t see why he was consideredte. But Amon thought arguing about it was too childish, so he simply stood there and looked at Lin Bubai, awaiting his instruction. Baxiong was upset for being ignored.


    "All right, since everyone is here. You can depart early," Lin Bubai said. He then introduced the three adults in the room beside him. "These three are the escorts who will apany you four to Qishurg City. This is Lin Siaumau, Lin Toru, and Lin Siuni. Lin Siaumau is a Peak Transformation stage. Lin Toru and Lin Siuni are intermediate Transformation stage."


    ''Only transformation stage?'' Amon thought. Amon had hoped for the escorts to have at least one cultivator from the Martial realm. But then again, cultivators of the Martial realm are usually prideful. Unless it was an important or a personal task, they won''t involve themselves. Escorting a bunch of youths certainly didn''t seem like an important enough task. Not to mention the youths presented here were those considered to be not the most important ones in the n.


    "All of you have to listen to their instructions," Lin Bubai continued. "Do not wander away from the group and do not act on your own. Is this clear?"


    "Yes, sir!" The youths, except Amon, uttered.


    "I wish you all luck then," Lin Bubai said.


    "All right, follow me," Lin Siaumau said. "We will travel along the paved road to Qishurg city. Scouts patrolled this road regrly, so there shouldn''t be that many spirit beasts. But still, stay close! We never know if a strong spirit beast decides to wander into the road."


    The three adults led the youths out of the grand hall. But before they passed through the door, they stopped, because someone was standing there.


    "Madam," The three adults greeted while bowing.<sub> </sub>


    Madam Lin walked forward. They all moved aside to let her pass. She came towards Amon.


    ''Is she trying to make a ruckus at thest minute?'' Amon thought with worry.


    Madam Lin stood before Amon. Amon''s mind was thinking of the possible arguments in preparation if Madam Lin used her authority to try to keep him from leaving the estate.


    But while Amon was thinking hard, Madam Lin unexpectedly came forward and embraced him. Amon was taken aback by the action. Madam Lin hugged Amon so tightly that Amon could hear her heartbeat.


    He felt weird. The hug brought him very unfamiliar feelings. He felt warm. He felt safe.


    "You will always be my son," Madam Lin whispered softly beside Amon''s ear.


    She then released her hug. She looked him in the eye and said, "Go, bute back safely to me."


    It took a beat before Amon could reply, "¡­ Yes, mother."


    Madam Lin let him go and stood by the side.


    Amon gave her another look before he dismissed all the weird feelings in his heart. Emotion was always his enemy. He just never expected that someone could still evoke such a feeling in him. It was right for him to leave. It would be dangerous if he stayed with this stepmother of his any longer.


    He walked forward. The three adults that were waiting for him resumed their walking after seeing Amon was done saying goodbye to Madam Lin. The other three youths were annoyed by the scene, but they didn''t dare say anything with Madam Lin around.


    Lin Bubai came to Madam Lin''s side as she watched the group that moved further away.


    "Do you think he wille back?" Lin Bubai asked his sister.


    "He will," Madam Lin replied.


    Lin Bubai sighed internally. He wanted to tell his sister to not put too much hope. The look in the boy''s eyes didn''t seem like one that was nning to return. But he didn''t have the heart to say it out, so he just stood beside her in silence.


    *


    Lin Siaumau led the others out of White Cloud city then they traveled East, which was the direction of Qishurg city. The paved road they took was rather wide. They travel with a light run, at a speed that didn''t require them to burn too much aether. Hence, they could run for the whole day and not be exhausted in case dangers came their way.


    Although rare, some travelers were seen along this road. They were mostly running by foot as well, and all of them were cultivators. Civilians weren''t safe enough to travel outside of cities.


    None of the travelers use steeds. Not because there was none, Amon had seen people use horses inside the city. It was because if they rode a horse outside of the city, it would most likely not survive if they encountered a spirit beast. Additionally, most cultivators could run faster than a horse.


    During the travel, Lin Siuni gave the youths pointers on surviving in the wilderness. The youths had gone outside the city for missions before, but only for a short time and never far from the city, so Siuni wished that they were not careless. Her advice was mostly general precautions to take care of in the wild, nothing that Amon hadn''t known.


    "There are checkpoint stations along the road, we can resupply there if needed," Lin Siuni said. "The stations are usually guarded by strong cultivators. If any of you happens to get separated from us, you should head to one of these checkpoint stations to look for help."


    "If they get separated from us, then they are dead already," Lin Toru uttered with augh.


    "Be quiet, you all!" Lin Siaumau reprimanded. "We never know if a spirit beast is nearby. Your voice might attract their attention. No more talking from now on."

 120 Chapter 120

    At night, they rested by the side of the road. They didn''t build a camp or make a campfire. A campfire would just attract spirit beasts. They ate ready-to-eat dried food, so there was no need for cooking.


    The three adults took turns doing guard duty while the rest slept. This was not needed for Amon because he did not need sleep, but Amon didn''t tell them that. He pretended to sleep while cultivating mildly otherwise the aether fluctuation might cause the adults to question him. He slept a little further away to reduce the others from sensing him doing cultivation. Liu Siuni advised him to sleep closer but Amon ignored her. The others just treated him as someone who dislike socializing with others, as was his reputation in the Lin n.


    During that night, he felt a breakthrough in his cultivation. Yet, he sensed he was still at the Peak Strength stage. It also didn''t make sense because he just achieved this level only half a year ago. Not possible for him to achieve another breakthrough this fast.


    He immersed his consciousness into his energy space. It was the same. He confirmed his cultivation level was still at the Peak Strength stage of the Human realm. No, the breakthrough was not in this energy space. So, he moved to the other energy space. One that he had ignored for a long time. The energy space of the ck core.


    This ck core wasrger than usual, it was also denser and emitting an eerie ck light.


    This ck core was the one that had undergone a breakthrough. His cultivation art had not been able to nourish this ck core, so this ck core had been stagnant ever since Amon found out about it. He could use the normal aether absorption method to send this ck core some nurture, but the resulting effect was too little. He had better use of his time by concentrating his growth using cultivation art on his normal energy core, so he simply ignored this ck core all this time.


    However, ever since his demon body evolved after consuming the Thousand-Year Mandrake, his body had been able to absorb aether passively. Half the aether from this passive absorption went to the ck core. Amon simply let it. The amount of aether absorbed in this way wasn''t high, but at least it was higher than the normal absorption method without cultivation art. The best thing was Amon didn''t have to actively deal with it, so he just let this passive aether slowly nourish the ck core.


    Now, it seemed to finally show a result.


    Amon had also never tapped into this ck core for energy. Firstly, because it was too weak. It won''t be useful in a fight. Secondly, he remembered what Hei Gong had told him. That every demon cultivator projected particr demon energy. He suspected that if he used the aether from this ck core, it will produce the demon energy that Hei Gong was worrying about. That''s why he never once tapped into the energy from this ck core.


    As he observed the strengthened ck core, he again felt the influence between the two cores. Now that the ck core was stronger, he saw a thread of energy reaching out from the ck core towards the space where his normal core was at.


    Amon was worried that this ck energy might taint the energy core in the other space, he focused his mind to prevent that from happening. But the energy thread seemed to have a life on its own, it avoided Amon when he attempted to grab it. It even increased in speed, as if afraid that Amon would sessfully hold it down.


    Caught off guard by this, Amon didn''t manage to stop the thread before it touched the wall that separated the two energy spaces. Amon saw with worry as the ck energy seeped through the wall. He passed over to the other side to see if this thread of ck energy caused any problem.


    But instead of passing over to the other side, he found himself in an in-between space. There was another threading from the space where his normal energy core was at. The thread was thicker than the ck thread and they were currently intertwining in this in-between space.


    The ck energy stayed in this space, it didn''t cross over to the space that housed his normal energy core. This was good, this meant that his normal energy core won''t be affected by the ck energy.


    However, he was intrigued by this intermediary space. The two threads from two separate energy spaces had created this one to allow them to mingle. The white thread was currently nketing the ck thread since it was much thicker. They created a ball of energy that was mostly white with some speck of ck.


    This was not another core, it was simply a collection of energy. He felt that if he wanted, he could harness this merged energy to fuel his arts. Yet, he would have to experiment on it only when he was alone. Even if the ck energy was overshadowed, there was still a chance that someone might sense the difference.


    Amon deduced if his two cores were equal in strength, the ball of energy produced by theirbined threads should be equal in white and ck. But he had no way to test this theory because the development of his normal energy space would always be much faster than the ck core. None of the cultivation arts that he found was able to cultivate the ck core. Not even the ones from the pyramid legacy.


    After making sure that this new development of his ck core didn''t cause disturbance to his normal energy core, Amon left it alone. Letting it slowly grow by passive aether absorption.


    *


    Four days after they started their journey, they arrived at the first checkpoint station. Lin Siuni informed the youths that there were two checkpoint stations along this road to Qishurg city.


    The station was notrge, but it had a lodging service to allow travelers to spend the night there. Not many travelers dared to brave the wild, so usually, there were always rooms avable.<sub> </sub>


    A shop was also avable inside the station where travelers could resupply. Their prices were of course higher than the price normally found in the city. No travelersined about the price. It was already fortunate if they could find a ce to resupply in the middle of nowhere.


    Amon counted six cultivators that guarded this station. When Amon asked, Lin Siuni told him that these guards were at least Transformation stage cultivators. There was normally at least one Peak Transformation stage cultivator on each station.


    On a bigger checkpoint station of a longer route, there might be a Mystic stage cultivator in charge. At the border of the empire, the border road was usually guarded by a fortress. Inside this fortress was normally at least one Spirit stage cultivator.


    ''So, the country''s borders are guarded by people as strong as Lin Weida? This means the ruling party of the kingdom should have someone even stronger,'' Amon thought.


    They had to pay using aer stones to stay the night. Lin Siaumau settled the payment. Losing a few aer stones was fine in exchange for a full night''s sleep on afortable soft bed.


    They departed soon the next morning.


    *


    Another two days passed as they continued their journey. Lin Siuni told the youths that in three more days they would be arriving at the second checkpoint station, then another five days travel to Qishurg city.


    Nothing happened throughout their journey. Not even a stray spirit beast. Lin Toruughed that they might actually make it to the city in the intended time. This way, they had one full week to enjoy the entertainment inside the big city before the royal academy entrance exam.


    Just as Lin Toru finishedughing, Amon sensed a killing intent. He was just about to jump to the side when Lin Siaumau suddenly appeared in front of him with a stretch-out arm.


    In Lin Siaumau''s hand, Amon saw a long needle. Siaumau had caught the needle mid-flight.


    ''Impressive. So, this is the speed of a Peak Transformation stage,'' Amon thought. Lin Siaumau, who stood in front of him, was stronger than Lin Zuyi''s bodyguard who he had defeated with much difficulty.


    Another issue concerned Amon, out of all the people here, the needle''s trajectory was straight at him. Was it a random target or a deliberate one?


    Lin Siaumau observed the long needle in his arm. He then uttered loudly, "Who is there? Show yourself!"


    Ten people dressed all in ck with their faces covered appeared around them.


    Lin Siaumau frowned. They were outnumbered. Not to mention the four with them were all inexperienced youths. He hoped these masked people were only at the Strength stage. Otherwise, they would have a problem.


    "Who are you, people?!" He uttered. "Do you know that we are from the Lin n? If you know what''s good for you, you should leave before making a mistake you can''t undo!"


    They didn''t respond to Siaumau''s words. Instead, they looked at one of them. This one person, who could be discerned as a woman from the shape of her body, simply nodded.


    The other nine then rushed forward with their weapons at the ready.

 121 Chapter 121

    "Protect the kids!" Lin Siaumau eximed.


    Lin Siuni took out a water globe from his storage ring. She broke the globe and the condensed water within burst forth. She waved her hand and the water formed a ring of water wall around herself and the four youths.


    The water wall obscured their visions. They couldn''t see clearly what happened outside. But from the sounds, the fighting had begun. Sounds of weapons shing and yelling voices were heard.


    Amon had his Swan dagger at the ready. He thought that this wall of water didn''t look reassuring enough.


    He sensed another killing intenting his way. He ducked away. However, when he looked at the water wall, there was a needle inside the water. It was floating in front of where he stood a second ago.


    "Don''t worry, my defensive water wall is not that easy to be prated," Lin Siuni said.


    The five of them remained inside the water wall as the battle outside raged on.


    "Miss Siuni, let us fight as well. We are cultivators too," Lin Baxiong said after a while. He seemed restless and eager to join the fight outside.


    "No! Our task is to keep you safe," Siuni replied.


    "But they are two against ten out there. Don''t worry about us, we are chosen to enter the royal academy, we are not weak children who need protection from our mother." Baxiong nced at Amon and added, "Well, some of us, at least."


    "There is no need to be concerned. Those two outside are not simple cultivators. They will take care of the bandits," Siuni said.


    "Yeah. How canmon bandits fight against the experts from our Lin n?" Lin Fen uttered.


    Amon wasn''t as confident as them, though. He didn''t think those ten masked people were simple bandits.


    Amon suddenly ducked away just as another needle lodged inside the water wall in front of him.


    "I told you already it''s fine," Siuni said.


    "Hahaha, look at this chickenshit," Baxiongughed mockingly. "He keeps on getting scared by¨C"


    Baxiong didn''t have the chance to finish his words as the needle inside the water wall suddenly released energy that caused a vibration in the water wall.


    Amon didn''t just duck this time. He had moved further away from where the needle was located. Before long, the energy around the needle exploded and water sshed everywhere. Those who stood near the needle were knocked by the explosive shockwave. Baxiong and Lin Fen fell to the ground, blood leaked from their noses. Lin Anwen had moved back as well when Amon passed him by, so he wasn''t hit by the shockwave. Lin Siuni managed to use her defensive art to protect herself just as the explosion urred, so she wasn''t hurt as well.


    As the water wall crumbled, the situation outside was in clear view.


    Lin Siaumau was fighting against three opponents. He used a w weapon in both hands. He was fast and agile. A fiery cat-like creature was fighting against another opponent behind him. This fire cat was linked with Lin Siaumau through a thin fire thread. He seemed to be able to hold his own despite fighting many opponents.


    Lin Toru was fighting on another side. He was fighting against two opponents but his condition was not that good. He had multiple wounds on his body, but he was ferocious. He used a veryrge cleaver that he swung with ease despite looking heavy.


    Three masked bandits were on the ground, seemingly lifeless. Amon was impressed. Even though outnumbered, the two still managed to take down some of their opponents.


    The one remaining masked bandit, who was the woman leader, just stood by the side.


    "Toru!" Siuni uttered and waved her hand. Several water pellets shot out, aiming at the two bandits that were fighting Lin Toru.


    Siuni''s interference caused the two bandits to stop their offense. Toru took the chance and made a circr swing with his cleaver. The attack forced the two bandits away, allowing him a reprieve. He threw Siuni a grateful nce. But that grateful expression soon turned into an anguished one as he uttered a painful yell. His legs buckled and he dropped to the ground. There was a thin needle stuck in his left leg.


    As Toru was down, the bandit leader came behind him with incredible speed. Her hands grabbed Toru''s neck from behind. Her five fingers mped at his neck and prevented him from getting up. Her other hand struck Toru''s arm that was holding the cleaver. The sound of bone breaking could be heard. Toru''s cleaver fell out of his hand.


    She then signaled to her subordinates.


    "Stop!" One of the subordinates who was fighting with Lin Siaumau eximed. "Stop, or your friend will die!"<sub> </sub>


    Lin Siaumau, who was still fighting four opponents, stopped after hearing it. The four that were fighting him also moved away. They came to their leader''s side.


    "How dare you hurt a member of the Lin n! You are going to regret this!" Lin Siuni uttered.


    "What do you want?" Lin Siaumau asked.


    After fighting the opponents, he knew these ten were notmon bandits. The four he was fighting against were in the Intermediate Transformation stage, the same as the two Lin Toru fought against. The three they had killed were in the Beginning Transformation stage. As for the woman leader, he suspected that she should be in the Peak Transformation stage, the same level as him. Otherwise, she wouldn''t have been able to destroy Siuni''s defensive water wall.


    The bandit, who had called for them to stop, pointed to Amon and said, "Give us that kid, and we will be out of your way."


    ''As expected,'' Amon thought.


    "Him? What do you want to do with him?" Siaumau asked.


    "None of your concern. You give us that kid and you will save your friend''s life here. It''s a good exchange, no?"


    "We can''t do that! We are responsible for his safety!" Siuni uttered.


    "You are also responsible for these other kids, no? If we continue this fight, don''t think that you can win. Our leader is a Peak Transformation stage cultivator. She can deal with that leader of yours after she kills your friend here. Do you think you can deal with the six of us while protecting those kids? They will all die, and it will be your fault. Give us that one kid, and you all will be safe. One life for many others, it is a good exchange, no?"


    "Heh."


    "What''s so funny, kid?" The talking bandit said after seeing Amon''s sneer.


    Instead of answering him, Amon turned to the bandit leader who was still holding Lin Toru. "Granny Wei Sui, why let others speak for you? Are you afraid that people will recognize your voice?"


    "Wei Sui? The Wei n?" Lin Siaumau uttered after hearing Amon''s words. "Are you truly Wei Sui?!" He said to the bandit leader.


    Silence ensued.


    "Hmph, so be it. This pretense is tiresome, anyway." The bandit leader removed her mask and revealed that she truly was Wei Sui.


    "Wei Sui, what''s the meaning of this? Do you wish to start a war with the Lin n?!" Lin Siaumau uttered.


    "I have no beef with you or others from the Lin n. My grudge is with him!" Wei Sui pointed at Amon. "Hand him to me! And we will all go our ways."


    "How absurd. He is a member of our n. how can we just hand him to you like that?" Lin Siuni uttered.


    "He is a bastard! I know that your n never formally considered him as a member. Know this, I will not leave today without his head. Do you wish to risk your life and these other Lin youths'' lives for him? I only use my needles because I don''t wish for you all to recognize my arts. Now that my cover is blown, I don''t mind using my full strength. Do you think you can take us all on? Make your decision! Hand him over or risk the lives of all of you?"


    "If you dare to, your Wei n will be crushed by our Lin n!" Siuni said.


    "At this point, I don''t give a damn anymore," Wei Sui said. "I say it again, I won''t leave without that kid''s head. Whether you hand him over willingly or through your dead bodies, it''s up to you."


    "Just hand this bastard over! He is not worth risking our lives!" Lin Baxiong uttered.


    "How can you say that?!" Siuni said.


    "I agree with brother Baxiong," Lin Fen joined. "This Lin Mo doesn''t have true Lin blood anyway. He is no different than the other henchmen we hire to work for our n. His life is worth less than ours. It''s not worth the life of uncle Toru."


    Lin Siuni looked at Lin Toru who was in Wei Sui''s hand. She couldn''t agree to leave behind a kid that she was supposed to keep safe, but she also couldn''t let Toru die.


    Lin Siaumau uttered a long sigh. "Fine, let Toru go. You can take the boy," he said.

 122 Chapter 122

    "Hold!" Amon uttered when he heard Lin Siaumau''s words.


    "Hah? You act so cool but are you afraid now that your fate is sealed?" Lin Baxiong said mockingly.


    Amon ignored the mocking. He looked at Lin Siaumau and said, "Are you not afraid of offending Madam Lin? If she knows you hand me over without a fight, she won''t let you go."


    "Pathetic! Even here, you are still seeking protection from your stepmother!" Lin Fen uttered.


    "Brother Siaumau, he is right. We can''t just hand him over like this," Lin Siuni said.


    Siaumau seemed to be pondering heavily. He then said, "As long as none of us talk about this, Madam Lin won''t know. We can say it is the work of the spirit beast. We might get reprimanded but it won''t be too severe."


    Siaumau turned to Weisui and said, "I believe you will keep this incident secret as well?"


    "Of course. My beef is not with the Lin n, only with that boy. I will be d to keep quiet so that our two ns won''t go into conflict."


    "But¡­," Siuni said but couldn''t continue.


    "I agree with that!" Lin Baxiong eximed.


    "Me too!" Lin Fen uttered.


    "How can we do that? Lin Mo is ourrade!" Lin Anwen finally said. He couldn''t believe where this conversation was heading.


    "If you can''t agree, then we can hand you over to the Wei people as well," Baxiong said mercilessly, which turned Lin Anwen''s face pale. Although Anwen had the Lin blood, his family was the outer family that held little importance in the n. Other than his parents, no one would turn heaven and earth if he went missing on this journey.


    "Are you people done deciding?" Weisui asked. She seemed to start to lose her patience.


    Amon had kept quiet until Lin Siaumau agreed to hand him over, not because he was out of ideas. He had suspected the bandit leader behind the mask to be Wei Sui when these masked men appeared. He sensed that all the masked men were stronger than him and the first attack was aimed at him. Only a few could muster such a force and even fewer were willing toe all this way into the wild for him.


    When Lin Siuni''s water wall crumbled and he saw the situation, Amon started to take action. He couldn''t rely on these three protectors. He was proven right, these three protectors now decided to hand him over.


    The Phantom Inducer Pouch that Amon gained from the Mind Demon, was enough to create several doses of Thousand Dream Poison. He had used three doses to infuse into his throwing knife. The remaining ingredient was still enough for him to make another three doses.


    He had modified these remaining doses to make them into an airborne poison. Not only that, but it was also colorless and without smell. No one would suspect poisonous fume was released around them. Additionally, these people were too tense at this moment. They wouldn''t pay attention to the little changes in the air.


    The drawback of turning the poison into an airborne version was that the poison became weakened. In its concentrated version, it could affect the Mystic stage and even the Spirit stage though only slightly. In its current airborne state, it could no longer be effective against the Martial realm cultivator but was still potent enough to affect the Transformation stage cultivator.


    Another drawback of this airborne version was that it took quite some time before anyone started to get the symptoms. That''s why he had been talking to drag the time. Not because he was trying to reason with these protectors to not hand him over to Weisui, but to increase the time these people were exposed to his poison.


    When Amon was about to speak again to drag the time, Lin Fen suddenly said, "Brother Baxiong, what happen to your face?"


    ''It''s started,'' Amon thought. He himself had taken the poison repelling pill while inside Lin Siuni''s water wall when everyone was not looking. Since this weakened Thousand Dream Poison couldn''t affect the Martial realm, the repent pill was still effective enough to protect Amon.


    "What''s wrong with me? What''s wrong with you? Horns are growing on your head!" Lin Baxiong uttered anxiously to Lin Fen.


    "Horns? What are you¡­ Hey! Where is everyone? Why there are so many spirit beasts around us?" Lin Fen eximed with rm.


    Lin Anwen also started to shriek as he moved away.


    The adults were confused by the three youths'' sudden changes in behavior. Amon assumed that because the youths were only at the Strength stage, they were the first to be affected by the poison.


    Soon, one of the masked men also showed strange behaviors. He started shouting at the others. He even attacked his maskedrades. One by one, all six masked men ended up fighting each other.


    "What the hell are you people doing?" Wei Sui scolded.


    Lin Siuni had taken action to prevent Lin Baxiong and Lin Fen from hurting one another. Lin Siaumau just watched the entire thing with a confused expression.


    "Hahaha¡­ Hahaha¡­" Lin Toru, who was still being held by Wei Sui, startedughing hysterically.<sub> </sub>


    "What are youughing about?!" Wei Sui scolded. She had been upset by how her men started fighting one another.


    Lin Toru nced back. Hisughter turned to a horrific scream. "Aahhh¡­! Aahh¡­! Demon! Let go of me! Let go of me!" He fought frantically to make Wei Sui release her grip.


    "Stop it¡­!" Wei Sui yelled, but Lin Toru didn''t heed the warning despite the back of his neck was still held by Wei Sui. He continued to fight madly.


    "I SAID STOP IT¡­!!!" Wei Sui screamed and her free hand shaped into a w. She then mmed her w on Toru''s head. Toru''s face quickly became pale and blue as Wei Sui''s cold energy entered his head. He was thenpletely still with open eyes but an empty gaze.


    Amon recognized that w attack as one that Wei Sui had used when she tried to assault Pai Kuan. That cold-inducing w must be her signature martial art. She only used it now that her cover was blown.


    "No, Toru¡­!" Lin Siaumau yelled. "You, Wei bitch! You have done it!"


    "Hahaha¡­" Before Lin Siaumau rushed over to avenge Toru, he heard Lin Siuni''s voice. He turned and saw that the woman was justughing as she looked at Lin Toru''s lifeless corpse.


    "Siuni¡­?" He waspletely lost on what had exactly happened. Why had everyone suddenly lost their minds? His eyes then turned to another person who was still calm despite the entire proceedings. His eyes locked with Amon. Amon immediately turned and ran.


    "Where do you think you are going!" Wei Sui screamed and shot forward, chasing after Amon.


    Lin Siaumau was still in a daze there. ''Was it that kid''s doing? What did he do?''


    He was just about to join Wei Sui in chasing Amon. He figured if it is truly the boy''s doing, the boy would know how to reverse what had happened. But just as he was about to take his first step, the ground in front of him ruptured. From underneath the ground, all manners of demons and spirit beasts emerged. He screamed as he watched the unbelievable turn of events.


    ''That bitch is still not affected, her cultivation is higher than Lin Siaumau,'' Amon thought when he looked back.


    Wei Sui was very fast. In just a few seconds, she had managed to get close to Amon.


    A yellow paper appeared in Amon''s hand and he threw it forward.


    "A talisman?!" Wei Sui recognized the paper.


    Before the yellow paper approached, Wei Sui''s two arms wave forward. Turbulence was created from her energy. She then waved her hands sideways. The paper was forcefully thrown to the side by an invisible force.


    *BOOM!*


    The talisman exploded in the air away from them.


    "Face your punishment, you fiend!" Wei Sui waved her arm again and multiple thin needles shot out.


    Amon sensed the killing intent and immediately rolled to the side to dodge. One of the needles scraped his arm. Due to dodging the needles, Wei Sui had caught up to him. Wei Sui''s hand wed down at him. But when the w hit Amon, it passed through him as if he was air.


    Amon had used Lingering Shade Stride, his body shot to another ce while leaving an afterimage.


    "You have a good movement art, but that only prolongs your life by a little!" Wei Sui uttered.


    Amon readied himself to face Wei Sui''s attack. Now that she was so close, it would not do to show her his back. However, as Wei sui was about to resume her attack, she suddenly stopped. Her eyes were unfocused and were looking past Amon.


    "Lho¡­ Lhosa¡­? My Lhosa¡­? You are alive? Have youe back to me?" She said.


    ''She is affected!'' Amon thought excitedly and threw a flying knife at her.


    Yet, she swatted the knife away. "Demons! Give me back my Lhosa! Where are you taking him?!" Wei Sui started to attack frantically at nothing in particr. Her powerful energy destroyed the rock and the ground around her.


    ''Even affected, her fighting ability is not reduced. She could still sense a real attack and react ordingly,'' Amon thought. In that case, trying to kill her was risky. The effect of his weakened Thousand Dream Poison was also not indefinite. If she regained her senses before Amon managed to kill her, he would be the one doomed.


    Amon turned and resumed his run. He used Shadowless Sprint and his running speed increased.

 123 Chapter 123

    Amon ran non-stop. The Shadowless Sprint allowed him to conserve energy while continuing running. He also did not need any sleep. So, he ran days and nights.


    Because he was running at full speed, he reached the next checkpoint station one day earlier than predicted. Yet, he didn''t stop there. He continued to run. He had no need to sleep in afortable bed or resupply. He still had enough dried food to consume while running. Furthermore, the checkpoint station would be the first ce Wei Sui came to check when she regained her senses. So, he continued running, trying to put as much distance as possible between him and his pursuers.


    Once he reached Qishurg city, he could blend in with the crowd. At that time, it would be difficult for Wei Sui to find him. Not to mention, attacking someone in the streets of the city would surely attract the attention of the city guards.


    By his estimate, he would need to rest one time to replenish his aether before continuing again to Qishurg city. The maximum he estimated he could run using Shadowless Sprint before depleting his aether was five days. Five days were not enough to reach Qishurg city.


    On the beginning of the fifth day since he started running, he could be said to have reached halfway between Qishurg city and thest checkpoint station. The few travelers who passed were intrigued to see a lone youth running at high speed on the road, but they otherwise just left Amon alone.


    In the afternoon, he could feel his aether reserve drained. It was very taxing to continue running. He might need to stop before sunset.


    Right then, he heard a voice that made his heart leap. "Finally caught up to you, you piece of shit!"


    Amon looked back and saw Wei Sui running towards him at high speed. Her appearance was disheveled. Her long hair was a mess. Her ck shirt had torn here and there. Gone already her usual lofty and elegant look. There were dark rims under her eyes. It seemed that she had been chasing him non-stop as well without any sleep.


    "Madwoman!" Amon uttered and tried to increase his speed, but he was also at the end of his endurance.


    Amon looked back again. Wei Sui seemed to use simr movement art that focused on long endurance runs. Considering her higher cultivation, her aether reserve should be more than him, even if Amon considered his special constitution that allowed him to absorb aether passively.


    Seeing thatpeting on endurance wasn''t promising, Amon thought he must make his stand. Luckily, it seemed his Thousand Dream Poison took some toll on Wei Sui. There were wounds on her body. She must have fought the others who were affected by the poison as well. Furthermore, Wei Sui didn''t have his demon body''s physique which required no sleep. This meant the woman must have been very tired. If he had any hope of defeating her, now would be the best time.


    The bad thing was, his aether reserve was also low. So, he might not be able to do many assaults. He needed to be able to finish her in a short time.


    After looking around, Amon decided to run away from the road. There were small woods on one side, and Amon ran into those woods. There might be spirit beasts, but he took his chance. As they were both cultivators below the Martial realm, Amon believed his ability to detect spirit beasts'' existence was better than Wei Sui.


    After running around the woods, he didn''t sense any spirit beast. So, he decided to find a secluded ce and hide inside a shrub in between two trees. He then used his concealment art, Concealed Ghost Body. Wei Sui was not a Martial realm cultivator. If she was able to sense his position, it would be because of a sensing art. His concealed Ghost Body should negate that sensing art.


    However, when he sensed Wei Sui''s killing intent came directly at his position, he knew he had gravely misjudged the situation. He jumped away just as a powerful w tore through one of the trees next to him.


    "Forget about running or hiding! I have ced a tracking art on you!" Wei Sui uttered.


    ''Tracking art? Is it like the one Lei Muyin and Wei Lun used on him inside the secret dimension?'' Amon didn''t see a tracking squirrel on Wei Sui, so the method she used was different. Amon swore he would find books regarding this tracking method that had troubled him a few times. He needed to study them. The books from the pyramid legacy didn''t touch on this topic. Perhaps tracking methods were something theter generations devised. That''s why the pyramid legacy''s library didn''t have anything on this subject.


    Amon wondered when was it that Wei Sui put the tracking on him? Thest time when he was tracked, he would need to be touched or hit with something before he could be tracked. He then nced at the small scar that had already healed on his arm. It was where Wei Sui''s needle had scraped him.


    Wei Sui swung her arms wildly. Her ws produced powerful winds that cut trees apart. Amon kept on swerving in between the trees to make him a harder target to hit.<sub> </sub>


    Amon noticed that Wei Sui had been attacking wildly without any semnce of control, which was a good thing. Perhaps the woman truly had gone mad from going for days without sleep and without taking care of her wounds. She was fueled only by her hatred of Amon.


    Amon continued to run as Wei Sui wreak havoc on the woods. Many of the trees had already fallen. Too bad there were no spirit beasts in these woods, otherwise Amon might have been able to use it against her. Now, all he could hope for was for Wei Sui to exhaust her aether reserve. All those powerful attacks must have used arge amount of aether, while Amon conserved his aether by only dodging.


    "Arrgghh¡­!! You worm! Stop moving¡­!!!" Wei Sui yelled. She mmed her ws to the ground. As she did, the ground rumbled.


    Amon was rmed when he felt the tremor. Wei Sui was using a very powerful art.


    Suddenly, the ground cracked and several powerful vines burst out from the cracks. These vines were all around Amon, theyshed at him from all angles.


    Amon had his Swan dagger at the ready. When the vines came, his dagger danced. His Infinite Phantom sh hit all the vines that wereing at him. His dagger failed to cut the vines. They were as hard as steel. All he achieved was preventing the vines from reaching him


    However, the vines were relentless. They came again and again. Amon repeated his Infinite Phantom sh to defend himself, but he knew this was not a solution. His aether reserve was also dangerously low!


    When he saw Wei Sui keep her position with her hands on the ground, he knew that she would need to keep in contact with the ground to control these vines.


    Amon decided to take a risk. After executing another Infinite Phantom sh to repel the vines, he rushed forward with Lingering Shade Stride. Despite the fast speed boost given by the art, one of the vines managed to entangle his left leg, while another stabbed into his shoulder. The vine was strong enough to pierce both the self-adjusting chainmail and the Hardened Bronze Body that Amon used at thest second. The two defenses prevented the vine from piercing too deep and hitting his vital part.


    Before the other vines came, Amon''s free hand summoned a ring of water that rotated rapidly. It was his one arcane art, Water Slicing Ring.


    Wei Sui remembered that art was the one Amon used to cut off her Lhosa''s two arms. The sight reignited her hate. "I WILL KILL YOU¡­!!!" She screamed.


    Amon wasn''t intimidated by her threat. He waved his hand with the Water Slicing Ring forward. The water ring flew away. After much practice, Amon managed to achieve the Master level of this arcane art. In the Master level, the produced water ring could be thrown as if a flying weapon.


    Wei Sui''s ws were as hard as steel, any of Amon''s flying knives wouldn''t be able to cause wounds on those hands. That''s why he didn''t bother using his knives, even the poisoned ones. The knife needed to be able to cut into the flesh before the poison could be delivered.


    From all his current arsenal, the Water Slicing Ring had the strongest cutting power. Even more so after reaching the Master level.


    The water ring flew directly at Wei Sui. However, before it could hit her, a vine came into the water ring''s trajectory. The water ring hit the vine. It cut the vine until halfway but failed to cut through. The water wing dissolved after exhausting its power.


    Amonmented that he didn''t have an arcane art with the metal element, because the wood element was weak against the metal element.


    When his water ring failed to reach its target, the other vines came and stabbed Amon in multiple parts of his body. Blood spurted out. The vines then lifted Amon''s impaled body and brought him towards Wei Sui.


    "It''s impressive that you don''t scream," Wei Sui said. "But worry not, I will make you scream soon enough."

 124 Chapter 124

    After the vines brought Amon before Wei Sui, she used the free vines to violently tore the clothes on Amon''s body. Amon was now naked except for the Self-adjusting chainmail on his upper body. The chainmail failed to protect him as several of the vines punctured through it, but the vines couldn''t puncture as deep as the other parts that were not covered by this chainmail.


    Wei Sui controlled and pulled out one of the vines that were stabbing Amon''s lower waist. There was a gaping hole where the vines had stabbed.


    Wei Sui released one hand from the ground while the other remained touching the ground. She then used the finger of her free hand to poke inside that wound.


    "Still no sound? Hehe, you are quite a challenge, boy. But I swear I will hear your beautiful scream."


    Wei Sui stabbed her finger deeper and wiggled around. When she saw Amon remained silent, her eyes narrowed. She was dissatisfied. Why did this boy continue to deny her the pleasure of revenge?


    She pulled her finger out and then pinched the skin beside the wound. She slowly pulled. Tearing the skin slowly as she twirled her fingers.


    Amon just gritted his teeth but otherwise utter no voice.


    "You think you are tough? Do you think you are tough?! My Lhosa was a hundred times tougher than you¡­!!!" She proceeded to rip the skin in her fingers violently. A long tear was seen along Amon''s waist.


    Amon still uttered nothing except for one heavy breath.


    This might be the first time Amon went through torture in this life. But in his past life, he had experienced it aplenty. Whether as the one carrying out the deed, or as one who was on the receiving end. He had learned to partition his mind to dampen the pain. After many experiences, he had somehow developed a very high pain tolerance. The torturers that had the misfortune of torturing him always thought that his pain tolerance was abnormal.


    It was a misfortune for the torturers because not one of them ever ended up with a good ending.


    As Amon denied Wei Sui the satisfaction of enjoying her revenge, he continued to look for a chance to deal with his current situation. His eyes looked around slowly as he tried to look for an opportunity.


    "You are still not giving up?" Wei Sui noticed Amon''s eyes. She never stopped her torture, but Amon''s eyes didn''t even pay attention to her. It annoyed her greatly.


    "Forget it! Do you not feel your body getting tired? You must have spent a lot of aether running all day and night using movement art, but that is not the reason you are tired. My vines here can absorb their victim''s aether. So, even if you try to absorb aether to refill your energy, it will just get absorbed by my vines. You won''t have the strength to do anything."


    ''So, that''s why¡­,'' Amon thought. He indeed had focused on using cultivation art to absorb aether. Not to mention, his body also constantly absorbed aether by itself. But somehow, all the aether he absorbed never enter his energy core. He even felt the remaining few aether inside his energy core getting slowly drained away. So, it was the work of the vines.


    "Hahaha! Do you feel despair now?" Wei Suiughed and mercilessly stabbed one finger into Amon''s left eye.


    "Hrghh¡­"


    The action caused a low groan from Amon. Wei Sui was discontented. What she wanted was a loud scream. A loud and desperate and heart-wrenching scream, but the detestable boy continued to deny her wish. She was frustrated.


    She pulled her finger out and then struck Amon''s cheek with full force. Blood spurted from Amon''s mouth. Her hand came back and struck again in the opposite direction.


    "SCREAAMMM¡­!!!"


    Yet, Amon remained silent.


    Some clear, gel-like fluid dropped from Amon''s mangled left eyeball. However, Amon''s thought was far from his destroyed eye. Even as Wei Sui continued dishing out cruel punishments, Amon''s mind was working inside his body.


    Amon''s energy space was indeed almost empty due to Wei Sui''s vines. However, Amon sensed the other energy space was unaffected. The one that housed the ck core. The aether inside there waspletely intact.<sub> </sub>


    ''Why?'' He thought. Was it because these vines were unable to interact with the aether inside there? The aether had indeed been transformed into dark energy after going into his ck core.


    However, the energy inside this ck core was too weak. Even if he utilized its energy, not much force could be generated by it. It was useless.


    ''Hm?'' His mind now went to the space in between his normal energy core and ck core. The one where he had seen the energy from his two spaces mixed together. The mixed energy inside there was also still intact. It was not absorbed by the vines. Was it because it had some hues of the dark energy within?


    The energy inside this mixed space was different. It was half-formed by his normal energy which was the power of the Peak Strength stage. He could use this energy. Furthermore, he had sensed that after mixing with the ck energy, it wasn''t weakened by the weak ck energy. It was instead enhanced. How strong the enhancement was, he was not sure.


    However, the amount of energy contained within this mixed space was very little. He estimated that he could only use it for a single attack. After that, it would be depleted. So, he only had one chance.


    Wei Sui was still diligently tormenting Amon, trying her best to get that elusive scream from Amon''s mouth. The more Amon denied her, the more furious she was. She got more and more brutal in her act, yet she was still clear-headed enough to keep one hand on the ground to maintain her vines.


    Amon had lost several parts of him in the process. His left eye, left ear, and several of his left hand''s fingers. Wei Sui had also cut his left foot, leaving only a stump under his ankle. Throughout the process, Amon remained silent.


    Wei Sui was getting impatience. Her right hand formed a w and her fingers dug right into the flesh of Amon''s left thigh.


    Amon could feel his blood turn cold around his tight.


    Amon''s remaining eye turned focus then. Wei Sui was using an art, which meant her mind was on the execution of the art. And since she was targeting his leg, her eyes were away from his hand.


    Amon decided this was as good a chance as any. He dug into the space in between his two energy spaces and harnessed the mixed energy. He never used the energy from this mixed space before but the energy was as obedient as when he was using the energy from his normal energy space. Hence, he didn''t have trouble converting that energy into his art.


    A ring of water formed on his still intact right palm. This ring of water carried a tint of darkness along its edges. Amon''s arm was locked by the vines, so it couldn''t move. But his wrist and hand were not. His hand waved and the ring of water was thrown at Wei Sui.


    It only took a split second for Amon to form his Water Slicing Ring and threw it soon after. Yet, Wei Sui, being an experienced expert, still detected it despite being distracted.


    Amon threw his ring in the direction of Wei Sui''s left shoulder. Her left arm was controlling the vines, which made that part to be less likely to move. However, before the ring of water hit, a vine came in between.


    Before, Amon''s Water Slicing Ring only managed to cut halfway into the vine. This time, it sliced through as if the vine was a piece of paper. Wei Sui had no time to respond as at the same time her vine was cut, so did her shoulder.


    A wide gash appeared on Wei Sui''s shoulder. The ring of water had cut through even her bone.


    "AARRRGGHHHH¡­," She hollered as the pain set in.


    She lost control of her left arm and it left the ground. All the vines that were holding Amon lost strength and dropped to the ground. Amon that was being held by the vines above ground also fell.


    Amon only had the strength tomit one attack, but it failed to kill Wei Sui. Despite the water ring still hitting Wei Sui, she had tilted her body slightly forward. So, the water ring went past sideway through her shoulder instead of going directly into her body and hitting her heart.


    For a high-level cultivator, such a wound although grievous, was not necessarily fatal. If Amon had sessfully hit her heart, then things would have been different.


    Yet, Amon didn''t stop just because he missed his target. While falling, Amon summoned one of his poison knives. He then drew energy from the only remaining space avable. His ck core. As he did, a dark aura enshrouded his body.


    Wei Sui, despite fully in pain, still noticed the change. Her hoarse voice uttered, "de¡­ demon energy¡­?!"

 125 Chapter 125

    Amon threw his poison knife.


    Since his ck core was very weak, he could only execute the beginner mastery of his Hundred Shooting Stars. The power it produced allowed him to only throw one knife and it could only travel a very limited distance. Luckily, Wei Sui was extremely close to him, so distance was not a problem.


    The entire sequence happened in a blink of an eye. The poison knife flew from Amon''s hand even before Amon''s body fell to the ground.


    Amon targeted the knife at Wei Sui''s left foot. Wei Sui''s w art allowed her hand to be as hard as steel. Even at his peak, Amon''s poison knife won''t be able to prate her arm''s skin. Her other body, however, was not so. Wei Sui''s left arm was already crippled due to the wound on her shoulder, she could only move her right arm. That''s why Amon targeted her left foot, which was her body part furthest from her right arm.


    The pain from her wound and the surprise of seeing Amon''s demon energy further slowed her response. When she realized the iing flying knife, she could only manage to shift her left foot by a little. It saved her foot from being punctured by the knife, but it didn''t save her from being nicked by the knife''s de.


    Amon''s body finally hit the ground. He was unable to move anymore.


    Wei Sui looked at the smallceration on her left foot. She thenughed despite the pain in her shoulder.


    "Hahaha¡­ You are so weak that you can''t even throw straight. Even if it hit my foot, all you did is just anger me more. Oh¡­ What I''m going to do to you¡­!" Wei Sui hissed with a grimace. She was full of sweat. Blood was still leaking from the open wound on her shoulder, but the pain seemed to have no longer bothered her.


    "You demon boy. No wonder you are such an evil. Such a surprise! So, you are of the demon race. I will be hailed as a hero when I bring your body back. As for the Lin n. Hehehe. For harboring a demon such as you, they are finished. From now on, the Wei n will¡­ the Wei¡­ will¡­"


    She was having difficulty speaking as her breathing became hard and rapid. ck blood started to leak from her mouth and nose. She touched the blood with her right hand and looked at it unbelievably.


    "What¡­ What hap¡­," She then looked at the small cut on her foot, then to the knife that had nicked her, then back to Amon who was lying still on the ground.


    "Hehehe¡­ Unfortunately, you won''t have the chance to tell anyone." She heard Amon''s words.


    "Yo¡­ You¡­!!!" She tried to lunge forward but she lost her strength and fell to the ground. More ck blood was leaking. Now, they also came out of her eyes and ears. The ck ughter Poison worked fast as it invaded all the organs inside her body.


    Wei Sui''s one working arm extended outward, trying to w at Amon, but he was out of reach.


    After a long struggle, she finally stopped moving. Her hand was just an inch from Amon.


    Hearing that there was no longer any struggling sound, Amon knew his adversary was gone. His right hand took out two pills from inside his ck space ring, a recovery pill and a regrowth pill. He swallowed both pills, then closed his eyes to concentrate on the Nine Moon Restorative Mantra.


    Before, he had hoped there were spirit beasts in these woods that he could use against Wei Sui. Now, he hoped there was none. He would be powerless if a spirit beast came.


    He didn''t let this worrying thought bother him. He focused his mind on his restoration art to reduce the time he needed to heal.


    *


    One night passed.


    By the time the sun rose the next morning, Amon could move again. His body all ached, though. With his one remaining eye, he looked at his mangled left hand and the stump above his left foot. It would take some time for the regrowth pill to take effect.


    He sat up cross-legged. Wei Sui''s corpse was in front of her. It was exuding a foul smell. The ck ughter Poison probably elerated the dposition rate. Amon didn''t let the smell bother him. The only thing he worried about was that the smell might attract the spirit beasts.


    Yet, after one night without the sighting of any spirit beast, he assumed it was safe to remain here for a little while longer. At least until he was strong enough to walk. He thought perhaps it was because these woods were in the vicinity of the main road, so it was regrly being cleared by the kingdom''s scout. That''s why there was no spirit beast around here.


    Amon applied restoration salve on his wounds and swallowed another restorative pill. He continued to use his Nine Moon Restorative Mantra to boost his recovery speed. When the sun was about to set, he decided it was not wise to risk another night so close to the dposing corpse. Even though the vicinity was safe, the stench might draw spirit beasts from further away.


    Amon fumbled around the ground searching for broken branches. When he found one that was long and straight enough, he used it to help him stand. His body swayed as he stood up. It took some attempts to bnce himself with the branch.


    With the branch as a prop to rece his amputated left foot, he walked toward Wei Sui''s corpse. The smell was worse than earlier today.


    He crouched down and took Wei Sui''s space ring on her finger. He looked inside. Not many valuable things, just some aer stones and recovery pills. She must have kept her valuables inside the n.<sub> </sub>


    Amon kept the ring. If the Wei n found her dead, there was no question already who they suspected.


    He then searched Wei Sui''s body.


    After a brief search, he found what he was looking for. A box that was open at its top and half-open at one side. Inside were two dozen long and thin needles.


    <o>,m They were the needles Wei Sui had used for her long-range attacks. His flying knives were powerful, but they wererge and eye-catching. These needles were more suitable for a covert attack. His victim would have a hard time seeing the needles.</o>


    He took one out and threw using Hundred Shooting Stars. His aether had recovered enough to allow a decent throw. Since the needle was smaller and lighter, its flight speed was even faster than his knife. The trail of light that was his martial art''s signature was also thinner. It was akin to a sh. The needle punctured through a tree trunk and then struck the tree behind it. It was three-quarters into the second tree before it stopped.


    "Good. This should be a good assassination weapon," Amon remarked.


    "Hm?" He noticed strange writings on the box that housed the needles. After further inspection, he recognized them as words of power.


    ''The box is engraved?'' Amon thought. He didn''t know the purpose of the words of power, so he injected his aether into the box. The words of power around the box started glowing. He sensed the box reaching out. He then looked at the needle he had thrown. It was trembling. After a brief second, it tore itself out from the tree it was stuck to. The needle then flew back into the box.


    ''A weapon that reloaded its own ammo,'' Amon thought amusingly.


    He didn''t store the box with the needles inside his space ring. If he did, it would be a hassle to take out the box every time he wished to call the needles back after throwing them away. He took out new clothes and wore them. He then hid the box inside his clothes so he could easily ess them if needed.


    He then took several clean cloths and covered his left eyes, his crippled fingers, and left foot. After that, he walked away and found somewhere in the woods that were closer to the road. But he remained inside the woods.


    He looked for a suitable tree before climbing up and stayed there and resumed his recovery.


    Lin Bubai had told them that after their nned two-week travel, they would still have one week of free time before the royal academy entrance exam. Due to him using Shadowless Sprint, he should arrive a couple of days ahead of the nned two-weeks travel.


    Minus the one day he had wasted, he should still be one day ahead. But he didn''t leave immediately. The one free week might be useful to get his bearing of the city, but with his current condition, he would be in trouble if someone meant him harm.


    He was alone now so he had to be especially careful.


    So, he decided to spend one week hiding inside these woods and let himself recover more before resuming his travel. He should be able to arrive in Qishurg city one day before the entrance exam.


    *


    One week passed. His left eye was not yet fully grown, so he kept it covered with cloth. His hands'' fingers were fully grown already. He had a left foot again, albeit no toes yet.


    He couldn''t wait for his body to fully regrow, he had to leave now or risk not entering the royal academy.


    He jumped down from the tree he was hiding and tested moving his body. His body could move perfectly again.


    After making sure everything was fine, he returned to the main road and used Shadowless Sprint to run in the direction of Qishurg city.


    After running for one and half days, he finally saw the outline of a city in the distance. There was a hill by the side of the road. He went and ran up the hill. On top of the hill, he observed the city. It was muchrger than White Cloud City.


    Deep inside the city, argeplex with multiple tall buildings was seen. The royal academy was known as the biggestplex within Qishurg city. Amon did not doubt that theplex he saw was the royal academy.


    Amon grinned.


    That ce would be the next step in his path to this world''s conquest.

 126 Chapter 126

    From the book Amon had read, the city of Qishurg covered an area of roughly two thousand square miles. It was said to be the secondrgest city in Echos country. Second only to the capital city.


    Its borders were lined with twenty meters high stone walls. None below the Martial realm could jump up the wall.


    As Amon approached, he saw etchings along the wall. They were words of power.


    Along the wall were sentries with uniforms, ever vignt against any who tried to enter or exit the city unannounced. The degree of security in this city waspletely at a different levelpared to White Cloud City.


    It was said that there were eighteen gates around the city, but only five were normally opened for daily passage. The road that Amon was taking bring him to one of these five opened gates. Amon saw people forming a line to enter and exit the gate. Guards with the same uniform as the ones on the wall were at the gate to manage and control the mass as well as perform checkings.


    Amon walked to the back of the line once he arrived. It was a long line, he was behind around thirty people. For a world where only cultivators could afford to safely venture out of the city, this number could be considered heavy traffic. Considering the size of the city, Amon didn''t think this to be weird.


    While Amon was waiting for his turn, more people came and queued behind him.


    At one point, Amon heard someone talking to the people behind him.


    "Hey, you! We are the Wu n from Wuyin City. My young master is in a hurry, give us face and let us cut the line, eh?"


    Amon didn''t look back. He didn''t care if people were cutting the line behind him. This Wuyin City the guy mentioned about, he had read about it. It was another city in Echos. It was reportedly arger citypared to White Cloud City. The Wu n was the de facto ruler of that city. It was no wonder this n was so haughty even outside of their territory.


    After some whispers, Amon heard some shuffling. The person behind him appeared to give in to this Wu n''s demand. Not long after that, Amon heard the same voice from behind him. "Hey, dude. We are the Wu n from Wuyin City. My young master is in a hurry, give us a face and let us cut the line, all right?"


    Amon didn''t turn back nor respond.


    "Hey, man. Did you hear what I say?"


    Amon still ignored it.


    Someone came beside him and spoke to his face. The man was a middle-aged man with immacte clothing. His voice was not the one who spoke before. "Young friend, do you mind letting us go first? My young master is participating in the entrance exam for the royal academy today, so we are in a hurry. We will be truly grateful if you let us go first."


    Amon turned to him. "Today? Isn''t the entrance exam tomorrow?" He asked.


    "No, it is this afternoon. Around three more hours from now. You can see now why we are in a hurry. Can you please be so kind as to let us go first?"


    "I can''t," Amon replied tly.


    The man frowned. Amon not only rejected him outright, but he didn''t even bother to give a reason.


    "Young friend, don''t be so unreasonable. Here, I can pay you simply to let us pass first," the man showed Amon a handful of aer stones.


    One of the people behind the line who had let the young master''s group slip past their queue, uttered, "Uh, why didn''t I get paid¡­?"


    "You be quiet!" A rough voice scolded.


    Amon looked back. This so-called young master''s group consisted of four people. The elegant and polite-looking middle-aged man that had been offering him aer stones, two rough-looking men, and one youth. The youth was no doubt their young master. This young master turned away with an expression of disgust when Amon looked at him. The two rough men gave him a menacing look. Only the middle-aged man still retained a friendly expression with a wide smile.


    "Not interested," Amon said to the middle-aged man and returned his attention to the front.


    The middle-aged man''s smiling face froze. They had taken one step back and offeredpensation, why was this youth being so unreasonable?


    A hand grabbed Amon''s shoulder. It was one of the two rough men from behind.


    "You f*ckingmoner! Do you think you can afford to offend our Wu n? Are you tired of living?!" He eximed with a loud voice.


    Amon looked back at the hand that was on his shoulder. He was still thinking about whether to break the fingers on that hand when another loud voice bellowed, "What is thismotion?! What are you people doing? Trying to cause trouble?"


    One of the guards who were controlling the mass around the gate came over.


    "No, sir. There is no trouble here," the middle-aged man hurriedly said.


    "Then get back in line!" The guard scolded.


    "Yes, sir," the middle-aged man said. He gave the other three a helpless look. Even if they were of a prominent n from a big city, these guards were the sanctioned soldiers of Echos kingdom. They didn''t dare to offend these guards. They lined up obediently behind Amon under the guard''s watchful eyes.


    After the guard saw that everything was in order, he returned to his post.<sub> </sub>


    "You watch your back, asshole!" Amon heard the voice of the same man who had grabbed him.


    Amon gave him no response.


    They then waited quietly for their turn in the queue.


    It was almost an hour before it was Amon''s turn. When he arrived at the checkpoint, the guard asked, "Name and city you are from?"


    "Lin Mo, White Cloud city," Amon answered.


    "What''s the purpose of your visit?"


    "Joining the royal academy."


    A ridiculing voice was heard from behind after Amon''s words. "So, a low-life wishes to join the royal academy? White Cloud City he said? Lin n? What''s a backwater n from a backwater city trying to join the academy for? It will only result in a disgrace."


    "Silent!!" A guard next to the one who was questioning Amon scolded. "Wait for your turn to be questioned!"


    "I¡­ I''m sorry, sir¡­"


    After themotion settled, the guard continued his question for Amon, "Do you have an identification to show your im?"


    Amon took out the badge Lin Bubai had given him. The guard inspected it. The name carved on that badge was indeed Lin Mo.


    "Why didn''t youe with your group? The others have arrived days ago," the guard said.


    ''So, they survived,'' Jack said in his mind. To the guard, he said, "I became ill during our travel, sir. So, I have to stay behind and can onlye now."


    "Heh, so he is the useless straggler from a backwater n," the ridiculing voice from behind again.


    The guard looked behind Amon and stared dagger. No follow-up remarks were heard.


    "Here," the guard returned Amon''s badge. "You can pass. The entrance exam is in two hours, you''d better hurry."


    "Which direction should I go for the entrance exam?" Amon asked as he stored his academy badge. The royal academy was thergestplex at the center of the city, so he should be able to find it as long as he headed to the center. However, theplex was also veryrge. If he only searched and asked around after arriving at one side of theplex, it would be a waste of time if the exam avenue was on the opposite side. With only a couple of hours to spare, he preferred to not make a mistake.


    "The entrance exam is on the South side of the academy. This is the West gate. Just go straight in that direction. It is a veryrge blue building with an equallyrge entrance. It is the only blue building there, so you won''t miss it. There should also be many people crowding there."


    Amon nodded. He immediately ran forward using his movement art, Shadowless Sprint.


    "Stay out of trouble¡­!" The guard yelled after seeing Amon using his art without reservation.


    "Young master Wu Yang, please," the well-dressed middle-aged man said to the youngest man in their group.


    "Abdu first," Wu Yang replied. He then turned to one of the rough men and said, "You know what to do."


    Abdu bowed, "Don''t worry, young master. You won''t see him there."


    After Abdu went through the checking process, he immediately dashed forward as well. His movement art was even faster than Amon''s. The guards looked at him. They understood why Amon was in a hurry, but what''s this one''s excuse? But as long as they didn''t crash into someone or create trouble, it was none of their concern.


    *


    The city was evenrger than Amon thought. It took some time to travel through such arge city even by running at top speed. There were more crowds herepared to White Cloud city, but Amon could still weave through pedestrians without slowing down. He even zipped past several people who were riding horses on the street. His running speed was faster than horses.


    As he headed in the direction the guard had told him, he noticed he came upon an area that was a bit shadier. Less people were seen here. He figured this must be some sort of the slum districts of the city. He decided to just run straight. He was short on time.


    Several suspicious-looking men watched him run by. Amon kept on running at full speed. If they couldn''t chase him, they won''t bother to do anything. Not that he was afraid, he simply had no time to spare for them.


    While he was still running, he suddenly sensed danger from behind. He rolled to the side just as arge rock crashed into the sport where he would be if he had continued running.


    "Huh? You dodge it. Damn, kid! You are truly lucky!"


    Amon turned to the source of the voice and saw it was one of the rough-looking men that apanied the Wu n''s young master.

 127 Chapter 127

    Amon looked around. It seemed his pursuer was only this one person. Other locals immediately hid away when they saw two cultivators were having a dispute. Most of the ones living in the slum here were peasants who never had a chance to cultivate in their lives.


    The man who chased after Amon was full of sweat. His breathing was also heavy. Despite his running speed being faster, the movement art burnt a lot of aether. He couldn''t maintain it for long. It was lucky that he managed to catch up to Amon before he ran out of energy.


    "Damn, kid! What kind of movement art do you use? How are you still breathing fine after running so fast for so long?" The man asked. "By the way, my name is Abdu. I am a cultivator of the Beginning Transformation stage."


    "What do you want?" Amon asked.


    "Hehe, what do I want? I want you to apany me ying for a while. You are very rude to our young master. So, he doesn''t want to see you in the entrance exam. It''s better this way. There is no way a boy like you can pass the exam, and I''m here to make sure of that. You can just say that it is because of me that you fail, so you won''t bring shame back home. Ain''t I a kind person for helping you making an excuse?"


    Abdu had been walking towards Amon as he talked. Amon looked around, although the peasants had hidden away inside their home, they were most likely still watching. It would be a problem if Amon killed this Abdu with so many witnesses.


    He figured this city was simr to White Cloud City. Conflicts sometimes happened on the streets amongst cultivators. But as long as no life was lost, the governing party didn''t bother to deal with it. They will just pretend the conflicts never happened unless their patrolling units happened toe across the disputes. This slum-like ce seemed to be an unlikely ce for any guards to patrol through.


    Amon turned around as if he wanted to run away.


    "Hey! Don''t you think you can¡­!"


    Abdu didn''t finish his sentence because as he lunged forward and used his movement art to chase Amon, Amon turned back again at him, and then Amon vanished.


    "What¡­"


    To his surprise, Amon suddenly appeared in front of him with his fist punching forward. Amon had trained the martial art he created, Silent Swift Shadow Fist, until the Master level. He could easily execute this art now. Several fist images that left trails of light rushed from behind him as his fist collided with Abdu.


    Arge impact voice was heard. Too loud for an impact against the flesh of the body.


    Before Abdu was a rock te, protecting him from Amon''s fist. Abdu had used this arcane art once he thought something was wrong when Amon vanished.


    When Abdu wanted to teach Amon a lesson for daring to attack while he was still talking, he saw the iing fists with trails of light from behind Amon. These fists mmed onto Abdu''s rock shield repeatedly.


    Abdu sneered. Who did this youth think he was? Didn''t he already announce that he was a Transformation stage cultivator? A youth at his age who was looking to enter the royal academy could only be of the Strength stage. He estimated Amon to be only at the Beginning Strength stage. This thought was in reference to their talented young master who was at the intermediate Strength stage. Amon couldn''t be at the same level as their young master, could he?


    Abdu wasn''t too far off. Amon was indeed still at the Strength stage. However, he was at the Peak Strength stage. Additionally, the Silent Swift Shadow Fist was an art Amon created from thebination of two martial arts. Two martial arts which after further study, Amon ssified as mid-tier practitioner art.


    Most other arts he observed in White Cloud city were low-tier practitioner art. The arts kept by the Hei n were actually a level higher than themon arts. When Amonbined the two arts, he elevated the level even further. Not quite a high-tier practitioner art, but close.


    As the fists that looked like meteor showers crashed into the rock shield, cracks continued to appear on the rock.


    The confident face that Abdu showed, slowly diminished as more cracks appeared.


    ''How many punches can his art delivers?'' Abdu thought in rm. He was injecting his aether into his rock shield to try to reinforce it.


    However, it was still destroyed after another three hits. Two more meteorite fists still rushed in, they crushed into Abdu''s body. Abdu''s Transformation stage body was not strong enough to resist the impact force. He vomited blood as he reeled back from the impacts.


    While he was still unbnced, he found Amon was already upon him. He didn''t have a chance to do anything before a very strong punch mmed onto his head from above, sending him crashing to the ground. His vision was spinning.


    Amon controlled his strength so as to not crack Abdu''s skull open. He didn''t want to kill anyone, yet. He was a neer to this city. He was not yet familiar with the rules. It was better if he didn''t cause unnecessary trouble. He incapacitated this man in self-defense, the people in this slum were his witnesses.<sub> </sub>


    He didn''t bother about Abdu any longer. He turned and resumed his run. He was short on time.


    Amon paid attention to his surroundings. He didn''t notice any other pursuers. Abdu must be the only one in that Wu young master''s entourage who had a long-range movement art.


    Amon didn''t meet any more resistance along the way. He soon came out of the slum area and into a more crowdedmercial area. At one point it was too crowded that running at full speed was impossible without crashing onto the pedestrians. So, Amon climbed to the roof of one of the buildings and then ran along the roofs. It''s a good thing most of the buildings were shops that uniformly had only two storeys, so their roofs were connected.


    Some of the pedestrians looked up and saw Amon''s action. Several shook their heads at the sight.


    The veryrge blue building was seen already at the end of the roofs he was running on. The guard was right, it was impossible to miss it once one was nearby. Only a bit over an hour passed since he entered the city. He still had enough time. As he was about to arrive, two people in soldier uniforms jumped atop the roofs. They stood in Amon''s path.


    "Halt!" The two uttered.


    Because the two were wearing soldiers'' uniforms, Amonplied. Otherwise, he would have just jumped past the two.


    "Who are you?! What is your intention ofing to Blue Gate Square without taking the proper road?"


    Amon was close enough to see therge square before the big building with the unusuallyrge doors. There were lots of people crowding around the square. Amon assumed that must be the Blue Gate Square.


    "I am a participant in the Royal Academy''s entrance exam. I was told that thatrge blue building is the ce I should go to. I take the route through these roofs because the exam almost starts. Hence, my hurry to avoid the traffic."


    The two soldiers looked at one another. They then said to Amon, "Where is your badge?"


    Amon showed them his badge.


    The two checked the badge, seeing no problem with it. "Why are you not with the other Lin people?"


    "I''ve gotten ill during the travel so I arriveter," Amon gave the same exnation.


    The two guards looked at one another again.


    One of them then said, "You arete and you are causing a ruckus by running through the roofs. Our duty is to keep the order in Blue Gate Square. If we just let you go like this, how can we answer to our superior?"


    Amon smiled. It was easy to guess what the two wanted. Amon took out a hundred aer stones and said, "I know I''m in the wrong. I hope that you can give this junior some lenience. This is a token of my appreciation."


    Amon gave the one hundred aer stones to one of the soldiers. He wasn''t aware if this sum was consideredrge or not in this city. In White Cloud city,mon folks'' average weekly ie was around fifty aer stones. He believed soldiers should have a higher wage considering they were all cultivators. And Qishurg city wasrger than White Cloud city, so the average ie might be higher here as well. He was assuming one hundred aer stones should be these soldiers'' weekly wages.


    The soldier''s eyes glinted as he took Amon''s aer stones. Amon then took out another one hundred aer stones and gave them to the other soldier. The two soldiers looked at one another, they were happy enough if Amon gave the first hundred for the two of them. Amon didn''t truly vite any rule, anyway. They just made up about the ruckus caused by Amon running on the roofs. Now that both of them received one hundred aer stones, they were very happy.


    "This brother is truly generous. We thank you for your generosity. Here is your badge. Come, let us take you to the entrance. It will be difficult to go through the crowd by yourself."


    "Then I will trouble you two," Amon replied. Two hundred aer stones were nothing to him. The profit generated by San Guo''s underworld drug business had granted him substantial wealth.


    The three jumped down to the square. The two soldiers then started ushering Amon while they shouted for the folks to part way. Since it was the city''s proper soldiers who were issuing themand, none dared to disobey. They parted ways like obedient little children, wondering at the same time who this big shot the soldiers were escorting.

 128 Chapter 128

    As they passed through the crowd, Amon wondered why are they gathering here for? Was it because of the royal academy''s entrance exam? Amon understood the royal academy was a big part of the city. It could be said that this city existed because of the royal academy.


    Was the exam being done in the open for everyone to see? Like some kind of an entertainment exhibition? Was that why these people gather?


    Amon ignored the crowd''s curious stares as they walked. With the two soldiers leading the way, Amon arrived soon at the abnormallyrge doors of the blue building. The doors were ajar. But since it was sorge, a small opening of these doors already allowed four people to enter side-by-side at the same time.


    More soldiers stood before this door. The two soldiers brought Amon to them and introduced him as one of the exam participants. Amon gave his badge to them to verify.


    As they were checking Amon''s badge, arge carriage came through the crowd. A driver and another person were sitting in front of the carriage. This other person kept on shouting for the people to part ways to allow the carriage to pass through. As they arrived, Amon recognized the person who had been shouting was one of the two rough-looking men in the Wu n''s entourage. The other rough-looking man, Abdu, might still be whimpering in the slums.


    When the door to the carriage opened, it was as Amon expected, the Wu young master came out with the elegant-dressed middle-aged man.


    When the Wu young master, Wu Yang, caught sight of Amon when he walked to the entrance. He stopped and had a surprised look. He then looked around the ce. Amon had no doubt this young master was searching for Abdu, intending to scold him and ask how the hell he allowed Amon to get here?


    Amon didn''t bother giving him another nce.


    The soldier gave Amon back his badge after he was done checking. "Go in," he said. "The others are waiting. It''s almost time."


    "Good luck, little brother. We are rooting for you," The two soldiers who had ushered him here said.


    Amon nodded and walked in.


    Wu Yang also wanted to go in, but the soldiers stopped him. His elegant-looking aide quickly produced Wu Yang''s badge. Wu Yang was irritated that Amon had entered before him. After the checking, Wu Yang and the elegant-dressed aide were let in. Only one adult was allowed to apany the youth, so the other aide, the rough-looking man, had to wait outside.


    The hall inside wasrge. Amon was instructed to go to the next hall. As he walked towards the door to that hall, Wu Yang rushed by. He was unwilling to be behind Amon. The elegant-dressed aide ran following his young master.


    ''Kid,'' Amon sneered. He continued to walk at a steady pace.


    Aside from them, another pair of an elder and a youth also walked towards the same door. Amon was amused that so many were also almostte for the exam. The elder wore a Taoist robe with white hair and a white beard that almost reached his waist. The youth wore an ornate suit that showed his aristocratic style. He was holding a white fan in one of his hands.


    *


    The aristocratic youth saw Amon nced at him. He nodded and gave Amon a warm smile. Amon looked away without any response.


    The Taoist elder noticed the brief interaction. He shook his head. "The youths these days allcked manners. They only care about strength. Please don''t let it bother you."


    "I don''t. How strong is that one just now?" The youth asked.


    "He is the same as you. The peak strength stage."


    "Impressive."


    "He should be older than you judging from his body size."


    "Maybe, but achieving peak Strength stage in our age is not easy. He must be special."


    "All the ones who are invited here to join the exam think of themselves as special. The ones who actually pass the exam and enter this academy will be the truly special ones. Our exam will make sure of that. Speaking of which, do you truly wish to join the exam? You know we can just enroll you without the hassle of you going through the exam."


    "I don''t want any special treatment. And I hope my identity will be kept a secret here. Is that understood?"


    "Yes. Everyone here will just know that you are from the wealthy Zhuan n from the border city."


    "That will be best."<sub> </sub>


    *


    Amon had entered through the door while the pair were speaking. He came into an evenrger hall filled with people. He estimated there were probably more than ten thousand people inside the hall. The majority were youths. They must be the participants in the exam. Amon was amazed to find these many participants were joining. These were youths selected from prominent ns and families from all over the country.


    There was a floating stage at the center of the hall. Some people were on the stage. They seemed to be waiting.


    The youth who had smiled at him came into the hall and stood beside him. The elder walked away somewhere. When Amon looked over, the youth again smiled at him. This time, Amon returned the courtesy with a simple nod. He didn''t want to encourage other people to think he was friendly and came to bother him, but he also didn''t need to antagonize anyone when he was alone in unknown territory. A simple nod after the guy''s persistence should be enough.


    He walked away afterward, not intending to give that youth the opportunity to approach him.


    As he walked, someone called out his name, "Lin Mo?"


    He turned and saw several familiar faces. Lin Fen, Lin Anwen, and Lin Siaumau. These were the people he came together with when he left White Cloud City for Qishurg City. There were three more that had left with them. One of them, Lin Toru, had died when Wei Sui attacked. Two others were missing, Lin Baxiong and Lin Siuni.


    "You! Do you know what you have done?" Lin Fen shouted. "We almost die due to the hallucination drug you used! You have to be punished for what you have done!"


    Amon gave them a silent treatment, which caused Lin Fen to be more heated.


    "Aren''t you going to say something?! Lin Toru died because of the hallucinations. Lin Baxiong and Lin Siuni are wounded. Now Lin Baxiong can''t join this exam, is this why you drugged us? So that you have nopetitors in this exam? And don''t you remember how Lin Siuni treated you so well? Look how you repay her, you fiend!"


    "Sister Fen, Lin Toru died because of the Wei n. Brother Mo only did what he did to save himself," Lin Anwen said.


    "On whose side are you?" Lin Fen hissed. "Are you in cahoots with him? If so, then you have to be punished as well!"


    Lin Anwen shut himself up after the threat.


    Lin Fen turned to Lin Siaumau, "Uncle Siaumau, you have to take this fiend back to the Lin n to be punished."


    Lin Siaumau stepped forward. "Lin Mo, although you do what you do for self-defense, it still didn''t erase the fact that one member of the Lin n has died and two others are wounded. You have to follow me back to the Lin n to answer for this crime."


    "I ain''t going anywhere," Amon finally opened his mouth.


    Lin Siaumau frowned. He didn''t expect this boy to dare oppose him so openly. "I will prefer not to use force, but if you can''t see reason, then don''t me me."


    Amon folded his arms defiantly. "Try it then. Do you forget already where we are at?"


    Lin Siaumau''s frown deepened. Amon was right. If he created amotion here, he would be the one that got into trouble.


    As if to hammer in the point, two officials in uniform came and asked, "What''s the problem here?" Lin Fen''s yelling had been quite loud and attracted everyone''s attention. Everyone nearby had been looking at them and hoping for a show to happen since they were bored waiting for the exam to start.


    Lin Siaumau quickly addressed the two officials. "My apology, Sirs. This is a matter of our Lin n. I am just trying to discipline one of our unruly youths."


    "Is that so? But you are disturbing the others. If you want to deal with your n matters, then take this outside."


    "I will, sir. Now, Lin Mo,e with me!" Lin Siaumau ordered.


    "I said it already, I ain''t leaving," Amon said.


    "You see how disobedient he is? I''m sorry, sir. Not to overstep your authority, but please allow me to use force to bring him out."


    Before the officials could answer, Amon took out his academy badge. "I''ve been formally invited to take the entrance exam to this academy. This is my badge. Does the academy allow someone to take away its potential student before taking the exam?"

 129 Chapter 129

    The officials looked at one another after Amon''s words.


    "How dare you!" Lin Siaumau uttered, before hurriedly saying to the officials, "Don''t listen to him, good sirs. He is just trying to weasel himself out of the punishments for his wrongdoings. He is probably trying to find a way to flee during the exam. Let me take him now so we don''t fall for his ploy."


    Lin Siaumau came closer to the two as he was spoken. When he was close enough, he whispered, "Perhaps we cane to an agreement? Are five hundred aer stones eptable?"


    The two looked at one another before asking, "For each?"


    Lin Siaumau slightly winced at the question. One thousand aer stones were arge sum for him. He wasn''t sure the n would reimburse him for this.


    Lin Siaumau was whispering slowly, but Amon''s acute hearing could pick up his words. Amon could also read lips, so he was clear of the three''s conversation.


    ''Trying to bribe? Well, Let''s see whose pocket is deeper then.'' Amon thought. But before he could approach the officials, someone intruded.


    "If the academy allowed its exam candidate to be taken before the exam, won''t that ruin the academy''s reputation?"


    Amon looked at the person who had spoken. It was the aristocratic youth who had smiled at him.


    "If you want to settle your n''s matter, please see to it after this brother takes his exam," the youth added. "But of course, if he passes and bes a formal student of the academy, then he is no longer a part of your n. You had no right to deal with him anymore."


    "Who the hell are you? Don''te and meddle with things that don''t concern you!" Lin Siaumau scolded.


    "That''s right. Don''t think because you are handsome and well-dressed, you can say whatever you want!" Lin Fen added.


    "Why, thank you, miss, for calling me handsome," the aristocratic youth said with augh.


    Lin Fen was unsure of how to react to the youth''s nonchnt response.


    Lin Siaumau immediately whispered to the officials, "Deal, five hundred for each." He chose to settle this quickly before more busybodies joined in.


    After getting the deals, the officials turned and said to the aristocratic youth, "Please step aside, we are conducting official matters."


    "By official, you can''t be saying that you will chase this candidate away, can you? Or let him be taken by others?"


    "What''s this got to do with you? Now step away or we will chase you away as well!" The officials were annoyed by this youth''s insistence. Like he didn''t put their status in his eyes.


    "What''s the matter here?" Another voice interfered. It was an obese man with an ornate suit.


    "Vi¨CVice Principal Fei¡­!" The officials uttered when they recognized the man. They made a respectful bow as the man approached, before saying, "It''s these two boys. They are stirring up trouble! This one has a problem with his n and he was to be taken by his n to be disciplined."


    Lin Siaumau hurriedly joined in. He spoke in a very deferential manner considering the man was the vice principal of the academy. "Yes, mister vice principal. I am the n''s overseer in charge of our youths that came for this academy''s entrance exam. This boy is one of my charges. He had created a grave fault during our journey here and ran away. I finally found him here. I wished to take him back to our n to be punished."


    The newly arrive vice principal didn''t respond to them. He instead appeared contemting. Amon noticed he nced at the aristocratic youth who was still smiling. As he did, the youth said, "I think it is a shame for the academy to chase away its candidates before their entrance exam."


    "I am of the same mind," the vice principal uttered. "Where will our face be if someone can juste and take our candidates away?"


    "Bu¨Cbut, vice principal Fei¡­," the two officials said.


    "Enough!" The vice principal reprimanded. "Who do you think we are? We are the royal academy! We bear the responsibility to find and nurture the greatest talents this kingdom has. What does a n''s dispute have to do with us? This boy is a proper candidate. Unless he decides by himself to not take the exam, no one has the right to prevent him from doing that. Your job here is to make sure of that! If his n has a problem with him, then have them wait until his exam is over. If he fails, they are wee to take him away. If he passed. Well, have them file a formalint to the academy then. We will see from there."


    "Ye¡­ Yes¡­ Vice Principal Fei," the two officials said with bowed heads.


    "Mister Vice Principal¡­ Is there no room for negotiation¡­?" Lin Siaumau said, not willing to give up.


    "What negotiation? Wait, are you implying that you want to bribe me?"


    "I¡­ That¡­," Lin Siaumau didn''t know how to respond to the vice principal''s directness.<sub> </sub>


    "How dare you!" The vice principal bellowed. "You two, throw him out!"


    The two officials looked at one another before grabbing Lin Siaumau and dragging him out. The two officials were in the Peak Transformation stage, the same level as Lin Siaumau. Hence, there was nothing Lin Siaumau could do. Even if he could, he won''t dare to make amotion in this ce. He tried to call out to reason with the vice principal but the vice principal was already walking away, ignoring his plea.


    Amon simply gave Lin Siaumau, who was being dragged away, a brief nce. Lin Fen stared dagger at Amon but there was nothing she could do. Lin Anwen seemed relieved. Amon ignored them altogether. Amon then looked at the aristocratic youth, who was still smiling.


    Whomever this youth was, Amon knew that his influence was not simple. The vice principal didn''t make his decision to save the academy''s face. Instead, he did it due to the youth''s words. Amon didn''t know what the youth want by helping him. He maintained his indifferent attitude toward the youth.


    The youth approached him despite his indifference, still wearing that enigmatic smile.


    "I''m d that the matter didn''t escte too much," he said. "I am Zhuan San. I am from the Zhuan n from Spear Mountain city. May I know how to address this brother?"


    Amon knew Spear Mountain city was one of the border towns of this Echos country. However, he had a hunch that Zhuan San was lying about his origin. No way a n youth from such a faraway city had such a pull on the vice principal of the royal academy.


    "Why did you help me?" Amon asked instead of answering Zhuan San.


    Zhuan San chuckled. "Do you believe me if I said it is because I have a good feeling about you?"


    Amon didn''t respond.


    Zhuan San chuckled again. "You are a man of few words. All right, I''m going to be frank. I am the only one from my n who takes this exam. Our Zhuan n also has never sent any candidate before me. So, I''m utterly alone here. I believe you understand the difficulty of a loner in a foreign environment. It is not easy. As they said, there are strengths in number. Compared to other ns or sects who regrly sent their youths here, they have their own circle inside the academy. If I continue to be alone in that environment, I will be an easy target."


    With the influence he had on the high-ranking officer of the academy, Amon found his im of being an easy target hard to believe. But Amon didn''t think his im of being alone to be a lie.


    "What makes you think I''m a good ally?" Amon asked.


    "I can''t say anything about you being a good ally, but I can be sure that you are alone here, the same as me. Considering you just have a dispute with your own n in the open, I don''t think you are going to hang out with the people from your n during your time in this academy."


    "Doesn''t mean I''m going to hang out with anyone at all, for that matter. So, are you going to just round up loners to form your circle?"


    "Haha, when you say it like that, I can''t help but feel pathetic. There is another reason why I approach you. It is because you are a strong person."


    "How do you tell?"


    "I have a good nose in this department. Anyone who can reach the Peak Strength stage at our age won''t be anyone simple."


    Amon gave Zhuan San a nce before saying, "I have no interest in forming a circle where the head is anyone but me. If you don''t mind being my underling, then wee aboard."


    Zhuan Sanughed. "Haha. You see. I like you already, brother¡­ Are you going to tell me your name or not?"


    "Lin Mo," Amon asked.


    "Hm¡­ Is it the Lin n from White Cloud city?" Zhuan San asked.


    "It is."


    "Well, Lin Mo from White Cloud city, I''m afraid I share your sentiment about being anything other than the head. So, how about a partnership then? We will help one another when needed. I am keener on friendship, but I don''t see you are the kind that is into that kind of thing."


    "We will see after we passed the entrance exam," Amon answered.


    Zhuan San nodded with a smile. He didn''t say anything further.


    A gong was heard and everyone turned their attention to the floating stage above. Two people were on that stage. A middle-aged woman and an elder. The elder was the Taoist elder who was walking with Zhuan San before he entered this hall.


    ''Not simple indeed,'' Amon said in his mind as he gave Zhuan San another nce.

 130 Chapter 130

    "Everyone, thank you for waiting!" The middle-aged woman on the floating stage uttered. Her voice was loud and clear to everyone in the room.


    "I am Li Niang, the principal of this royal academy. All of you thate here to attend the entrance exam are chosen by each of your ns. Now, there are ten thousand candidates that had been invited to join this entrance exam, but only one thousand will be epted. In other words, nine out of ten amongst you will have to go home with disappointment."


    The crowd murmured after hearing. They knew because there was an exam, there was bound to be a screening and some candidates would be rejected. But still, to have only ten percent was rather harsh in their opinion.


    Although most of the candidates were unsettled by this news, the guardians that followed them here were not surprised, because it was the same procedure every five years. Most of them didn''t tell their charges because they didn''t want to discourage the youths before the exam.


    Of course, some candidates in the crowd were confident of their own ability, so hearing this news didn''t make any difference. Amon was one of them. Even if the principal said that only one person would be epted, Amon would still consider him to have a decent chance.


    "There will be three exams!" Li Niang announced. "Scores will be given in each of these exams. The first exam will have a maximum of 1,000 scores. The second and third exams will each have a maximum of 2,000 scores. Yourbined total scores will determine if you pass. By the end of these exams, the names of the one thousand highestbined scores will be disyed on the back wall of this hall. Those whose names are not on the wall can pack their things and go home."


    Everyone looked at the mentioned back wall. There was a row of very tall stone steles. The row started from the very left of the wall and covered more than half of the wall. On the steles were a series of carved words. These words were the names of the past candidates who had passed the exam and became students of the royal academy. From the number of the steles, Amon saw that this tradition had gone on for centuries.


    "The three exams will each covers a different specialization," Li Niang continued. "Don''t worry, by specialization we don''t mean your expertise like pill-making, engraving, and such. The specialization we mean here is your inner talents. The first one will measure your cultivation, the second one is your battle capability, and the third one will test the strength of your mind. These three points are the foundations of a cultivator. They would be what differentiates amon talent and a special one. Now, we will begin the first exam immediately!"


    The Taoist elder who came into this hall with Zhuan San took over from there. "Greetings, precious candidates! My name is Lao Zen, the head tutor in this academy. I will be in charge of the exams. First, we will check each of your cultivations. Of course, all of you have reported your cultivation levels, but you can''t expect us to just ept your words for it, can you? Well, to put it simply. Yes, we don''t trust you."


    Amon smiled, while most others were scowling at Lao Zen''s candor.


    Lao Zen didn''t appear bothered by the masses'' reactions. He waved his hands and tenrge orbs appeared. He then floated down to the ground with the orbs. The officials down there had ushered the people to free up a space at the center. Lao Zennded there with the ten orbs circling him.


    "Now, everyone please line up following our officials'' instructions," Lao Zen uttered. While the officials worked on organizing the mass, he continued his exnation.


    "These orbs will detect your cultivation to the detail of how far you are within your stage. Aside from that, these orbs also detect your age. The scores given will be depending on theparison between your cultivation level and your age. The best score will be those who have the highest cultivation but the youngest age. Also, if you are out of our age restriction, you will be immediately disqualified. We will ept no argument. As you must have aware, the age restriction to enter this academy is fifteen to neen years. If you are older than neen years, even only by one day, you are out. The same goes if you are too young. Am I clear?"


    There was no response.


    "All right, then we can begin," Lao Zen said. "Present your academy invitation badge for the official to record and then ce your hand on these orbs. We will test ten candidates at the same time so that we can finish this first exam by today."


    The first ten candidates followed the instruction. After the officials recorded their names, they approached the orbs and touched them. The orbs glowed in response. The officials who watched the glow read the measurement while recording the data.


    "An Woli. Age fifteen, 12% within the Intermediate Strength stage of the Human realm."


    "Win Lurui. Age seventeen, 35% within the Intermediate Strength stage of the Human realm."


    "Sui Win. Age neen, 3% within the Peak Strength stage of the Human realm."


    The readings continued. The officials only read the measurement without announcing the score everyone gained. Things proceeded slowly but were organized. With the officials keeping everyone in line, everything was going smoothly.


    The time when amotion happened was when a candidate was caught being outside the age restriction. He was identified by the orb as being twenty years of age. He first tried to deny the reading, saying that something must be wrong with the orb. He demanded to be read by a different orb, but Lao Zen would have none of it. He then tried to exin with strange excuses how his body matured differently from other children. Lao Zen lost his patience and had him thrown out without ceremony.


    As the readings continued, Amon saw two other familiar faces, Yang Li and Xin Wuming. Amon grinned upon seeing the two. The seeds he had nted in them might not be wasted after all.<sub> </sub>


    "Yang Li. Age seventeen, 76% within the Intermediate Strength stage of the Human realm."


    "Xin Wuming. Age seventeen, 8% within the Peak Strength stage of the Human realm."


    ''Not bad,'' Amon thought. Although their cultivation inparison to their age could not be said to be utterly impressive, it should put them above average. If the two performed well in the other two exams, they should have no problem being amongst the top one thousand.


    Amon was mostly impressed by Yang Li. Her cultivation was the lowest amongst the finalists in the White Cloud Tournament. Her improvement was rather fast to be able to reach her current level. Most likely due to the cultivation art that Amon had given her.


    Xin Wuming was also not bad. He must have made a good impression within his n after the tournament. The n must have aided him enough to help him break through to the Peak Strength stage.


    Others that Amon knew also went up before Amon.


    "Lin Fen. Age seventeen, 88% within the Intermediate Strength stage of the Human realm."


    "Lin Anwen. Age seventeen, 39% within the Intermediate Strength stage of the Human realm."


    ? "Wu Yang. Age fifteen, 34% within the Intermediate Strength stage of the Human realm."


    "Zhuan San. Age sixteen, 57% within the Peak Strength stage of the Human realm."


    When Zhuan San''s cultivation was announced, many turned their heads. It was the lowest age for a Peak Strength stage till now.


    However, not long after, they heard something that made almost everyone gasp.


    "Wong Cou. Age neen, 2% within the Beginning Transformation stage of the Human Realm."


    Although he was amongst the oldest candidates in the exam, to enter the Transformation stage below the age of twenty was a feat only ever achieved by a few. That was even mostly happening within the royal families where resources were spent luxuriously. Normally, someone with such an aplishment would be kept close at heart by the ns or sects. They wouldn''t have sent such a talent to the royal academy where there was a high chance of being snatched by the royal family.


    Everybody was wondering who was this Wong Cou and where did hee from? Why was his n willing to let him join the royal academy?


    While the murmur became heated due to Wong Cou, anothermotion happened not long after when an official announced another reading from the orb.


    "Yan Long. Age fifteen, 9% within the Peak Strength stage of the Human realm."


    While Wong Cou''s achievement was great. Reaching the Peak Strength stage at age of fifteen was also not any less wondrous. This was because such a youth would have great potential. With five years to cultivate, aplishing the same feat as Wong Cou was not out of the question. All he needed was proper nourishment.


    Unlike Wong Cou, most everyone knew where Yan Long came from. He was from the Yan n, one of the top ns in Qishurg city. Not only was he going to be a top student in the royal academy due to his cultivation, but this city was also his turf. Every candidate in the hall made a mental note to not step on his tail if they passed these exams and entered the academy. Otherwise, they won''t have a good day during their time here.


    While everyone was still talking among themselves about Yan Long, Amon stepped before one of the orbs and ced his hand.


    "Lin Mo. Age fifteen, 27% within the Peak Strength stage of Human realm."

 131 Chapter 131

    The hall became silent. They never expected to hear another fifteen years old reaching the Peak Strength stage so soon. One that had even higher progress than the Yan youth.


    Yan Long looked over at Amon. He wondered who was this youth. He had never heard of him. Lin Mo from the Lin n? He knew of a Lin n that was a second-rate n from a small city. How dare this backwater kid stole his spotlight?


    After the initial silence, mutterings soon returned.


    Lao Zen looked at Amon with scrutiny. His previous estimation had been off. This youth was actually younger than Zhuan San. With his current body size, the boy might grow up to be a giant.


    Lao Zen looked around. Amon''s batch seemed to be thest toe forward. It was nighttime already outside. Everyone was tired. It''s time to end this first exam. When he was about to announce the end of the first exam, a loud voice was heard, "He is cheating! He is not fifteen years old!"


    Everyone looked to the source of the voice and saw a young girl pushing herself to the front row. All the while kept on shouting, "He is not fifteen. No way he is that young. He is seventeen years old!"


    She continued to advance until she was stopped by the officials before the orb testing ground.


    "His name is Lin Mo. He is seventeen years old!" Lin Fen yelled.


    "We are well aware of his name," Lao Zen said.


    "He should be disqualified!" Lin Fen shouted. "He is cheating about his age!"


    "And how do you say he achieve this¡­ cheat?" Lao Zen asked.


    "I¡­ I don''t know¡­," Lin Fen''s voice trailed off for a moment before her certainty returned. "He must have done something to the orb that tested him!"


    Lao Zen waved his hand and the orb before Amon floated to him. He inspected the orb and said, "Looks fine to me."


    "He¡­ He is seventeen years old. The same as us! As me! You have to believe me¡­ Ask him, ask him to do the test using another orb!"


    Lao Zen frowned. He was being polite for entertaining a protest, but what kind of authority would people see him wield if he justplied with this request? But before he could say anything, another voice again beat him to the punch, "Which one?"


    "What?" Lin Fen asked. Amon had finally responded, but she didn''t quite catch his question.


    "You said I rigged the orb and asked me to test using another orb? Which one do you want me to use?" Amon asked.


    "Tha¡­ That one!" Lin Fen pointed. It was the orb opposite where Amon was standing. The furthest away from him.


    Amon grinned and walked over. He then touched the orb. The official on that side study the reading and then said, "Lin Mo. Age fifteen, 27% within the Peak Strength stage of Human realm."


    "What¡­?! No! No, he must have done something to that orb as well!" Lin Fen uttered. "Use that one!" Lin Fen pointed to another orb.


    "Enough!!" Lao Zen''s voice reverberated in the hall. Those with lower cultivation felt their ears ringing and in pain. "I''ve entertained this charade long enough. The reading is final!"


    "But¡­ But he is truly not fifteen years old," Lin Fen insisted.


    "Little girl, what''s your name?" Lao Zen asked.


    "Her name is Lin Fen. He is from the same n as that boy," One of the nearby officials told Lao Zen.


    "Yes! I am from the same n as him, so you have to believe me!" Lin Fen uttered.


    "Are you implying that my orbs are faulty and that I make mistakes in this exam?" Lao Zen asked.


    "I¡­ That''s not what I meant, but¡­ He is truly a seventeen-year-old!"


    "I''ve said it before that I ept no argument and the reading is final. If you said another word, I will take it that you are opposing my authority."


    "He¡­ He is lying about his age! Why don''t you believe me?" Lin Fen was unwilling.


    "That''s it! You have been warned. Lin Fen, you are disqualified! Take her out!" Lao Zen''s voice boomed.


    Lin Fen was taken aback by the decision. She froze and didn''t say anything until one official came and grabbed her arm. "Wait¡­ wait! What are you doing?! I still have to take the second and third exams! No¡­! Let me go! Let me go! He is the one who is cheating, why am I the one getting disqualified?! No, let go¡­!"


    The official was much higher in cultivation. He didn''t care about Lin Fen''s protest. The girl continued to be dragged to the exit. There were now two people from the Lin n that had been chased out today.


    ''Foolish girl,'' Amon thought. He didn''t even bother to give Lin Fen a look.


    "I didn''t me people for mistaking you for seventeen years old," Lao Zen said to Amon. He himself had made the same mistake earlier. "But this orb is unmistakable in gauging one''s age. I wonder why you lied to your n."


    Amon didn''t answer. He didn''t exactly lie. He simply never bothered to correct the misunderstanding.


    Aside from Lin Fen, a few others were also greatly surprised by Amon''s age reveal. Lin Anwen was one of them, but unlike Lin Fen, he stayed quiet. Another two were Yang Li and Xin Wuming. They were finalists in the White Cloud tournament with Amon. They assumed everyone there was fifteen years old at that time.


    The limit of joining the White Cloud Tournament was youths with a maximum of fifteen years old. Younger youths were admissible, but no one sent younger youths because younger youths were generally weaker. Everyone picked their strongest amongst the oldest permissible age.


    This reveal meant that Amon had joined the White Cloud Tournament at the age of thirteen years old. Two years younger than everyone else, and he still got first ce in that tournament.


    Yang Li and Xin Wuming already had a degree of respect for Amon, especially Xin Wuming. With this reveal, their admiration turned up another notch.


    "This concludes the first exam," Lao Zen dered. "In a few minutes, the scores of the top ten and number one-thousandth will be announced. We announce the score of rank one thousandth so that everyone knows the lowest score to be epted into the academy at the current stage. So at the next exam, those with a score below the one-thousandth rank will know that they have to strive harder to catch up."<sub> </sub>


    "After the announcement, all candidates that are not disqualified are to follow the officials to rest in the dormitories that we have prepared. For adults who oversee your youths, you have to leave and find your own lodgings outside. You cane back again tomorrow morning to watch the second exam. Candidates outside of the ones being announced will have their scores given to them when they are grouped for the dormitories."


    Lao Zen stored his orbs and then flew away, leaving his officials to summarize the scores. The candidates themselves intermingled as they waited for the score announcement.


    "Big brother!" Amon heard Xin Wuming call him. Xin Wuming hade over to Amon''s side after the exam was over. Yang Li stayed away.


    "Congrattions on getting the best score in the first exam," Xin Wuming said.


    <o>,m "That is not yet certain," Amon said.</o>


    "I''m certain that it is!" Xin Wuming announced.


    "I''m of the same mind," Zhuan San approached with his smile.


    "Who are you?" Xin Wuming asked.


    "My name is Zhuan San, Brother Lin Mo''s partner of mutual protection in this academy," Zhuan San answered.


    "That is yet to be decided," Amon rified.


    "What about you, friend? May I know your name?" Zhuan San asked Xin Wuming.


    "I am Xin Wuming. I am brother Lin Mo''s first underling," Xin Wuming introduced himself.


    Zhuan San froze for a second beforeughing loudly. "Brother Lin Mo, I know you are not simple. You are only fifteen years old, but you already have someone that so willingly calls himself your underling. This is a first for me, please ept my admiration."


    Amon gave no response.


    Zhuan San chuckled. He didn''t seem offended at all by Amon''s coldness. At this time, arge banner with calligraphic letters was hung up high, allowing everybody to see. It contained the scores of the top ten as well as the one-thousandth rank.


    *


    First: Lin Mo - 927 points


    Second: Yan Long - 909 points


    Third: Wong Cou - 902 points


    Fourth: Zhuan San - 857 points


    Fifth: Xing Fei - 834 points


    Sixth: Wu Lang - 825 points


    Seventh: Tuang Yin - 816 points


    Eighth: Sima Fang - 815 points


    Ninth: Xa Jien - 812 points


    Tenth: Jin Hua - 808 points


    One thousandth: Wo Kui - 516 points


    *


    After the rank announcement. The officials started to call candidates'' names one by one. The candidates were given their individual scores before being separated into several groups marked with different colors. These colors marked which dormitory they would be spending their night in.


    "See? I said big brother will get the best score in this first exam!" Xin Wuming said proudly.


    "Hmph, first or not is inconsequential. All I need is to enter this academy," Amon said. He honestly didn''t think it was a big deal. He cared not for such ranking.


    "Don''t say it like that," Zhuan San said. "Making a name for yourself is a good way to build a reputation. Reputation is useful if it is utilized properly."


    "It can also easily attract troubles," Amon said. He had detected several hostile res after the rankings were announced. Among which was Yan Long and Wu Yang. This was unavoidable, jealousy was amon thing. Amon was never one who was afraid of conflict. He kept a low profile because his strength had not yet matured, but it didn''t mean he would intentionally pretend to be weak.


    "Lin Mo!" Amon heard his name being called by the officials.


    "Big brother, good luck on tomorrow''s exam!" Xin Wuming said.


    "I need no luck," Amon replied. He started walking but stopped halfway. He said to Xin Wuming while pointing at Zhuan San, "Do not tell him anything about me."


    "Ah¡­ How do you know what I n to do after you left?" Zhuan San said with a sigh.


    "Ye¡­ Yes, big brother," Xin Wu Ming replied.

 132 Chapter 132

    Lin Mo was assigned to a group marked under the red color. After rounding up every candidate, the officials then led all the groups away. They were ushered to an outdoor courtyard where they continued to pass through several well-tended gardens and parks. Soon, severalrge buildings with different roof colors were seen.


    Amon''s group was brought to the one that had a red color roof. It had five floors. Every floor had lots of doors lining up its front wall.


    One of the officials addressed the group, "This will be the dormitory you stay in during your exam. You are not allowed toe out of your room and roam around the ce. An engraving was ced on your door, we will know if youe out without permission. Those who do so will be disqualified from this entrance exam. You may onlye out tomorrow when wee to pick you up."


    After informing the rules, the officials started instructing the youths to enter these doors. One door for one candidate. Amon got the door on the fourth floor.


    When he entered, he found himself in a small room with only a bed.


    ''A cell again,'' Amon thought, remembering the waiting room during the White Cloud Tournament. Not that it mattered, this was only temporary. He sat on the bed and started cultivating.


    *


    The next morning, everyone was brought to a different ce. It was arge za. Lao Zen was already there on the za. Behind him were tenrge tents that had the same colors as the roofs of their dormitories.


    After everyone was lined up neatly in their groups, Lao Zen addressed them, "I hope everyone has enough rest. You will need it today. Inside each of these tents behind me is a battle puppet. Ones that are high-tier engraved rank."


    Amon had read about the battle puppets. They were automatons that were constructed by using thebined techniques of smiths, engravers, and talisman makers. Their rank ssifications were the same as weapons and items. A high-tier engraved rank had the power roughly simr to Transformation stage cultivators.


    "Your task in this second exam is to survive against these battle puppets. Everyone has a time limit of five minutes. Anyone defeated by the puppet within these five minutes will be immediately disqualified. Only those who survive are considered to pass this second exam. But don''t get me wrong, just surviving doesn''t guarantee that you enter this academy. As have been mentioned yesterday, only a maximum of one thousand candidates will be epted. So, if at the end of these exams, the surviving ones are more than one thousand, their scores will be the ones to determine whether they passed. For this second exam, surviving for five minutes only gives you a basic pass with a zero score. If you want to get a score, you have to defeat the battle puppet. The faster you defeat it, the higher your score will be."


    "But... A high-tier engraved battle puppet is as strong as a Transformation stage practitioner. Surviving is already difficult," One of the candidates in the front row uttered.


    "If you have no confidence, then you can just go home now!" Lao Zen bellowed. "And do not interrupt me during my speech! I will overlook this only one time. The next one to do so will be disqualified!"


    The one who had talked just now immediately shut his mouth and lowered his head.


    Lao Zen continued, "Regarding the battle puppet, although it is of a high-tier engraved rank, it has no art installed. So, you will be like fighting a Transformation stage practitioner who uses no art. If you can''t survive a battle with such a handicap on your opponent, then you have no ce in this academy!"


    Lao Zen''s words might have appeased some candidates, but those who had knowledge of battle puppets knew that even when the battle puppets possessed no art, they were still deadly. This was because they knew no fear and no pain. They were also constructed of materials that were generally stronger than human flesh. So, between a human cultivator and a battle puppet of the same rank, if both used no art then the victor was most often the battle puppet.


    "No weapon or armor is allowed in this exam. You have to fight using your own power, with only your arts. As for your condition of defeat. Surrendering, being unable to rise back up, severe injury, or hitting the boundary of the tents will be considered a defeat. For the battle puppet, causing it to fall or hit the boundary of the tents will score you a victory. Our officials will be inside acting as a referee and a judge. They will decide if your injury is considered severe enough to call for your defeat. Their decisions are final. We ept no argument in this regard. Healers are stationed nearby to treat your wounds. If there are those who are afraid of this exam, please say so now. You will be escorted out."


    Lao Zen gave the candidates a few moments of silence. When no one expressed their desire to withdraw, Lao Zen continued, "All right. We can begin now. Ten battles will be done at the same time. The first of each group, pleasee forward and enter the tents."


    Ten candidates that were called walked towards the tents. An official marked their name and checked to see that they wore no armor before entering together with them into the tent.


    The battles were not shown to the open. So, everyone just stood there in boredom. One candidate tried to move away from his spot to have a chat with his n mates at a different group, but he was scolded back into his ce. Everyone was warned to stay in their lines. They were allowed to talk but not wander around.


    The adult overseers who left yesterday night were back here again today, but they were only allowed to stand by the side of the za. They were not allowed to approach the candidates who were lining up neatly. So, they were simrly bored.<sub> </sub>


    While waiting, Amon removed his Self-adjusting chainmail and the needle box and stored them in his space ring.


    "What do you think of our chances, bro?" A boy in front of Amon turned and asked him. He was probably bored and so he just decided to chat with the nearest one.


    Amon ignored him.


    The boy thought Amon didn''t hear so he repeated the question with a louder voice this time. Amon gave him the same treatment.


    "Asshole," the boy said and decided to turn back and chat with the one in front of him.


    Not yet five minutes and many candidates were taken out. Some were limping out, a few were ced on a stretcher. They were all brought to one side of the za which had been turned into a temporary infirmary. There, the healers were stationed to give treatment.


    The officials called for the next candidates to enter the tents that had just been left by the wounded candidates. There is no need to wait for a full five minutes since the previous battle had ended.


    Out of the first batch, only three candidates finished their five minutes. They also came out with wounds, but their grins indicated that they survived the battle. They were ushered to a different part of the za.


    ''It seems like there will be a sharp decrease in participants after this second exam,'' Amon thought.


    The first exam only disqualified those that were outside the allowable age. Aside from Lin Fen who had been disqualified for annoying Lao Zen, only two other candidates were disqualified because of the age problem. Those were probably ones that decided to still try their luck even when the age rule had been clearly informed when the entrance badges were distributed. So, such urrences were rare.


    This second exam, however, required true strength to pass. Amon suspected the third exam was simr. He wondered if by the end of the third exam, would there be even one thousand candidates left?


    The process continued slowly. Many wished that they should have tried getting the front row positions. Waiting like this was torture. They were not even allowed to sit down. They were told that they should reflect the discipline that was expected of them once they entered the academy. Allowing them to chat with the candidates next to them was already considered leniency, the officials said.


    Amon simply stood with folded arm. He cultivated as he waited. Those that saw him started to follow suit. Even though they were not used to doing it in a stand-up position.


    The lines slowly trickled forward. More batches were called. A lot failed to pass the five minutes time limit.


    After many batches, one candidate finally came out of the tent before the time limit passed but with a grin. Everyone''s attention was immediately on the candidate. It was Yan Long. He struck his fist to the sky with a victory pose.


    ''Hm, a show-off,'' Amon thought about the boy. He already saw the hostile re from this boy yesterday. It was better if he understood his adversary early.


    The official didn''t announce Yan Long''s time inside the tent, but Amon paid attention to all tents despite cultivating. He knew Yan Long was inside the tent for three minutes and forty-five seconds beforeing out.


    Not long after, another one made the same aplishment, Wong Cou. Considering he was already at the Transformation stage, nobody found this to be surprising. Amon marked his time at two minutes and fifty seconds. Almost one minute faster than Yan Long, but Wong Cou didn''t show any prideful expression as Yang Long did.


    As time passed, more and more also passed with victory against the battle puppet. Among them was Zhuan San, his time at three minutes and thirty seconds.


    After a long wait, it was finally Amon''s turn. He walked to the tent with steady steps.

 133 Chapter 133

    Amon entered the red tent. He saw engravings on the tent walls. Even if the wall was made of fabric, Amon had no doubt it was sturdy enough to resist impacts from the Human realm practitioners.


    Inside the tent, aside from the official who stood at one corner, the only other object was a metallic mannequin.


    The mannequin stood inert at the opposite end of the room. Words of power were engraved all over its metallic skin. Its face was nk without any indication of eyes, nose, or mouth. Amon didn''t need to ask that this mannequin was the battle puppet.


    "Are you ready?" The official, who was on standby at the corner, asked.


    Amon nodded.


    "Then begin!"


    As soon as the official''s words ended. The words of power on the battle puppet red to life. It started to budge. It then strode towards Amon with mechanical movements. Amon lowered his stance and waited for the puppet toe.


    When the puppet was halfway from Amon, it suddenly lunged forward, taking Amon by surprise.


    Amon''s skin turned bronze as he put his two arms in front just as the puppet''s fist came smashing. The impact threw Amon''s back. Amon stomped his feet to the floor and force himself to skid to a stop before he bumped into the wall.


    ''A puppet has no killing intent. I can''t sense their moment of attack as I sense my living opponents,'' Amon thought with rm.


    The puppet didn''t let Amon take a breather. It was already throwing another punch. Amon ducked, letting the wooden fist pass above him. He used Bone Shattering Shadow Fist to the puppet''s waist as he ducked away. He felt as if he was punching a very thick solid steel wall.


    The puppet made a back swing,pletely unaffected by Amon''s punch to its waist. Luckily Amon didn''t stay near, he had put some distance after his punch, so the puppet''s back swing only hit the air.


    Amon''s arm was trembling. The rebound from the impact of his punch had hurt him instead.


    ''The thing is too tough, I can''tpete with it with only strength,'' Amon thought.


    Unfortunately, he also couldn''t use his poison w. A battle puppet had no blood and flesh, so his poison was useless against it. Not to mention, Poison ability was notmon. Hence, Amon preferred to not expose his poison expertise in the open, lest any usage of it could be linked to himter.


    Amon thought about his options. The condition of winning was either to make the puppet fall to the ground or hit the walls of the tent. He didn''t even consider surviving for five minutes. That was just too unchallenging.


    Not considering the surviving option, winning against the puppet might sound simple, but after the initial sh, Amon knew the puppet was very heavy. It would take tremendous strength to push it to the wall. Its legs were also thick and its movements steady, it would be difficult to make it lose bnce and fall.<sub> </sub>


    Amon punched forward as the puppet came at him again. His Bone Shattering Shadow Fist sent a torrent of fist energy forward. The fist''s energies crashed into the puppet''s left knee. Sounds of loud impact were heard. The puppet paused from the impact but soon resumed its movements as if nothing had happened.


    ''Its hinge parts were also very sturdy,'' Amon thought as he moved backward, keeping his distance from the puppet.


    Of the two options, Amon thought pushing the puppet to the wall was more viable. He might not have the strength to do the actual pushing, but he had a method to utilize the puppet''s own strength to send it tumbling to the wall.


    However, there was actually a third option. The information that Amon had on the battle puppet was from books from the pyramid legacy. These books not only contained general information about the puppet but also their construction process. It required three different professions to construct a battle puppet. The smith formed the puppet''s physical body and injected the concentrated aer stone that served as its fuel. The words of power that gave it life came from an Engraver.


    Thest profession was the Talisman maker. Hidden within the puppet''s body was a core that was formed of a series of interlinked talismans. How the battle puppet moved and fought, was heavily dependent on these talismans. This core was like their brains. Their core processor. The more talismans inside this core, the moreplex the puppet could function. Whether or not a battle puppet possessed an art also depended on the talismans in the core.


    From how simple the battle puppet in front of him, Amon surmised it to only have a single talisman in its core.


    The third option for defeating this battle puppet was to destroy the talisman within the core. Like most beings, once its brain was destroyed, they most likely stopped moving. The battle puppet was the same. Additionally, the talisman was the only weak material within the puppet. The rest of the puppet was normally constructed from sturdy materials. Even its fuel source, the concentrated aer stone, was extremely dense and hard. The talismans, on the other hand, were fragile. So, it was the most vulnerable part of the puppet''s body.


    But it was easier said than done. He had an art that should be able to prate the puppet''s metallic body. Yet, he had to first identify the position of the core. The books about the battle puppet construction informed Amon that the cement of the core was not restricted. The makers were free to ce it anywhere within the body. Hence, in this sense, only the makers knew the exact weakness of the battle puppet.


    Amon might be able to win faster if he used the method of sending the puppet tumbling to the wall. But considering this fight was under a safe condition, Amon saw it as another form of training. To collect experience in case one day he had to go through a life and death battle against another battle puppet. Hence, he didn''t choose the easy method.


    Amon approached the battle puppet who wasing. The puppet threw a right punch once Amon was in range. The metallic fist pierced Amon''s body, or at least it appeared to be. Amon had used Lingering Shade Stride, which gave him a short explosion of speed. He reappeared at the puppet''s left side and knocked its head with a weak punch. The puppet responded by throwing a left punch, which Amon again dodged.


    This continued repeatedly. Amon continued to use his Lingering Shade Stride to dodge the punches while the puppet threw its fists nonstop. The official that was observing from the corner shook his head. Was Amon trying to tire the puppet? That was a very foolish intention. A battle puppet never got tired. This was another of the battle puppet''s advantages. A battle puppet couldst for a long time upon activation. The concentrated aer stone installed inside it could normally allow aplicated battle puppet tost for days. For a battle puppet as simple as this one, it couldst for weeks before its concentrated aer stone needed to be reced.


    But after observing for a while, the official thought Amon''s seemingly erratic dodging was a bit strange. Amon always came at a different side from thest. It was like Amon trying to confuse the puppet by keep on alternating between its left and right. However, Amon never attacked for real. Aside from the first punch, all Amon did after that were weak knocks. He always threw those knocks every time he dodged a punch, and it was always at the puppet''s different body parts. It was as if Amon wanted to knock every single part of the puppet.


    After the battle proceeded in this way for a full minute, the observer saw that Amon was grinning.


    Amon grinned because he had roughly identified the position of the talisman core. The reason he kept on alternating between left and right was to measure the puppet''s response time. He found that its right punch came fasterpared to its left. He deduced this should indicate the talisman core to be ced around the right side of its body, hence its response time was shorter.


    The knockings all over its body were to check for cavities. The talisman required considerable empty space so it would produce a different sound from the other solid parts of the puppet''s body. Amon focused the knocking on the right side of the body. After rigorous checking, he finally concluded that the talisman core was located slightly below the puppet''s right shoulder.


    With that assumption, Amon was ready to deliver the killing blow. He first put some distance before he focused the aether on the tip of his finger. Flickers of light appeared before they turned into sparks as fire elemental aether started to gather around his finger.

 134 Chapter 134

    Amongst the arts he had gotten from the Hei n, there were still two arcane arts he had yet to master. The reason was that it took a long time to master the arcane arts. Unless he was already at the Transformation stage, learning arcane art consumed arge amount of time. Amon couldn''t afford to spend so much time on them considering he had many other specialties to focus on, hence he had been putting them on hold.


    Despite that, he still spared a little time each day to practice one of these arts little by little. He chose to study the me Lance. The other arcane art, Iron Fist, was a fist offensive art. He already had Bone Shattering Shadow Fist, hence he didn''t think he needed the Iron Fist art urgently.


    The me Lance, however, was an offensive art that was capable of piercing strong defense. His Water Slicing Ring art was a very strong offensive that could seemingly cut through everything. This me Lance was a simr art with a piercing-style assault.


    After practicing it slowly in his spare time, Amon had not yet reached a mastery where the me Lance could be used decently in a battle, but he had achieved Skilled mastery, where he could form thence in two seconds and the energy could prate for as long as one foot.


    This was a pathetic result if he used it against a skilled opponent. Not only the two seconds required would have him open to the opponent''s attacks, but the one-foot reach was no different from the reach of a normal knife. He might as well just use a knife in that case.


    But for this fight, it was enough. Amon was confident his me Lance should be able to pierce the battle puppet''s metallic skin. The puppet was of the metal element, which was weak against fire element attack.


    As the art required two seconds, Amon had put some distance before activating the art. The battle puppet could do a sudden fast-speed lunge that covered a medium range from time to time, but Amon had noticed that it couldn''t do it all the time. There was an interval. It was now during that interval, so it was enough time for Amon to gather the fire element for his art as the puppet came at him.


    As the fire elements gathered, they werepressed into a granule, a bright red dot on his fingertip.


    Amon paid attention to the puppet''s movements. Its attack pattern was monotone, as was expected from a mechanical being. The attacks were also all just punches. Amon had long memorized it. Lasting for five minutes was child y to him, none of the puppet''s punches could touch him again after the initial contact. Sending the puppet into the tent''s wall needed some effort but was doable. No, he would do things outside of the given rules. Simply because he knew he could.


    Amon waited for the punch from the puppet''s right fist toe. As it did, he made a low duck, letting the punch pass above his head. With the arm outstretched, it exposed its armpit. The talisman core was around that area.


    Amon''s finger stabbed into the armpit. His finger felt like hitting solid steel, it caused him pain. But the red dot on his fingertip exploded upon contact. It turned into a small piercing spear that drilled through the puppet''s metallic skin. A hissing sound was heard and smoke was produced at the point of contact. nking sounds followed soon as the puppet trembled apanied by small movements before goingpletely rigid.


    The official at the corner didn''t understand at first what had happened when the battle puppet stopped. He thought the puppet was having a rest, but then he remembered that a battle puppet needed no rest. What further confused him was Amon standing straight beside the battle puppet with folded arms, as if the fight had ended.


    ''Has it?'' This thought unwittingly surfaced in his mind.


    He looked at the candidate and the trial puppet who was still. The disbelief in his mind was inevitably banished by the fact in front of his eyes.


    He walked to the battle puppet who was still inert. Amon was still standing with folded arms beside it,pletely not worried that the puppet might resume its attack on him.


    The official touched the battle puppet. It waspletely still. He put his hand at the back of the puppet''s neck and used his aether to sense the puppet''s internal structure.


    ''So, that''s where its control input was located,'' Amon thought.


    The control input was the part where amand could be given to a battle puppet. A puppet with a moreplex talisman core would be able to understand moreplexmands. The control input was the same as the talisman core, it could be positioned anywhere in the puppet''s body, so only the owner of the puppet would know its position. Additionally, the control input was fitted with a series ofplex artificial nerve locks. The controller needed to insert his aether following a fixed pattern. Otherwise, the puppet would reject themand. So, even if one knew the position of the control input, one still couldn''t control the puppet if one didn''t know thebination to bypass the locks.


    The official''s eyes turned wide after sensing the internal of the battle puppet via its control input.


    "You¡­! How did you¡­" He said to Amon but stopped. He then looked at thest spot where Amon had hit. There was a small hole there. Behind that hole was where the talisman core was hidden.


    "How did you know its core is there¡­?!" He asked Amon.


    "Lucky guess," Amon answered simply.


    ''Lucky guess my ass!'' The official wanted to curse.<sub> </sub>


    "So¡­ Do I pass?" Amon asked.


    That was a rhetorical question, of course. But since the official just stood there staring at the battle puppet with a stupid look, Amon had to force him to confirm it.


    "Ye¨CYes¡­ You passed," The official stammered.


    Upon the confirmation, Amon walked out of the tent. He knew his own time. It was three minutes and ten seconds. He took longer than Wong Cou but faster than Yan Long. Zhuan San was also among those that had beaten the puppet. His time was three minutes and thirty seconds, slightly faster than Yan Long''s. The other candidates who had managed to beat the battle puppet before the five minutes duration were all above four minutes. For now, only four of them had a time mark below four minutes.


    ? Amon was instructed to head to one side of the za where the other finished participants were ced. The ones that had passed by surviving five minutes and the ones that had passed by defeating the battle puppet were separated.


    The ones who won by defeating the battle puppet were given a ce where chairs were arranged. They could sit and rx while waiting. As for the survivors, they had to stand like the participants who had yet to enter the tents. No one dared to criticize such discriminating treatment. The ones who had defeated the battle puppet were clearly a better breed of fighterspared to the ones who only passed by surviving. Hence, they deserved special treatment.


    As Amon sat down on an empty chair, amotion happened near the trial tents. One participant had been heading towards the tent which Amon hade out from. But he was stopped by the official. The official asked the participant to wait while he went and talked with Lao Zen. They talked for a bit. Lao Zen''s face changed from indifference to surprise to contemtive, he then turned to Amon with a pensive expression.


    Everyone was aware of the weird exchange and looked at Amon as well. Whatever had happened had something to do with Amon.


    Lao Zen then said something to the official. The official returned to his tent and then announced loudly, "Sorry, everyone. There has been a malfunction with the battle puppet in this tent. Please wait while we have people go and bring another battle puppet here."


    "Hahaha!" Aughter was heard from beside Amon. Amon looked over and saw it was Yan Long. He sat on a chair not far from Amon.


    "I thought you truly passed by beating the battle puppet before the given five minutes but turns out it is because the battle puppet you were fighting against has malfunctioned. What a joke! So, you only depend on luck to get through this trial, the same as how you get the first rank on the first trial. It''s just a fluke."


    Everyone turned to Yan Long. ''Luck? The first trial was based on one''s cultivation. Can that be considered luck?''


    But no one dared to mock Yan Long. They knew his family''s status in this city. It was not wise to make him an enemy.


    "Haha, don''t say it like that, brother Yan Long. Luck is also a part of our ability," Zhuan San said diplomatically.


    "Who is your brother? Don''t address me so casually!" Yan Long said disdainfully.


    Zhuan San shook his head with a sigh.


    "What has you got to say, you fluke?" Yan Long asked Amon.


    Amon just snickered and didn''t say anything.


    This upset Yan Long. How dare this backwater kid ignored him? Yan Long threw more insults. But Amon instead just close his eyes and started to cultivate. Yan Long became even more infuriated. He threw more insults, harsher and louder with each passing second.


    This attracted Lao Zen''s attention, who came and scolded Yan Long for the noise. The old overseer was already not in the mood due to losing one battle puppet. It was not cheap to repair one, especially its talisman core.


    Lao Zen nced again at Amon, who was ignoring everyone and continued to cultivate. He then turned and walked away.

 135 Chapter 135

    After some time had passed, the new battle puppet was finally brought in. All tents were functional again.


    The participants who had been queueing for the malfunctioned tent had been grumbling non-stop. It was already bad that they had to wait their turn, but now they had to wait even longer due to the malfunction.


    As time passed, even more participants passed by defeating the battle puppets. Most were above four minutes mark, but there had also been an increase in the number of participants who passed below the four minutes mark. Yet, only Wong Cou was the one who was below three minutes.


    Although the time one spent inside the tents was not announced, everyone was keeping their own tabs. Everyone did not doubt that Wong Cou would be the one at the first rank in this second trial. It was not that strange, considering he was the only Transformation stage among the participants. His Transformation stage power didn''t lose to the High-tier Engraved Battle Puppet used in this trial.


    Xin Wuming and Yang Li were also among those who had passed by defeating the battle puppet. The two of them were above the four minutes mark. Xin Wuming was still understandable considering he was a peak Strength stage cultivator. But for Yang Li, this was an incredible feat considering she was still at the intermediate Strength stage.


    Time continued to pass. The ones that failed to survive the battle puppets were sent home after being treated in the infirmary tents. The ones standing in the field reserved for candidates who survive the five minutes were nervous. They were originally happy for being able to survive, but as more and more candidates managed to defeat the battle puppet before the five minutes time limit, they became anxious. They were at the bottom of thedder with zero scores for this second trial. If they didn''t perform well in the third trial, they would be the first to be cast out if there were more than one thousand candidates who passed.


    The ones sitting in the section reserved for candidates that defeated the battle puppets had a different worry. What they were worried about were the rankings. These were all ambitious youths. They were eager to know how well they performedpared to others. They couldn''t wait to see if their names got into the top ten this time.


    Only Amon appeared oblivious. He continued to cultivate and act as if this whole ordeal had nothing to do with him. He cared not for the rankings. As long as he got into the academy, it was all good. He had a more important goal than a measly recognition of this academy.


    Xin Wuming, who admired Amon, sat next to him and mimicked his act. Xin Wuming was also cultivating while ignoring the others.


    Yan Long grumbled when he looked at the two, but he didn''t dare make loud noise or he would be scolded by Lao Zen again.


    When the day changed into the evening, all the candidates finally finished the trial. Out of 9,997 candidates who passed the first trial, less than half passed this second trial. At the end of the trial, a total of 5,853 candidates were sent home because they failed to survive against the battle puppets. Only 4,144 candidates were left now.


    Out of the ones who passed, 1,123 were sitting in the section of the za with chairs, while the rest were standing. These standing candidates became even more nervous after seeing the number because they got zero scores for this second trial. If they didn''t perform well during the third trial, they were as good as gone.


    Same as yesterday, the ranks of the top ten and the one-thousandth ranks were disyed.


    *


    First: Lin Mo - 1,051 points


    Second: Wong Cou - 651 points


    Third: Sima Fang - 480 points


    Fourth: Zhuan San - 450 points


    Fifth: Wu Di - 447 points


    Sixth: Xa Jien - 423 points


    Seventh: Tuang Yin - 399 points


    Eighth: Yong Gan - 387 points


    Ninth: Yan Long - 375 points


    Tenth: Gao Dou - 372 points<sub> </sub>


    One thousandth: Sin Ru - 98 points


    *


    All the top ten rankers were those who defeated the battle puppet in below four minutes. Most were the same candidates who were in the first trial''s top ten, but a few were new names.


    Yan Long, who was in second ce yesterday was now the ninth ranker. It was not strange if one thought about it. He might be exceptional due to his cultivation and age proportion. But in terms of strength, he was still among the weakest of those who were at the peak Strength stage. Even getting into the top ten was already a great feat considering there were other stronger peak Strength stage cultivators. He must have been able to beat those other stronger cultivators due to possessing better martial or arcane arts.


    Yet, Yan Long was not happy after seeing the disy. All because of the number one rank. He started to shout, "Howe a person who wins because of a malfunction gets the number one spot?! Not to mention, his score is way above the others! He is the only one above 1,000 points. There is clearly a mistake here!"


    Loud murmurs started to circte. Everyone agreed with his deration. Everybody had the same thought that Wong Cou should be number one. He was the one who came out the earliest. Lao Zen didn''t mention that age or cultivation affected the scores in this trial, so it was only affected by the time onepleted the trial. Yan Long was right! The officials must have made a mistake in calcting thepleted time.


    More people started to mor for a recheck. Someone must have made a mistake. Wong Cou should be number one.


    Wong Cou, who heard many supported him, waspletely unconcerned. He was like Amon, treated themotion as if nothing.


    When themotion seemed about to get out of hand, a loud and powerful voice was heard, "QUIIEEETTTT¡­!!!"


    Strong energy was transmitted with the voice. Everyone''s ears and head were hurt after hearing it. This energy-infused voice effectively shut everyone up. Silence descended upon the za.


    The powerful voice came from Lao Zen, who had now floated up into the air so everyone could see him.


    "The scores have been reviewed and rechecked before they were announced. There is no mistake! So quit your yapping!!"


    "No way! Then how do you exin this Lin Mo getting a higher score than Wong Cou who hase out earlier than him? Isn''t the score based on how fast one defeated the battle puppet?" Yan Long pressed.


    Lao Zen red at the boy. The boy must have thought that his n''s name gave him some kind of privilege. But if he thought so, he was still too green. This academy was under the royal family. Any n out there was all beneath the royal family.


    Still, with how the mass had been riled up, Lao Zen guessed that he had no choice but to exin. Otherwise, the crowd would say that the royal academy was biased once they left this ce.


    "The score is indeed based on how fast the candidate defeats the battle puppet. However, the scores allocated for this assessment were only 1,500 points," Lao Zen said. "As you know, I mentioned before that the maximum score for this second trial is 2,000 points. 1,500 points are for how soon you can clear the tent. If you clear it the first second that you go inside the tent, then you get a full 1,500 points. This is, of course, impossible. No one is ever meant to get the full 2,000 points. As for the remaining 500 points. It is for one even more impossible feat."


    Lao Zen paused then. He started muttering, "To be honest, I don''t know why this 500-point assessment is implemented. It is not me who created the rules for these trials. I always thought of it as an unnecessary grading rule, but it seems I have been proven wrong today¡­"


    Lao Zen seemed to notice he had been talking to himself. He quickly cleared his throat. "Ehem. Anyway, thest 500 points were reserved for those who managed to truly defeat the battle puppet. Not just make it fall or hit the tent''s wall. But truly destroy it and render it unable to move again."


    The crowd gasped upon the reveal.


    "You¡­ You don''t mean¡­," Yan Long uttered with disbelief.


    "Yes. Lin Mo had sessfully broken a battle puppet, thus scoring those 500 points in addition to the scores from the time assessment."


    Everyone now stared at Amon in a different light. Even Wong Cou, who had remained calm all this time, turned to him and gave Amon a contemting look. Zhuan San had a small smile while ncing at Amon. Xin Wuming felt pride within him. He stood with his chin lifted high beside Amon as if he was the one who received the recognition.


    Amon, as usual, treated it as if this was no big deal.

 136 Chapter 136

    "He¡­ He broke a battle puppet? It''s impossible!" Yan Long uttered. He couldn''t ept this fact. "He is just a peak Strength stage! How was it possible for him to achieve that? Even a Transformation stage cultivator has difficulty achieving that feat within the time limit!"


    "Careful, young master Yan¡­," Lao Zen said to him menacingly.


    The incident of what happened to Lin Fen during the first trial came to Yan Long''s mind after Lao Zen''s warning. He was still unwilling and was itching to argue further, but decided to not risk it. Even though he knew his n was a big deal in this city, none of the ns dared to oppose the royal academy because their backer was the supreme ruler of this country.


    Hence, he forced his mouth close. His face was very ugly, though. He could only re at Amon to express his dissatisfaction. Amon sneered at the disy, which infuriated Yan Long further.


    Lao Zen continued waiting to see if the Yan youth dared to challenge him further. He was also itching to chase away another stubborn kid like yesterday to assuage his exasperation. But since the yan youth wised up, he treated the matter as settled.


    "Now, every one of you who has passed this second trial can go back to your dormitories to rest," Lao Zen announced. "Tomorrow morning we will continue the third andst exam. After tomorrow, only one thousand of you will remain. Or less, if too many are disqualified. I must warn you. Based on past candidates'' experience, they all agreed that the third trial was the hardest. So, do expect many of you will get disqualified."


    ''Third trial. One that tests the strength of one''s mind,'' Amon thought. It was not weird that Lao Zen said it was the hardest. Cultivation and Fighting skills could be deliberately trained. The mind was different, though. Usually, one''s mind was already tough from the start or was strengthened following the growth of age or when one went through a drastic ordeal. Luckily for him, his mind was already a fully-grown adult''s mind who had gone through many ordeals. The third trial should be no problem for him.


    However, he did read a book from the pyramid legacy that briefly mentioned some methods of strengthening the minds, but they didn''t describe the methods. He had read a lot of books from the current time. There was not even a mention of these mind-strengthening methods. Amon could only assume probably these methods had been lost to the past.


    The candidates followed the officials and returned to the same dormitory they had used yesterday. There were fewer youths now, so many rooms were empty. Still, no one was allowed to go out. They were to remain in their rooms until tomorrow morning.


    *


    The next morning, the over four thousand candidates were taken to a different ce.


    They went to an outdoorndscape that appeared as if it was unblemished nature. There were forests, rivers, and hills. Everyone was amazed to see such a ce within theplex of the royal academy. How big was this ce?


    They were brought to a hill with a steep cliff. On this cliff wall, there were many cave holes. Lao Zen was standing on top of this hill waiting.


    When all 4,144 candidates arrived, Lao Zen started speaking, "Today will be thest day for the royal academy entrance exam. Whether you be this academy''s students or go back to your home as a failure, we will find out today."


    Those who were less confident winced after hearing. The old tutor wasn''t one who minced words.


    "Below me are a hundred caves. Each of these caves can amodate fifty people. We will divide you into groups of forty-one and forty-two to enter the caves. Normally, we separate this third trial into two sessions, since the maximum number these caves can amodate is five thousand people. It is good that the second trial had taken out half of your starting number, so we can finish this in one session."


    "Each of these caves has fifty rooms inside. You will be taken into this room. There is a sitting pad there, all you have to do is sit on that pad. Now, the objective this time is to try tost for as long as possible inside these rooms. The minimum required time is two hours. If youe out before two hours pass, you are disqualified. Every minute that passes after the two-hour mark will contribute points to your score. An official will wait outside the hallway and mark your time when youe out of the room. You are to return outside here afterward and wait until everyone is done. Then the exam is finished and we will know who is what. Any question?"


    Someone lifted his hand. Lao Zen simply nodded for him to ask the question.


    "What is the maximum someone is allowed to be inside the room? I mean, can we stay as long as we want?"


    Lao Zen smiled, seemingly amused. "You are wee to stay inside for as long as you want. For scoring a maximum of 2,000 points, you will need to stay inside the room for ten hours."


    Another one lifted his hand. "What is the longest record from the past candidates?"


    Lao Zen nodded. This question was more sensible. "Four hours," he answered.


    The candidates, who at first thought that it shouldn''t be a problem to just stay still inside a room and endure, were having pensive looks now. The longest record was not even half of the maximum time required to score 2,000 points. Not to mention, the first two hours didn''t award any points.


    "Is there any benefit for us to be in the top ten? Are there rewards?" This time the question was not about the trial. The one who asked was Sima Fang. She had been in the top ten for the first and second trials.<sub> </sub>


    Lao Zen smiled. "There is a reward. I originally nned to inform you after the final top ten was announced. But since you asked, I guess it is fine to let you know now. Consider it a motivation for you to keep within the top ten. The rewards will be your amodation."


    "Amodation?" Everyone muttered.


    Lao Zen nodded. "Most of you will be ced inside dormitories like the one you have been using the days before. But for the ten top candidates who passed, you can live inside a private residenceplete with a courtyard and a protective barrier. So, you will have the luxury of privacy. The size of this residence will depend on your ranking. The first ranker will of course get thergest residence."


    Hearing that, the prior top ten were now more eager to keep their rankings, including Amon. With this private residence, he would be able to continue his poison experiment more conveniently.


    Lao Zen waited for someone to ask more questions. After no inquiry for a minute, he said, "Okay, let''s start this trial. Everyone, please group up to forty-one or forty-two people and follow the officials to enter the caves. Don''t bother to choose, all the caves and the rooms will have the same effect."


    Everyone simply grouped up with the ones closest to them. Soon, everyone started trickling into the caves.


    Inside the caves was a long hallway with many hole openings along both its walls. Amon assumed those holes led to the trial rooms.


    His guess was not wrong, because the official leading them instructed one youth to enter one room.


    When Amon entered, it was a simple room with a circryout. The wall was of natural stone, it was smooth and white. There was nothing inside except for a single seating pad at the center of the room.


    Amon took his seat on top of this pad. He just stayed still and waited for something to happen.


    After a couple of minutes, nothing had happened yet. Amon decided to just cultivate then. He closed his eyes and started to circte his cultivation art.


    While he was cultivating, he heard some voices. He opened his eyes, only to find the mangled face of a boy right in front of him. The boy was staring at him with his one dead eye. Amon stared back without expression.


    The face of the boy was heavily damaged, but Amon still recognized the boy. The boy''s name was Joe. Joe was his close friend when he was still underage in his past life, or at least that''s what Joe thought. Both of them were child soldiers. They volunteered to join a paramilitary force in a country that was engulfed by civil war. Joe didn''t survive into adulthood.


    The incident that took Joe''s life happened during a time when they weremanded to infiltrate the enemy''s territory through a jungle. They were ambushed and they got separated from their squad. While they were trying to return to the base, they were attacked again. This time by arge brown bear.


    They ran out of ammunition at the time so all they could do was flee.


    However, their short legs couldn''t outrun the bear''s speed. During a critical moment, Amon shoved Joe towards the bear. The look of disbelief on Joe''s face was burnt into Amon''s memory. While the bear was tearing Joe apart and mauling his face, Amon sneaked behind the bear with hisbat knife. He jumped onto the bear''s back and then repeatedly stabbed the bear''s neck until it died.


    When Amon stood back up, he saw that Joe was still breathing, albeit hardly. Joe only had one eye left on his damaged face. He was staring at Amon but unable to say anything. Amon just stared back at him silently until he exhaled hisst breath.


    This one eye was now staring at him, the same stare Amon remembered during Joe''sst moments.


    "You¡­ killed me¡­" Joe said. "I thought you were my best friend¡­ You betrayed me¡­"


    Amon didn''t respond. He just stared at Joe without expression. ''So, this is what the mind game is¡­? Heh, pathetic!"


    Amon closed his eyes and ignored the ghost of his past life. He went back to cultivation.


    However, before he could focus on gathering any aether, Joe''s voice crescendoed into ring noise. It was as if hundreds of Joe were shouting at him with his voice amplified by a megaphone. The earsplitting noise caused Amon''s head to hurt.

 137 Chapter 137

    Amon didn''t bother to close his ears. He knew it wouldn''t do any good. The voices came directly into his mind. All he could do was control his senses and tried to mentally dampen the noise. This was an imaginary attack. Amon knew it was not real.


    The head-hurting noisested for some while, but Amon persevered through it. Until all of a sudden, it stopped abruptly.


    The silence onlysted an instant before different voices were heard. It was the sound of women''s giggling. Sweet voices called to Amon.


    Amon opened his eyes. Outside through the openings, three most beautiful and most sexy women he had everid eyes on, were calling him toe over. They werepletely naked.


    The three women were doing sensual moves that could make any man loses their mind. But Amon wasn''t any man. He just paid the women brief attention before closing his eyes and ignoring them altogether.


    After a while, the alluring voices of the women came nearer. Amon then started feeling sensations around his body. The feeling was when naked skin was rubbing against him. The women were rubbing their bodies on him, all the while continuing to pull him and ask him toe with them.


    ''It feels real¡­,'' Amon thought of the rubbing sensation. He thought this mind attack was very good. But it was not enough to make him move.


    After disregarding the women''s seduction for some time, the voices slowly fade away. A strange feeling forced him to open his eyes. Before the entrance outside the room, he saw more wealth than he had ever seen. He had seen a lot of wealth in his past life, but he somehow believed the treasures before him were more.


    These treasures didn''t move and didn''t even utter any words, but there was a strong pull that enticed him to approach. A pull that told him if he approached, he would be the wealthiest man in the world.


    However, his desire was not to be the wealthiest. Wealth for him was just a tool, so he denied this temptation as well. He forcefully closed his eyes again.


    Not long after, the wealth disappeared. He felt strong pressure wash over him. Much stronger than anything he had ever felt since he came into this world. Even stronger than the pressure released by Pai Kuan and Lin Weida, who were amongst the strongest cultivators he had encountered.


    He opened his eyes. Outside the room was a person in a robe. Amon couldn''t see his face but he knew that this being was the strongest person he had ever encountered, probably omnipotent even. In his hand was a small pill.


    "Come¡­ Come to me¡­," Amon couldn''t see this person''s face. The voice was directly projected into his mind. "If you eat this pill, you will be the strongest in the world¡­ Isn''t this what you desire the most¡­?"


    The voice was not wrong. That was indeed Amon''s desire. He very much wanted to go forward. His mind kept on slipping, it was like he kept on forgetting that this was not real. This was a trial. Amon had to exert his willpower to keep on reminding himself. This had happened before with the seductive women and also with the enticing wealth. It was as if his mind kept on being invaded and being convinced that what wasid before him was real. If his mind wasn''t strong enough, he would have been drowned by the mental influence and believed all these illusions.


    But this time, with the omnipotent person offering him unlimited power, it was the hardest to dismiss, because ultimate power was indeed Amon''s desire. To reject one''s innermost desire was the hardest thing to do. Amon felt his mind could sumb at any time.


    Amon gritted his teeth before making a loud yell, "Go away¡­!!! I will get my power with my own strength. I don''t need your shortcut offer¡­!"


    The omnipotent person continued to offer the gift of power, but after making the yell, Amon felt the hold inside his mind weakened. The pull was not as strong as before. He used this chance to reinforce his mind. He repeated the mantra that this was all just an illusion, he was on a trial. He was preventing his mind from slipping again.<sub> </sub>


    He again shut his eyes. He could still hear and feel the seduction from the omnipotent person, but he ignored the call.


    The voice soon faded as well. Recing it was the sound of something tearing from the ground and wall around him. Amon opened his eyes and saw that the ground and wall were indeed getting torn. Something burst out from behind them. People. Dead People. People that he knew.


    They were his victims. Joe was among them. Both his victims from this life and his past life. There was the trio of Lin Bu, Lin Lang, and Lin Sora whom he had killed during his first mission to hunt the Greasy Horned Weasel. There were also Lin Zuyi and Lin Xiaoying, whom he murdered under Pai Kuan''s demand. There were also a bunch of the Wei people whom he had killed. Wei Sui was right there beside her son, Wei Lhosa, tearing through the wall trying to get to him.


    Then there was the Hei n. Hei Gong and Hei Pho were wing out from the ground, trying to grab him. Behind them was the other Hei family. Hei xilia, the kind girl who always took care of him, was calling Amon as she crawled, "Why did you do this to me? To us? Why¡­?!"


    On another side were Simon and her sister, whom Amon had shot point nk on the head. Amon tried to locate their mother who had killed him and sent him to this world, but she was not around. Probably the ones here were only the ones whom he had killed directly.


    Which was a lot since it included all the people he had killed in his past life as well. There was no way this room could hold all of them. The corpses from his past life victims could form a small mountain. Yet, he could somehow see all of them inside here, which didn''t make sense considering how small this room was. He was then reminded that this was all a mind attack, which rmed him again. For a second there, his mind slipped again and thought that this was all real.


    He didn''t close his eyes this time. In fact, he had a feeling he won''t be able to even if he tried. He saw all these dead people crawling towards him.


    Simon arrived first. In his hand was his past-lifebat knife which was also the weapon that had taken his past life. Simon stabbed thisbat knife into Amon''s tight. The knife went deep and blood spurted from the stab.


    "Grghh¡­!" Amon gritted his teeth. The pain was real!


    On the other side, Lin Sora arrived and proceeded to stab him with his short sword as well. Amon''s hand shot out, attempting to grab Lin Sora''s wrist and stop the stab. But his hand passed through Lin Sora''s wrist as if it was air. The hand holding the short sword continued. The short sword stabbed into Amon''s belly. The sword sunk in and blood leaked out.


    Wei Sui came then. Her ws struck Amon''s arm and started wing. Sheughed hysterically while mauling Amon''s arm. "Hahaha! How do you like it now? Let''s continue what we are doing in those woods, shall we? You haven''t screamed yet. I want to hear you scream!! Hahaha¡­!!"


    Everyone came and imed their pounds of flesh. Amon''s body was soon full of wounds. Some were even fatal, but he didn''t die from the wounds. He couldn''t die because this was not real. He understood this, but the pains were real. All the pains made it harder for him to treat this as illusions. It was unending torture.


    Something in his mind told him that this would all be over once he stepped outside the room. The feeling urged him to walk out. The pains urged him to run out.


    He was so eager to run out, but as what he had told Madam Lin after the torture mission. Two convictions were supporting him now. The knowledge that he could leave this torture any time he wanted and also that none of these illusory pains would leave him any permanent damage. He had seen the part that had been stabbed before, it was as if the stab had never urred. Then the stab repeated itself and the visual wound where his blood leaked out repeated.


    ? All he needed to do was keep his mind sane and keep on reminding himself that this was not real. It was extremely hard to do as there was also an intangible attack on his mind that kept on convincing him that this all happened in reality and he was not in a trial. He was battling the assault on two fronts. The pains and the persuasion within his mind. Anyone with lesser willpower would have sumbed to it and run out of the room, but Amon persevered.


    He continued to keep the track of time as he went through the suffering. ording to his time, he had already passed the four and a half hours record informed by Lao Zen. He should have no problem passing this trial and entering the academy, but he wanted to continue. Because he wanted that private residence, and also because he could!

 138 Chapter 138

    Inside the room, Amon continued to endure the tortures. His skin was mangled beyond recognition, only to recover in a sh and all of it repeated again.


    His target was the ten hours that Lao Zen informed would grant the maximum of 2,000 points. With the maximum points, he was surely getting the first rank. Before, he didn''t care about this rank. But it was different now after hearing about the private residence reward. He would need much space for his alchemical equipment, so it was better to aim for thergest residence.


    Even if others also get the maximum 2,000 points in this trial, they still couldn''t beat him, because he had the most scores in the first and second trials. Hence, he tolerated the pain and forced himself to stay inside the room.


    The pains increased in intensity. It was as if a mob was beating and stabbing him to death. Only that he couldn''t die. It was unending pain.


    He continued to keep the time in his head. After a very long torture, the clock in his head finally told him that it was already ten hours since he came into this room. All of his body was in pain, but he could still move if he wanted to. He was just about to walk towards the exit when he noticed something.


    It was just a speck in the air outside the room. His mind was extremely clear at this time. Others in his situation would have thought of nothing but to go out and end their suffering, but not Amon. His sharp eyes saw this tiny speck. It was a fly. Normally, it wasn''t strange to see a fly. But this fly was moving at an extremely slow speed. Amon could even see it pping its wings.


    After this brief instant, he understood. He then sat back on the seating pad. All the dead people from his past were still wing and stabbing him. He let them be. He couldn''t prevent them anyway as had been proven when he attempted to block their attacks the first time.


    The reason he sat back was that he understood that this trial went deeper than just generating intense pain in the mind. There was also a time warp. The tortures that one experienced through the mind here went faster than the actual time. It made the person who went through this trial think that they had been inside for ten hours while in reality, only a few hours had passed outside.


    Perhaps this was also the reason why until now, the record of this third trial never reached even half the maximum time. It was because no one would be willing to go through sufferings unnecessarily. If they stayed for ten hours and knew that they had already gotten the maximum score, why would they spend more time inside?


    Maybe the past candidate who had reached the four hours record was one such case. He must have been confused about why the examiners told him that it was only four hours. Later, he probably attributed it to him losing the track of time. Who could precisely track the time when they were under duress? Especially under a torturous situation.


    Thus, Amon stayed seated in his seating pad. This trial messed with his perception of time. Since it was like this, he couldn''t be sure how much time had passed. Perhaps the time-slow was not consistent. Perhaps it was slow now, and be slowerter, and even slower afterward. Hence, there was no reference on how long he should stay.


    ''Nevermind, I will just stay for as long as possible then,'' Amon thought with resolution. He was determined to get the best amodation.


    Wei Sui was stillughing as she wed at Amon. Many others were alsoughing. Theirughs were like piercing needles that jabbed at Amon''s brain. The stinging was unbearable.


    "Haha¡­ Haha¡­ Hahahaha¡­!!!" Amon started tough with them. "You people want your revenge?! Go ahead! Do your worse!! Hahahaha¡­!!!"


    Hisugh somehow drowned theughs of these ghosts.


    *


    In the hallway, the official was marking the time when the candidates came out of the room. They were always sweaty and wore a nk look when they came out. Most of the rooms were empty already, only a couple was left.


    The official was rather amazed, the average time that the candidates came out of the room in this exam was longer than the previous exam. Many strong cultivators in this batch.


    Another candidate came out from one of thest two rooms. He was having the same empty look as the others. He was lost when he came out of the room. He paused and just stood there for almost a minute before he started looking around as if trying to figure out where he was.


    He spotted the official who then beckoned for him to approach.


    The official gave him a pill. It was something to help clear the mind. It helped to recover the mental trauma from the trial.


    When the candidate was about to swallow the pill, loudughter echoed through the hallway. It took both the candidate and the official aback. The candidate even dropped the pill, hunkered down, and looked around in panic. He thought the ghosts who had tortured him inside the room had chased after him to resume the torture.


    The official was no less unnerved. This was the first time he had heard suchughter inside this ce. It even sounded as if the demon itself wasughing. Only after further listening, that he realized theugh came from thest upied room.


    ''Has the trial broken his mind?'' He wondered.


    *


    Outside the hill, arge crowd gathered before the cliff wall with the caves. These were the candidates that hadpleted their trials. Many were sitting on the ground with glum looks. They were still reeling from the aftereffect of the trial. They had eaten the pill given by the officials, but the experience was not something that was easily forgotten.


    The ones that were least affected were those who hade out early. These were people that had lost themselves to the seduction of lust, wealth, and power. These youths also appeared depressed, because all of them were disqualified because they hade out before two hours.<sub> </sub>


    "How many are still inside?" Lao Zen asked one of the officials who was taking notes.


    "Three," the official answered. "This year''s batch is rather impressive. Including the three, we got five candidates who managed to break the past record."


    Lao Zen nodded. He was indeed impressed by the result. The first and second trials didn''t give many surprises except for a particr freak. Thinking about the freak, Lao Zen asked, "Is Lin Mo amongst the three?"


    "He is," the official answered.


    Lao Zen guessed that was expected. The boy was too calm for his age. Lao Zen had a feeling that the boy''s mind might even be his strongest aspect.


    He looked at Zhuan San below. Zhuan San had also broken the record, but he was thest of the five who had broken the record. He hade out at four hours and twelve minutes.


    He had high expectations of the kid. Knowing the boy''s temperament, he had expected the boy to score the first rank in this third trial. But instead, he was the fifth. It was as his official said, this year''s batch was indeed impressive.


    Another person came out of the cave. It was another of the previous top ten, Xa Jien. He had always worn a cold face, as if everything was not worth his attention. But at the moment, his face was pale. He tried to walk straight but wavered some time. He didn''t try to walk too far. He just found a nearby empty space to sit down and rest.


    Xa Jien''s time was at four hours and fifty minutes. Lao Zen took a deep breath. It was almost one entire hour than past exams'' best record.


    Twenty minutester, the second of thest appeared. It was a girl who had asked the question about the top ten''s reward, Sima Fang.


    Sima Fang although had spent a longer time inside, her face was surprisingly more livelypared to Xa Jien. She was also a bit pale but didn''t appear as distraught. She could still walk gracefully to the crowd.


    Lao Zen watched the girl with admiration. He might give extra attention to the girl. He always valued a cultivator with a strong mind.


    "Only one person left," the official told Lao Zen.


    ''So, the first is still that freak, eh?'' Lao Zen thought. His hunch had been proven correct.


    They continued to wait. Even though it was clear that Amon would be the first in this trial, they still let hime out of his own ord. Everyone had the right to create their record, to leave a mark for future generations to try to strive past.


    So, they wait, and wait, and wait. The sun had set. Lao Zen looked at the time with disbelief. It was already past ten hours mark one hour ago, and the boy was still inside.


    Everyone had been waiting anxiously. Most of the crowd had recovered already, so they could think normally now. Everyone was asking, hadn''t everyone alreadye out? Why was the trial result not yet announced?


    "Can something have gone wrong?" An official asked Lao Zen. "Perhaps we should go check."


    Lao Zen didn''t respond, but his body immediately flew towards the cave that still had thest candidate. He entered and came to the official overseeing this cave.


    "What''s wrong? Why hasn''t hee out?" Lao Zen asked.


    The official just shook his head. Weren''t they not allowed to ask the candidate toe out if they didn''te out by themselves? But then he remembered the demonicughter from hours before. Perhaps he should have checked then?


    Lao Zen didn''t wait for the official''s further exnation, he asked, "Which room is he?"


    "Thirteenth on the left¡­"


    Lao Zen rushed towards the opening of that room. When he arrived, he saw Amon who was still sitting. Amon''s eyes were closed. The expression on Amon''s face showed that he was in pain. Amon''s eyes opened then. Lao Zen surprisingly saw rity within those eyes.


    "How many hours has it been?" Amon asked.

 139 Chapter 139

    The crowd was outside the caves, murmuring. The murmurs grew so loud it was as if thunder. Everyone was asking the person next to them what was going on? How much longer did they have to wait? Why did Lao Zen suddenly rush into one of the caves? Was there still a participant inside the cave? It didn''t make sense. It was already passed the time limit where one got the maximum score. They thought that they were simply waiting for the officials to finish the score tallying.


    Everyone looked around them, trying to see if there was indeed anyone that hadn''te out yet. But it was hard to know. It was not like everyone was assigned a spot. Everyone was free to stand or roam around the ce. As long as they didn''t leave the premise, it was fine. Hence, they couldn''t know for sure if there was anyone that was still missing.


    As everyone made their guesses, Lao Zen came out of the cave, followed by a few officials and¡­ A candidate? Wait¡­ It wasn''t any candidate. It was the first ranker of the first and the second trials, Lin Mo!


    Everyone couldn''t believe what they saw. Did Amon stay inside all this time? How could he stand all those mind tortures?


    Thest two people who came out before Amon, Xa Jien and Sima Fang, were especially astonished. They knew how hard it was to remain inside. The intensity of the pain inflicted increased with time, and it was aimed directly into the mind, so the strength of their cultivated body meant nothing against this attack. They thought they were already at the best limit that anyone could endure, but Amon not only stayed longer, but whole several hours to boot. This was simply unbelievable.


    The two watched Amon with eyes filled with both admiration and envy. They wondered how this youth that was around their age got a mind as strong as that.


    Furthermore, Amon was still walking steadily behind Lao Zen. Unlike them and many others who seemingly were about to fall down when they came out of the cave.


    Lao Zen gestured for Amon to take a rest with the others while the officialspiled the scores.


    Amon went and took the most vacant space he could find and sat there. Xin Wuming came and stood by his side. He was announcing with his presence that no one was toe and disturb Amon''s rest.


    Not long after, the scores of this third trial were announced.


    *


    First: Lin Mo - 2000 points


    Second: Sima Fang - 791 points


    Third: Xa Jien - 708 points


    Fourth: Wu Di - 625 points


    Fifth: Zhuan San - 550 points


    Sixth: Wong Cou - 478 points


    Seventh: Tuang Yin - 472 points


    Eighth: Pai Wang - 460 points


    Ninth: An Ling - 457 points


    Tenth: Yan Long - 439 points


    One thousandth: -


    *


    As expected, Amon ced at number one again, with a perfect score this time. The crowd was not surprised since they had witnessed Amon being thest to exit the cave, but seeing how there is such a big gap between his score and the second ce still caused them to take a deep breath.


    Yan Long was especially vexed. The one who had stolen his glory in the first trial had continued to shine, while he continued to slip down. He was even the tenth ce in this third trial.


    There was no name inscribed on the one-thousandth rank because the one-thousandth rank candidate was amongst those that had been disqualified. Only 982 candidates passed the third trial, which meant only this number were epted to be students of the royal academy. All others were sent home.


    Another announcement was soon given. It was the tally of the scores for the top ten. These ten would be the ones who received private housing amodations during their study at the royal academy.


    *


    First: Lin Mo - 3978 points


    Second: Sima Fang - 2086 points


    Third: Wong Cou - 2031 points


    Fourth: Xa Jien - 1943 points<sub> </sub>


    Fifth: Wu Di - 1862 points


    Sixth: Zhuan San - 1857 points


    Seventh: Yan Long - 1723 points


    Eighth: Tuang Yin - 1687 points


    Ninth: Pai Wang - 1630


    Tenth: Wu Lang - 1608


    *


    Lao Zen made a speech to congratte those that had passed the exam and became the academy''s students. He also congratted the top ten. He informed them that the academy officials would bring them to their proper amodation which would be the ce they spent their resting time while studying here.


    The students were given a few minutes to say goodbye to the adults who had apanied them here. These adults were watching on the side, they were not allowed to mix with the candidates during the trial. These adults would be going back soon. They were not allowed inside the academy''splex after tonight.


    Amon had no one he wanted to say goodbye to. The two remaining adults that apanied him to this ce, Lin Siaumau and Lin Siuni, one had been expelled and banned from entering, the other was recuperating due to exposure to Amon''s poison. Not that he would bother to say goodbye to them even if they were present.


    Instead, another adult approached Amon. It was Lao Zen.


    "Congrattions, kid," Lao Zen said.


    Amon simply nodded for a response.


    "You don''t talk much, do you? Well, anyway. We will be paying attention to you. I am sure the other students will do so as well, considering your achievement in this exam."


    Amon nced at his surroundings. There were indeed many eyes on him from the newly epted students. Some of the eyes carried wariness, some carried rivalry, but mostly envy.


    Amon snickered. He paid them no mind. Instead, he asked Lao Zen, "Getting attention from the academy''s top echelons, is that a good or a bad thing?"


    "Depends," Lao Zen replied. "You might be offered more tasks due to our high expectations. If you reject too many or perform badly, it mighte back to bite you. But it is also an opportunity to gather academic points. These points are used to grade your progress and also can be exchanged for resources."


    Amon nodded his understanding.


    "I must say, though. From all my time in this academy, and I dare say it''s a very long time already. I''ve never met a candidate such as you."


    "For breaking the record?" Amon asked.


    "The record is indeed impressive, but that''s not my point. You see, there is a reason why we only give the first trial a 1,000 max score while the two others have 2,000 max scores. It is because most candidates were inexperienced kids who only excel at cultivation. This is proven by how many candidates scored higher scores in their first trialpared to the second and third trials, despite thetter two trials containing more scores. This has always been the case even on past exams. The higher scores on the second and third trials are to bnce the system a bit so the resulting scores don''t differ too much."


    "But you are different," Lao Zen added. "Even though your first trial has a high score, your second and third trials still excel over that first trial. This is the first time such a thing happens to our exam. It''s as if you are already an experiencedbatant."


    "I am not a greenhorn if that''s what you are asking," Amon said. "Will that be a problem?"


    "Not a problem, just intriguing. Like I said. We will pay attention to you."


    Amon simply nodded again. This was the cost of standing out. But this was fine as well, he needed to stand out to have a certain degree of influence, and this academy seemed to be a suitable ce to start building his influence.


    The officials started to divide the newly epted students into groups. They were distributed by rankings during the exam. Those below five hundred were one group. After that was a group between rank two hundred one to five hundred. Another group filled with ranks fifty-one to two hundred. Thest group aside from the top ten was for ranks eleven to fifty.


    From this arrangement, Amon spected that these other students also received different amodation facilities based on their rankings. The four groups were taken away first, leaving the top ten students.


    Xin Wuming said goodbye to Amon before leaving. He was within the group of ranks fifty-one to two hundred. Yang Li was also in the same group.


    The top ten students who remained on the empty field looked at one another. They would be rivals to one another during their time in this royal academy. Everyone''s expression slightly varied. Yan Long wore contempt on his face despite being only at the seventh rank. Wu Di showed battle spirit as if he was ready to take on anyone from this group at this instant. Wu Lang exhibited wariness. Sima Fang looked at everyone with contemtive eyes. Zhuan San wore his small smile and looked at everyone as if appraising.


    Amon closed his eyes and ignored everyone.

 140 Chapter 140

    "All right, we can go now," Lao Zen said.


    "Tutor Lao, you will be escorting us yourself?" Zhuan San asked.


    "Yes. You all hold the highest average scorepared to past entrance exams. It is only fair that I show you my recognition by bringing you myself to your new dwellings."


    Lao Zen might be saying that, but they did not doubt that it had more to do with one of them creating an unbeatable record during the exam.


    "Come!" Lao Zen said and glided forward. The ten followed behind.


    Lao Zen gliding with his feet a few inches off the ground. His pace was at first the speed of a slow run, but it slowly increased. The others kept up by running.


    When Lao Zen''s speed increased to the point where they couldn''t keep up with a simple run, everyone started to use their movement art. Amon used his shadowless sprint.


    "Tutor Lao, isn''t the trial over already?" Zhuan San said. His movement art caused the air to rotate behind him every time he stepped. It was like an invisible force was pushing him forward.


    "Haha. Trials never end, student Zhuan," Lao Zen replied. "This is the first thing you learn as a student of this royal academy. Your every day here will be a trial. Your life will be a trial. Never stop pushing forward and always be ready for the next challenge thates, mostly when you least expect it."


    Lao Zen''s body became even faster. "Those that cannot keep up, you can sleep on the ground for tonight!"


    Everyone increased their speed as well. It was night already now, it was easy to lose sight of Lao Zen. Hence, they tried to stay as close as possible.


    Out of the ten, Yan Long''s movement art was the fastest. He was leading at the head. He looked back and showed everyone a condescending expression, which irked everyone up, except Amon.


    "Kid, don''t you look down on us!" Wu Di uttered. His running paused for a tick. Suddenly an explosive sound was heard. The ground he was stepping on broke apart. His body shot forward with great speed.


    He almost crashed into Yan Long due to his sudden burst of speed. Yan Long jumped to the side out of rm. Wu Di shot past him.


    "Asshole! You almost crashed into me!" Yan Long shouted in anger.


    "Hahaha, I am the first now!" Wu Diughed.


    Yan Long, who was furious, was about to attack Wu Di for what he did. But Lao Zen''s voice stopped him, "No fighting, please. Not now. I will not wait if you stop to fight. You will have to find the way on your own."


    Grumbling, Yan Long resumed his run.


    Luckily, Lao Zen didn''t increase his speed anymore. If he did, none amongst the ten would be able to keep up. It seemed the old tutor simply wanted to see everyone''s movement art. He turned back and gave the ten an approving look.


    "I''m going to tell you a bit about theyout of this royal academy as we travel," Lao Zen said. "Thend in this royal academy is mostly divided into four sections. The first is the main section, where most activities are happening. Teaching and learning are there, as well as administrative buildings, and it is also where the tutors live. The other three parts are ces for students. They are divided into Freshman, junior, and senior sections."


    "You will of course stay in the freshman section," Lao Zen told them. "The term you study in this academy is fifteen years. The royal academy performs its entrance exam every five years. When you join, a batch of students joining fifteen years ago graduate. So, there are three generations of students at any one time within this royal academy. The junior section is inhabited by students who joined this academy five years ago, and the senior is for students who joined this academy ten years ago. After five years, you will enter the junior section. While the ones in the senior section will graduate and go out to make their marks upon this world."


    "What about our amodation here?" Sima Fang asked.


    "Every section has its own private lodging for the top ten students," Lao Zen answered. "But of course, before you enter the junior section, there will be a test to determine if you are still worth it as the top ten. So, don''t think your positions are fixed already. This lodging is only yours for the next five years. After that, you will have to fight for private lodging again."


    "Bring it on!" Wu Di uttered.


    "Hmph! Like you have any chance," Yan Long mocked.


    "My rank is higher than you, you twat," Wu Di mocked back.<sub> </sub>


    Yan Long''s face was red from the insult. He was about to give in to his emotion and attack when Lao Zen''s voice was heard again, "Young master Yan. Scuffles are allowed as long as there is no death or permanent injury. But I don''t have the time to watch you tussle, so we will leave you here if you do."


    Yan Long aborted his intention after listening to Lao Zen''s words. He instead said to Wu Di, "Hmph! I''m younger than you, my potential is better. Let''s see whose rank will be higher after five years."


    "I can''t wait for it, twat," Wu Di replied, which caused Yan Long''s face to go red again.


    Amon''s thought was more on Lao Zen. He wondered what was Lao Zen''s cultivation level. A martial realm cultivator could sense the cultivation of those below him, but to be able to detect fluctuation of energy from one person was another matter. Amon had a battle instinct that allowed him to have this kind of detection, but he understood the people in this world didn''t, at least until now. Lao Zen reacted the moment Yan Long''s energy went turbulent, which indicated that he knew Yan Long was about to perform an assault.


    They continued their journey. Zhuan San tried to open some conversations in the group, saying that it was so everyone could know each other better. But no one wanted to say anything to let others know them better. Everyone thought that the fewer others knew about them, the less they could use it against them.


    Zhuan San could only smile wryly and did casual conversation instead. The only ones responding to him were Wu Di, Sima Fang, Tuang Yin, and Wu Lang. The others were mostly quiet.


    Pai Wang ran beside Amon and whispered, "Pai Kuan told me you will be our ally. I am Pai Wang from the White Cloud sect."


    Amon turned to him. So, this was one of the other candidates the White Cloud Sect sent aside from Yang Li.


    "I will make contact with my seniors in this academy. From my understanding, there are several factions within this ce. They were made up of an alliance of several ns and sects. Once I got in touch with them, we will go there and follow their instructions."


    "Not interested," Amon replied.


    "What?! Pai Kuan said¡­"


    "I told Pai Kuan I am an ally, not a subordinate. You can go and join your faction if you want. I will do things my way."


    Pai Wang had aplicated expression upon the statement. He then said, "You know you will be vulnerable if you are alone, don''t you?"


    "That''s my problem," Amon replied.


    "Hmph, suit yourself. Don''te begging to me when you are in trouble," Pai Wang said and moved away.


    ? After some time, they finally came to their destination. It was a small mountain within the academy. On the mountain, there were ten houses positioned at different heights and of different sizes. All the houses had courtyards. The lowest one at the foot of the mountain had the smallest size. While thergest one sat on the mountain''s top. On its t summit was a house that looked to be one acre in size.


    Amon thought the mountain looked too unnatural. It looked more like arge rock that was sculpted into an intended shape. For this world to have someone that could sculpt a mountain like this, Amon felt excited. He couldn''t wait to reach such a level.


    Lao Zen stopped at the foot of this mountain. The ten youths also stopped.


    Seeing the setup of the houses, everyone understood without being told. Wu Lang came to the smallest house where Lao Zen was standing beside its entrance.


    "This house is mine?" He asked.


    "For the next five years," Lao Zen confirmed. Then to everyone, he announced. "You all know your ranks. Lin Mo has the one on the summit. Please know that there is a barrier formation around each house. The barrier has been set to only allow the appropriate person to enter. If you try to enter a house that doesn''t belong to you without permission, you will be assaulted by the formation. An rm will also sound to notify everyone nearby and every security office around the academy. So don''t try to intrude into other students'' houses."


    "Now, go in and have your rest. Tomorrow morning a guide wille to bring you to the main section where you will have your first ss. Please note that we will only send a guide once. So memorize the way, you will have to find your own way to ss on the second day."


    "All right, I will leave you to your rest." With those words, Lao Zen floated up and disappeared into the night sky.


    There was a pathway leading to each of the houses up on the mountain. Everyone followed the pathway and started ascending. Amon took the longest time because his house was the furthest on top.

 141 Chapter 141

    Amon opened the courtyard''s gate and entered. It was much bigger than the house Madam Lin had provided him inside the Lin Estate. Here he thought he would be staying in a bunker-style amodation during his time in this academy. He didn''t expect he would be provided with such a luxury living ce again.


    But luxury was never Amon''s intention. It was its function. With this privacy, he could safely cultivate and practice as well as did his poison experiments.


    Amon first walked around the courtyard, which circled around the house. And since it was on the top of a mountain, he could see faraway views.


    ''This academy is muchrger than I expected,'' Amon thought. It was practically another town by itself. A separate town within a city. The academy alone probably took up one-fifth or one-fourth of Qishurg City''s area.


    Amon marveled at the night view. There were more lights outside the academyplexpared to the inside. It showed that the outside city was more livelypared to the academy, which was probably meant to be more serene.


    ''A view from up top is indeed different,'' Amon thought. But also lonely. Such was the price for being on top. Anyone who thought otherwise was simply daydreaming. Amon had epted this fact when he climbed over many corpses in his pursuit of power in his past life. Many of whom were ones who considered him friends or even families. His life this time won''t be any different.


    He went into the house after that brief moment of sentimentality.


    Despite being such arge house, the interior was using the studio style. Inside was a veryrge space without any barrier wall. Amon even wondered how the ceiling was supported without any inner structural walls or pirs. Perhaps this was intentional so the upant could renovate the interior however he or she liked.


    A kitchen and bathroom were on one side of the room. A table and a few chairs were also there. A staircase brought him to the second floor which was one-third the area of the ground floor. Up there, Amon found a simple bed. There was also arge patio outside the floor.


    Amon went back down to the ground floor. He had seen another staircase, going down from the ground floor. As he approached the stairs, he noticed another barrier there. It was the same as the one that encircled the house. Considering there was a second barrier that prevented people to go down there, what''s below the stairs should be special.


    The barrier didn''t stop Amon as he was the legitimate upant of the house. He walked down those stairs and came into a basement that was almost as wide as the ground floor. Words of power were engraved along the walls, ceiling, and floor. Amon sent a punch to the wall. It was like his punch sank into a bottomless well. There was not even an impact sound.


    Not only that, but his acute sense also felt that the aether content within this basement was much denser. Was it because of the words of power around the wall? He saw that there was a series of engraving that made a round formation at the center of the floor.


    Amon walked over. He felt that the aether became even denser as he approached the center. When he stood in the middle of the round formation, he felt as if he was being bathed in a liquid aether. Even without using cultivation art, his passive aether absorption gorged down arge amount of aether simply by standing there.


    ''So dense!'' Amon thought. This was a perfect ce for cultivating!


    This basement was perfect. Not only was it away from prying eyes, but it had such a high content of aether and its interior was also sturdy enough to allow him freedom in unleashing all his strength.


    After seeing theyout. He decided to do his cultivation and training in this basement, while a portion of the ground floor would be transformed into a workce for him to study alchemy.


    He then sat cross-legged at the center of the round formation where the aether was densest. He took out his ck Aetherium stone. The stone enhanced the already dense environment even further.


    Amon ate one spirit fruit from his space ring''s ntation before he started cultivating. With such concentrated aether around him, his cultivation speed increased by many folds.


    Amon was d that he had aimed for the top ten. This housing facility alone was worth the effort and trouble from the exams.


    He wondered if the other nine houses granted simr benefits. He thought they should. His hypothesis was this dense aether condition must be the result of a massive ley line under the academyplex. Just as how the Lin, Lei, and White Cloud sect built their estates atop the ley lines in White Cloud city, the academy must have also been built because of the existence of one that was even better than White Cloud City.


    The words of power engraved on the floor must be what drew and processed the energy from the ley line below.


    Amon''s hypothesis was correct about the ley line. The mountain was specially built with an enchantment that sucked the energy from the ley line to the ten houses. However, the amount of energy distributed to each house was not equal. The top house in which Amon dwelled gained thergest amount. The second house received one-tenth less of what the first house got, and so on, with the smallest amount spared for thest house at the foot of the mountain. But even with this smallest amount, it was still a much better cultivating environment which would have been unavable if these students stayed in their ns.


    Amon was d that he had made the right choice of joining this royal academy.<sub> </sub>


    *


    Amon spent the whole night cultivating. The next morning, he took off the cloth that had served as his eyepatch. His damaged eye had fully grown back. Afterward, he came out of his house and saw the others gathered at the foot of the mountain. He went down to where the group was, just when someone in a work uniform approached them. That person must be their guide.


    "Good morning. Oh? No eye patch now?" Zhuan San greeted Amon who had just arrived.


    "He probably just wore it before to make people think he is menacing. Pathetic, if you ask me," Yan Long mocked.


    Amon didn''t give any response to either the greeting or the mocking.


    "Is everyone here?" The guide asked.


    "There are ten here. Can''t you count?" Tuang Yin said.


    Everyone looked at her. They were surprised that this girl dared to antagonize this academy''s personnel. The guide also looked at her with a displeased expression, but he didn''t push the issue. He turned around and uttered, "Follow!"


    Everyone followed behind. Zhuan San gave a silent thumbs-up to Tuang Yin.


    Zhuan San again chatted with the others as they walked, with only the same ones as yesterday who responded. The others just ignored him.


    After a long walk, they came into a more crowded area. Many youths and young adults were walking or hanging around. The guide informed them that this ce was already one part of the main section. He mentioned that the students from all three grades: freshman, junior, and senior, were free to walk around this main section. But the buildings where their sses take ce were still differentiated.


    They passed through a group of four men who werezing about. One of these men whistled and said, "Hey, you girls from the freshman? How about youe with us? We will introduce you to this ce."


    There were only two girls from the group, Sima Fang and Tuang Yin. Both were beauties. Sima Fang wore a ceremonial robe that covered almost all of her body, while Tuang Yin wore a tight dress that revealed much of her skin.


    Sima Fangpletely ignored the call, while Tuang Yin stopped and turned to the men. These men became excited when they saw this sexy girl respond to their tease.


    "Are you willing to help this little sister?" Tuang Yin asked with a teasing tone and ae-here gesture.


    "Sure, girl! Anything for you. I can even bring you touring around the city. You won''t regret it," One of the men came over excitedly, thinking that he had hooked a pretty damsel.


    He came and stood close to Tuang Yin, he couldn''t divert his eyes from her cleavage. Her tight dress showed that she had unusuallyrge breasts. His hands were so eager to grab those two melons that were so close.


    Because he waspletely absorbed with the sight of her fair bosom, he was not aware of her leg which had kicked forward. He was only aware that something was wrong when he felt the burning pain in his loin. He buckled over and fell to the ground whimpering in pain.


    The others stopped their walk and looked at her. Everyone was again amazed by her. She not only dared to antagonize the academy''s personnel but even assaulted the older student for simply teasing her.


    "You¡­! How dare you!" The other three men came forward after seeing their friend being assaulted.


    Tuang Yin ran back when the four came forward. The others again looked at her in a different light. Where had all her bravado gone?


    She ran and hid behind Amon. She then said, "Don''t think that you punks can do anything with my boyfriend here!"

 142 Chapter 142

    ''Boyfriend?'' The others from the top ten were bbergasted. They knew for sure that the two hadn''t known one another before the exam.


    "Boyfriend?" The three men also uttered, but they continued advancing.


    The guide that took them here just stood back and did nothing. Fighting wasmon in this academy. They studied to be cultivators, after all. It was in their nature to fight. As long as there was no death or permanent damage, most of the academy staff just pretended nothing had happened.


    Amon nced at Tuang Yin who was hiding behind him. She shed a wink at him. Amon looked to the front again.


    The men had approached. "How dare you freshman students make fun of us? You have better¨Cooff¡­!"


    His words were stopped because Amon''s fist hadnded on his face. The impact produced a loud sound and the man flew back.


    Everyone was stunned by the sudden turns of events. Before anybody could react, Amon was already in front of the other two men. His fist again shot out and punched one of the two''s throats. At the same time, his knee came up and struck the same man''s groin.


    The remaining man realized the danger and was about to use an arcane art. But before it was unleashed, Amon''s Bone Shattering Shadow Fist was executed first. Itnded on the man''s face and caused it to backflip from the impact.


    Before anyone realized it, the three men were already on the ground, joining their friend who was still whimpering from Tuang Yin''s kick.


    Despite being older and of the upper grade, the four were still peak Strength stage. Hence, Amon was able to finish them by taking advantage of a series of first strikes.


    The others looked at Amon warily. They had known his score from the battle trial and heard of him causing one of the battle puppets to malfunction, but directly seeing him in action was another thing. He didn''t show any heaven-defying art, the most impressive about him were his momentum, precision, and control. The three he attacked didn''t even have the chance to react properly.


    Amon walked back after finishing his deed.


    "As expected of my boyfriend! You¨Cack¡­!" Tuang Yin couldn''t finish her words because Amon''s iron-like hand had gripped her throat.


    Tuang Yin was not an average cultivator. She wouldn''t have been one of the top ten students if that was the case. But even so, she couldn''t see Amon''s arm until it was already gripping her throat. Not only that, but she found herself to be unable to use her strength. She grabbed Amon''s hand that was on her throat but she couldn''t pull it off. She couldn''t seem to properly direct the aether cirction on the upper part of her body.


    Tuang Yin used her leg, trying to strike Amon''s manhood with her knee. But before her foot even left the ground, it was already stepped on by Amon''s foot. Her other foot was away from Amon and she would lose bnce if she tried using that other leg.


    She was helpless. Amon had targeted her pressure points in his grip.


    "If you dare to pull that kind of stunt on me again. I will put you down like those four," Amon said while staring straight into her eyes. He then shoved her away.


    The shove was anything but gentle. Tuang Yin ended up tumbling and rolling on the ground several meters away.


    Amon turned around and continued walking. "Let''s go," he said to the guide. The guide nodded and resumed leading the way.


    Yang long nced at the four whimpering seniors before following.


    Zhuan San came to Tuang Yin''s side. "Ai ya¡­ That guy is just too rough. How can he treat ady like this? Come, let me help you up."


    He was offering his hand to the girl but the girl was not looking at him. She was looking at Amon, who was already walking away. Zhuan San at first thought Tuang Yin was looking at Amon with hatred in her eyes, but after careful inspection, it was not so. Instead, there seemed to be a glint of admiration in those round eyes.<sub> </sub>


    "Oh¡­?" Zhuan San turned to Amon before returning his attention to Tuang Yin, who was still staring at Amon''s back.


    "Hehe," Zhuan San smiled.


    *


    The ten of them were brought to arge open za surrounded by multiple buildings. On this za, they saw it was already filled up by the other candidates who had passed the trial yesterday and became students of this academy.


    Even though almost a thousand students were standing on this za, there were still much empty spaces around. This za could house a much bigger crowd than this.


    The guide took the ten to the front of the group. Afterward, he went and stood with the other adults that were facing the crowd of students.


    It seemed that the ten in Amon''s group were thest to arrive. Because soon after, Li Niang and Lao Zen came floating down from the sky and stood before the students.


    Li Niang, being the academy principal, spoke first. She thanked and congratted everyone here for entering the royal academy. However, their struggle had just begun. She exined theyout of the ce as Lao Zen had told Amon and the othersst night. About the grades of Freshman, Junior, and Senior. Each with a five-year term.


    At the end of this term, each student will be evaluated based on their academic points. Those who were below the required standard would have to leave the academy. So, the students shouldn''t think that they were guaranteed to stay in the academy for the full three terms even after passing the entrance exam.


    She then exined that the activity in this academy would be divided into several sses. Theory, cultivation, practice, specialization, and mission. Each of these sses would provide the academic points for assessment at the end of the term.


    ? Aside from assessment, these academic points were also used to buy products and to use the various facilities in this academy. The assessment was using the total gathered academic points, not the current points they possessed. So one didn''t need to worry about spending all their academic points. For example, one had gathered one thousand points from the sses. The person then spent eight hundred points for various purposes. During the end-term assessment, he was still considered to have one thousand points, not two hundred.


    As for the sses, the theory ss was carried out inside one of the buildings around the za. Li Niang pointed at the building to let everyone know which one she was referring to. Each theory would cover different subjects such as history, art developments, spirit beasts and nts, the geography of the world, and so on.


    The ss would take ce on a specific day and time. Students should check the message board outside the mentioned building to learn about the time. The ss would not be repeated. Anyone who did not attend the ss would be considered absent. There was no academic point in attending the theory sses. However, there would be a written test by the end of each year. This test covered the subjects exined during the theory sses. So, if one didn''t attend the sses, they would have trouble in the test.


    The cultivation ss was for the students to focus on increasing their cultivation level. A special building had been prepared for this ss. It was another of the buildings around this za, a pagoda, which was also the tallest buildingpared to the others around the za.


    Inside the pagoda were rooms that could amodate one person. What was special about these rooms was that the aether inside was condensed thus it allowed one''s cultivation art to better absorb the aether and also in arger quantity. Each room also had an aetherium stone equipped, further increasing the cultivation efficiency.


    Li Niang exined about the pagoda and confirmed Amon''s previous hypothesis. There was a huge ley line directly under the royal academy. The ley line had been the primary reason that the academy was built at this ce. The pagoda harnessed the aether from this ley line and distributed it to each of the rooms within.


    However, the pagoda only had five hundred rooms, so it was not possible for every student to use them at the same time. One student was only allowed a maximum of eight hours daily to use the pagoda''s room. Staff was present inside to organize and record the time the students spent inside.


    Additionally, fifty out of the five hundred rooms were special rooms with higher aether content. These rooms were not avable to the public. One needed to spend academic points to use these special rooms.


    Li Niang also said that the top ten students of the current term were not permitted into the pagoda. Everyone except the top ten students was confused as to why. This was because the top ten students already had their private cultivation chambers inside their houses. Even the lowest house that amodate the tenth-rank student had a cultivation chamber equal to the special room inside the pagoda. Hence, the top ten did not need to fight with the others for using the pagoda. They even had no daily usage limit. They could cultivate as long as they like.


    The academic points from this ss were graded by how much the students'' cultivation improved each year. The higher the increase, the more points they received. The grading was done using the same detection orb that Lao Zen had used in the entrance exam''s first trial.

 143 Chapter 143

    The practice ss involved training in arts other than cultivation arts. The building meant for this ss was thergest among the other buildings. Inside the building were several training halls that allow students to practice their arts.


    Teachers were inside this building to give pointers to students as well as watch over and organize so the students didn''t hurt each other while practicing. Those who did not wish for others to know about their secret art could rent special rooms where they could train in private. However, these private rooms cost academic points to use.


    The practice ss was graded by the tutors. There would be a sparring session for each student against the tutors every three months. At the end of the sparring, the tutor would give academic points based on the student''s performance.


    The specialization ss contained subjects on special upations in rtion to cultivation. This was divided into alchemy, engraving, smithing, and talisman making. The specialization ss was notpulsory. A student could choose not to study any of the four upations. But of course, they lost an avenue for extra academic points if so.


    At the same time, students were also allowed to take all four upations. But this, of course, meant that the students would spend a lot of their time on this specialization ss. This might instead cause them to neglect their cultivation and art practice. Li Niang strongly suggested the students just focus on one upation.


    The building for this specialization ss was not one building, but an interconnectedplex of four buildings. Each building housed one subject of the upation.


    Li Niang informed once they graduated to the Junior and Senior levels, more specialization sses would be avable to them, such as spirit beast taming and battle puppet creation.


    The gradings from this specialization ss were from the products they produced during the ss. More academic points would be given for a product of high quality. Fewer points for the lesser quality, and none for failed products. All products belonged to the academy because they were made using the academy''s resources and equipment.


    For one with talent among the four upations, this specialization could be a good ce to collect academic points.


    But even so, the best source of academic points was the fifth ss, missions. It was not exactly a ss, but it was a huge part of the academy''s curriculum. A mission was where one interacts with the real cultivation world outside of the academy. The mission was divided into five ranks. From one star being the easiest to five stars being the hardest.


    Within a year, one student was required to take either twenty one-star missions, ten two-star missions, five three-star missions, two four-star missions, or one five-star mission. The student had the freedom to decide when to take the mission, as long as they submitted the mission report before the end of the year.


    If the student wished to take more to umte extra academy points, they were allowed to.


    Depending on the mission, students might have to go solo, in a group, or apanied by an appointed tutor from the academy.


    The missions could be found in the mission center, another building around the za. Students could read about the avable missions there and apply to undertake the missions. Afterpletion, that was also the ce to submit the missionpletion report.


    Aside from those five main buildings, Li Niang also informed about the other prominent buildings within the main section. The library, arena, information center, infirmary, shop, and mess hall. However, these buildings were not limited only to the Freshman grade. All students frequent these buildings, so these were the areas where students from all three grades were able to intermingle.


    Those areas were also the ones that people mostly spend their academic points on. The library contained many books on arts, but one needed academic points to read the books. There were alsomon books on many different subjects, those books were free.


    The arena was where one could do friendly sparring, or settle grudges between one another. A referee was present in the arena to make sure the fight didn''t go too far. The arena also provided a protection barrier so the fight inside didn''t affect the spectators outside. Additionally, the arena was the only ce where the students were allowed to use a weapon under the supervision of the referee.


    Fights were allowed inside the academy, not just in the arena. However, weapons were not allowed to be used. Using a weapon had a high potential of causing death or permanent wounds. A student that caused a death to a fellow student would be expelled from the academy. While one who caused a permanent wound would have to buy a regrowth pill for the victim, which was not cheap or easy to buy. Additionally, the perpetrator''s academy points would be deducted as well.


    The Information Center was the ce if students had a question. The ce was also where students could find out about thetest events in the outside world. The infirmary was right beside the arena, with the best equipment to treat wounded students. The shop was where the student came to look for various products, from weapons to cultivation pills. Mostly these products were the works of the specialization ss students, and this was the only ce that epted payment using aer stones instead of academic points.


    The mess hall was where the students go to have their meals. It was provided free of charge. But some stalls inside the mess hall provided special foods that were beneficial to cultivation. Such food required academy points to buy.<sub> </sub>


    Li Niang informed the students that there was a map showing the entireyout of the royal academy. The students could find this map beside the message board outside the Theory ss building.


    After finishing her introduction to the academy, she gave the stage to Lao Zen, who was holding arge crystal ball in his hand.


    "Everyone, please queue up!" Lao Zen uttered.


    The other academy staff by his sides moved forward and helped organize the students to form a neat queue. Everyone was wondering was this another trial again?


    While the student rearranged themselves, Lao Zen exined the purpose of the crystal ball in his hand, "This is not a trial. This crystal ball helps to detect your elemental affinity."


    "Elemental affinity?" Some of the students murmured in confusion. While some others from more prominent ns or sects were not as uninformed.


    Amon had also read about elemental affinity from books. Almost everyone had an affinity for a certain element. Those with an affinity for an element could faster learn the arcane arts from that element. Additionally, the output of the art would also be stronger.


    The affinity itself had multiple degrees. The applied scale was C, B, A, and S. For someone with C affinity to the fire element, the power of the fire arcane art he executed would be 50% more powerful than those who had no affinity. B affinity produced 100% more power, which was two times normal. A affinity was 150%, and S affinity was 200% more, which was three timespared to those without affinity to the element.


    S affinity was very rare. Usually, one with such an affinity was because he or she possessed a special constitution body that aligned with that element.


    Most everyone should have an affinity to at least one element, but there were also rare urrences where someone had no affinity. Such an unlucky person would have more obstacles in their cultivation road, as they had no advantage in any arcane art.


    Lao Zen''s exnations of the elemental affinity were more or less the same as what Amon had learned from the books. The others who didn''t know about it before were now aware of its significance. They were eager to find out about their affinity.


    "This will influence your practice ss," Lao Zen continued to exin. "Everyone should make sure to choose arcane art of the element that suits your affinity. If you want to learn other elements as well, it''s fine. But honestly, it will just be a waste of your time. You will spend too much time learning elements that you have no affinity with while you can do it at half the time on the one you have an affinity with."


    Sima Fang lifted her hand for an inquiry. Lao Zen nodded as a sign for her to ask.


    "But isn''t every element counter one another? If we only learn a single element, won''t we be in trouble when we face an opponent that uses an element we are weak against?" She asked.


    "That is a sound consideration," Lao Zen replied. "That''s why we always suggest our students pair up either in missions or in lives. Being in a team with members who had elements that can cover one another will boost your sess rate. I know everyone here are proud individuals who like to think they can solo everything by themselves. Let me tell you a life lesson. There is no such shit!"


    "Soloing everything in life is just wishful thinking and a fairy tale told to the dumb and the uneducated. Even as a cultivator, we still need others. In the past, there were many spirit beasts that were much more powerful than any single cultivator. But in the end, humans became the primary ruler of this world. We upy most of thend. There were still many spirit beasts, but they have been pushed to the deepest part of the wilderness and there they stay. How do you think we humans achieve that? By working together! If those powerful spirit beasts learn to work together as we did, we will be the ones who are doomed."


    "If you waste your time trying to learn every single element, you will just be a mediocre practitioner. Others who practice the elements they have affinities with will always be one step ahead. Even if these cultivators are attacked by the element they are weak against, his weaker element can still triumph as long as it has enough power. A metal wall that is three times more powerful due to affinity boost can still block a mediocre fire attack that is not supported by affinity."


    Lao Zen saw the queue was taking shape already. "All right. Let''s not waste any more time. You,e up!" He pointed to the first in the queue.

 144 Chapter 144

    The student came before Lao Zen. The old tutor instructed him to ce his hand on the crystal ball. The process was the same as when their cultivation was measured by the detection orb during the entrance exam''s first trial.


    The student ced his hand on the crystal with both expectant and anxious feelings. What if he got S affinity? What if he got no affinity? Both were rare urrences. In the end, he didn''t dare to daydream. He just hoped for the middle ground.


    After two seconds passed, the crystal ball started to react. Swirls of red light started to appear within the ball. It then turned into a wisp of me that rotated inside the ball.


    "Fire element, C affinity," Lao Zen announced. "Next!"


    An aide called the student and record his name and his affinity before the student was let go. Another student came to Lao Zen. The process went rather fast. It only took a few seconds for the crystal ball to read one''s affinity. Hence, before they knew it, hundreds had already finished the reading. They stood at another side, separate from those who were still queuing and awaiting their turn.


    Most of the ones that had already been read had a C affinity on various elements. A small fraction had a B affinity. It wasn''t until after more than two hundred students were read that someone with rare affinity appeared.


    "Lam San, no affinity..." Lao Zen announced. The crystal ball in his hand was empty. No reaction whatsoever. The student called Lam San stared at the ball with an empty gaze. He was like a person who had just had his execution announced.


    Lao Zen needed to tell him a second time to leave before he started moving. He walked weakly towards where the others were. When he arrived, many ridiculed him and even asked him to stand away from them. Some even heartlessly called him a loser.


    The reading continued.


    Not long after, the first one with an A affinity appeared, drawing a gasp from many.


    "Water element, A affinity," Lao Zen dered.


    The student who had the first A affinity lifted his chin high, as if such a result was obvious. He threw a disdainful nce to the others before he went to the aide to have his information recorded.


    "Yan Long!" He announced his name proudly and loudly.


    After the aide recorded and dismissed him, he walked forward with a straight posture. His chin was still high. However, Lao Zen''s next announcement made him almost stumble.


    "Light element, S affinity!"


    ? This drew even louder murmuring than before. Even Lao Zen''s tone carried a hint of surprise.


    Yan Long looked back as the student came to the aide and announced his name with a voice that contained no less pridepared to Yan Long just now. "Wu Di!!"


    Wu Di then walked toward the waiting area. When he came by Yan Long, he said, "What are you doing just standing here for, twat?"


    "You...!" Yan Long was fuming from the insult.


    "Hahaha! Even my affinity is higher than yours. You need to work hard if you want to catch up, twat," Wu Diughed as he continued walking.


    Yan Long red at his back and gritted his teeth. This guy was even more abhorrent than that Lin Mo asshole.


    The reading continued. As more of the top ten was called, there were more students with B and A affinity.


    "Sima Fang. Water element, B affinity."


    "Tuang Yin. Fire element, A affinity."


    "Wong Cou. Earth element, B affinity."


    "Pai Wang. Metal element, B affinity."


    "Xa Jien. Metal element, A affinity."


    "Zhuan San. Wood element, A affinity."


    As for S affinity, after more than half of the students were called, there was still none other than Wu Di. Wu Di''s light affinity was also considered rare. It was the only element that had no weakness against the other five elements. But at the same time, it also didn''t carry any special advantage when fighting the other elements.


    Aside from Wu Di, four others were detected to possess light element affinity, but only at the C-level.


    Zhuan San, who was just finished getting his reading came to where the others were waiting. He saw Yan Long who was still staring dagger at Wu Di. Wu Di turned to him and gave him a patronizing smirk, which of course, made Yan Long even angrier.


    "Why do you like to tease him so?" Zhuan San asked Wu Di.


    "I dislike his kind the most," Wu Di replied. "Acting like he is the best and looking down on others. He is a bully, and an arrogant one at that."<sub> </sub>


    "That one is also very arrogant," Zhuan San pointed at Amon who was still waiting in the queue. "Do you dislike him as well?"


    "I think he is all right. I like him," Wu Di said.


    "Oh, why?"


    "Because he is not a bully. He only takes action against those who tried to do him harm. Like those three who tried to attack him on our way here."


    Zhuan San ced his hand on his chin. He muttered to himself, "You and I have a very different perspective on judging people. I myself believe he is the biggest bully of all..."


    As many students went through the reading, several outside the top ten also had B and A affinity, but mostly were C affinity, and a very small fraction possess no affinity at all. Among these students, Xin Wuming had the metal element with A affinity.


    When Yang Li came forward, there was now a second student with an S affinity. Her element was fire. She drew another round of gasp and murmur.


    After Yang Li walked away, Lao Zen said to Li Niang who was at the side. "This is surprising. We have two S affinity students in a single batch."


    "Yeah, we used to be lucky even if we get one with such an affinity," Li Niang agreed. "Who is she?"


    Lao Zen took the record from his aide and checked the data. "She represented the White Cloud Sect from White Cloud City, but she originally had no n. She was an independent cultivator who joined the sect for benefits."


    "Which means she is a very ideal candidate to recruit for the kingdom," Li Niang said.


    "Yes, I suppose we should keep an eye on her," Lao Zen confirmed. He then turned back to the students and uttered, "Next!"


    When the next student came forward, Lao Zen muttered to himself, "Hm... Speaking of keeping an eye..."


    The student who stood before Lao Zen was Amon. He put his hand on the ball without waiting for instruction. Lao Zen looked at the crystal ball with expectation.


    One second passed...


    Two seconds...


    Five seconds...


    Nothing happened.


    Lao Zen frowned. Not only he, but the other top ten students who had already stood in the waiting area also found it hard to believe. They expected to hear the third S affinity when they saw Amon approaching the crystal ball. Perhaps it took longer to detect the affinity this time?


    Even Lao Zen thought that way. He just let Amon''s hand stay on the ball for a bit longer. Other non-affinity students he had chased away after more than five seconds passed without any result.


    But even after ten seconds had passed, there was still no reaction from the crystal ball.


    Amon retracted his hand. There was no emotion on his face. He just went to the aide without waiting for a prompt. "Amon," He said to the aide. "No affinity," he added tly.


    Afterward, he walked toward the waiting crowd, found a corner space, and sat there cross-legged. He closed his eyes and started cultivating, ignoring everything as he usually did.


    Xin Wuming came to his side. He originally wanted to console Amon, but after arriving, he was unsure what to say.


    "Hahaha!" Everyone was surprised by the suddenugh. They turned to the source and found it to be Yan Long.


    Of course, they should have expected this guy to brag, but the fact that Amon had no affinity just took everyone by surprise that they lost their thoughts for a while.


    "Let''s see how you act arrogant again. In the end, a nobody is still a nobody. Without any affinity, forget about trying topete with us. You might as well give your top house to me instead rather than embarrassing yourself when you lost itter. Look at him! Still trying to act tough. Pretend all you want, you can''t fool me. You must be crying inside, aren''t you?"


    There was no response from Amon. Being ignored made Yan Long feel enraged. He was about toe closer to antagonize Amon further, but someonerge stood in his way. He stopped and looked at Wu Di who was ring at him. Wu Di had a tall and broad body, simr to Amon. Hence, when he stood before Yan Long who was much smaller, it was like seeing an adult next to a kid.


    "You, twat! One more word and do you believe me that I won''t p you?" Wu Di threatened.


    "Stop calling me twat! I''m not afraid of you. Come at me then!" Yan Long shot back.


    Wu Di lifted his hand as if he was going to p, while Yan Long put his arm up preparing to block. But they stopped when Li Niang appeared before them.


    "You two, be quiet!" She chided them. "If you want to fight. Go to the arena or elsewhere to settle your dispute!"

 145 Chapter 145

    Amon opened his eyes and nced at the quarreling pair. He wondered why Wu Di defended him. But he closed his eyes again soon. He didn''t care for Wu Di''s reason.


    He also saw other students'' eyes on him when he took a look. Several of them had a pitying look. He was amused. He couldn''t remember anymore when was thest time that someone else pitied him.


    Contrary to what those students thought, Amon himself didn''t think the fact that he had no affinity to be a big deal. It''s not like this was the first time he was dealt a bad hand. This was not enough to discourage him. Many people could be sessful even if they were given a bad start. Like being born into a poor family, having no talent, or having a disability. What''s important was to never give up and continued to make an effort.


    He had been born an orphan in his past life, in a war-torn country. But he could still climb up the world and be the most feared military leader in existence. He had been born in a declined and poor Hei n in this new world, but he could still fight his way and was epted into this royal academy for elite youths.


    He was never one to depend on privilege. If he got an advantage, he won''t hesitate to use it. If he didn''t, he would create his own advantage. Having no affinity meant he wasn''t tied by any one element. He would just learn all of them. Maybe it would cost him more time for learning them without affinity, then all he needed to do was choose the correct arts to learn. So that he won''t waste time on art that he didn''t need.


    Yan Long and Wu Di had cooled down after Li Niang''s rebuke. The reading process continued. There were only a few students left. No big surprise again after Amon. After another half an hour, thest studentpleted the reading.


    Once everyone''s affinity was recorded, Li Niang spoke again, "Now, everyone, please go to the Theory ss building. There will be a theory ss this afternoon. On the way, you can check on the message board for the next theory ss and also the map of this academy. If you have any more questions, you can go to the information center. I wish everyone a good study. Do your best, all of you!"


    She and Lao Zen flew away afterward. The students started to walk toward the theory ss building. Amon rose and went over as well. Xin Wuming walked by his side, still unsure of what to say.


    Some of the students ran towards the building because they were afraid that if they werete, they have to queue up behind the ones who arrived first before they could see either the message board or the map. But aftering up near the building, they realized they didn''t have to. The message board practically filled up one side of the wall next to the entrance. On the other side, an equallyrge disy of a map was shown.


    Amon was walking normally and was standing behind the crowd, but he could still see both the message board and map clearly.


    On the message board, several notes were written. In about half an hour from now, there would be a ss about cultivation levels and art ssifications. The next ss would be three dayster, touching on the subject of various spirit beasts. Two days after that was a ss about history.


    In total, there were three theory sses this week, with one to two days between them. Amon assumed those empty days were for the students to attend the other sses.


    Amon then studied the map of the academy. There were clear notes on the map indicating the buildings. Since Li Niang had exined each function of the buildings, it was easier to understand the map. The ones that the principal didn''t mention were the administration building and Tutor Hall. Amon assumed those were off-limit to students.


    Twopounds looked exactly like the za they were at. The zas on those twopounds were also surrounded by identical buildings to the ones here. Amon deduced those were the main study ces for the upper-grade students, the junior and senior sses. The general buildings, which consisted of the library, shops, mess hall, and the like which were essible to all students, were in between the three main studypounds. There were also gardens and ponds separating those buildings.


    Amonmitted the map to his memory. He went into the theory ss building afterward.


    Several students had entered as well. Not only because they were afraid that they would bete for the ss, but also because they were curious about the inside.


    Arge hallway greeted them after they entered. A staff who was there instructed them to just follow the hallway. As they walked through the hallway, they saw a few doors on both sides. A few students with high curiosity tried to open the doors but they were locked.


    Coming out of the hallway they came upon a veryrge amphitheater. The ceiling was half-opened, exposing the sky above. At the far end was a stage that should be the ce where the tutor delivered the lecture.


    Everyone wandered around therge hall, trying to check everything out. Amon just walked to the frontmost seat closest to the stage. He sat there and resumed his cultivation. Xin Wuming, who had been following him, sat beside him and did the same.


    Half an hourter, most students had settled down. They sat on the circr seats around the stage and waited for the ss to begin.


    When some time had passed and they were wondering if perhaps the schedule on the notice board had been mistakenly written, a man in an ornate robe floated down from the open ceiling. Hended on the stage and said, "I see everyone was here. Good, it will not do if you arete for your first ss."


    Everyone wanted to throw something onto the stage. Wasn''t it you who arete?<sub> </sub>


    "All right, everyone. First, I will introduce myself. My name is Tao Su. Today I will talk about our cultivations. I bet most of you think that you know a lot about this subject already, but you will see that there is still much to be learned. Now, most of you have better take notes if you want to score a good number of academic points because this subject will surelye up in the term test."


    Tao Su then proceeded to exin the cultivation levels. The stages of each realm until the divine realm. Although Amon had already known about this from the pyramid legacy''s books, he still paid attention. However, he did it while shutting his eyes and cultivating. He just needed his ears to listen to the lecture, after all.


    Aside from the levels, Tao Su also borated on each stage''s characteristics and abilities. Like how a strength stage cultivator was able to jump the height of five meters. A transformation stage cultivator was ten meters. When one entered the mystic stage of the martial realm, one would be able to jump thirty meters up. Not only that, such cultivators could glide in the air and slow their descent significantly. When one reached the spirit stage, one would be able to fly.


    Tao Su exined that while every attempt to break through a realm was progressively difficult, the divine realm was special. As one would receive a tribtion when one attempted to break through to the divine realm. If one failed, there was a chance that one could even die from the tribtion.


    Of course, Tao Su said that all this was what they had learned from texts left behind in the past. Most of the cultivators who reached the Demigod realm tended to move on to the upper world, so no one in this world had witnessed such a tribtion. Amon assumed this upper world Tao Su mentioned was the same world that the cultivator who left the pyramid legacy had gone to.


    Tao Su then proceeded to exin the ssifications of arts.


    ''No mention about the cultivation of the infernal branch?'' Amon thought. Was it that most cultivators in this world unaware of this branch? Or they simply chose not to acknowledge it?


    Amon had been hoping to get some information about this infernal branch inside this academy. Since Wei Sui had confirmed the energy from his ck core was the demon energy, he spected only the infernal branch cultivation method could nurture this ck core. Still, he couldn''t just ask anybody about this. It could cause people to be suspicious of him.


    "You there, the one who is cultivating in my ss," Tao Su called.


    Amon opened his eyes. He wasn''t sure if he was the one getting called but since he was cultivating, there was a high chance that he was. And it was indeed so, Tao Su was looking at him.


    "Is it not allowed?" Amon asked.


    "It is fine as long as you are listening. Otherwise, you might as well go out and use the pagoda to cultivate," Tao Su replied.


    "I am listening," Amon said.


    "Really? Then can you tell me how far away a spirit stage cultivator can sense someone''s aura?" Tao Su asked.


    "Five blocks away," Amon answered.


    Tao Su raised his eyebrows. The boy had answered without any pause. He then gave another question, "What about the average life span of a Lord stage cultivator?"


    "Eight hundred years," Amon again answered promptly.


    "How many years are normally needed for someone of the mystic stage cultivator to cultivate to the spirit stage without using any external help like cultivation pills, aetherium stone, and the such?"


    "You didn''t mention that," Amon answered.


    Tao Su smiled. Thest question was a trick question. Amon was indeed listening. "All right, you can proceed," Tao Su said.

 146 Chapter 146

    Tao Su continued his lecture while Amon resumed cultivating but still paid attention to the lecture. To his disappointment, there was no mention of the infernal branch cultivation. Several details that Amon didn''t find from the books were in the lecture, though. So, it was not all a waste of time.


    Thinking that most of this lecture was the stuff he had already learned from books, he wondered if he should still attend the next theory ss. It was more beneficial for him to just stay inside the aether-rich basement under his house and cultivate. But he decided to still attend a few more and see if any other sses provide benefits.


    At the end of his lecture, Tao Su dismissed everyone. He informed them before leaving, that they were free to go and use the facility in the other sses. Other sses didn''t have a fixed schedule like the theory ss, so they were free to adjust their own timetable. The next theory ss will be in the morning three days from now with a different tutor.


    Most of the students went to check out the pagoda and the practice building. Those should be the two ces most students would spend most of their time because cultivating and practicing arts were the two most important factors for a cultivator.


    Amon didn''t join them. His basement facility provided a better facilitypared to the two buildings. He might be missing the chance to get guidance from the tutors in the practice building, but most of his art was from the pyramid legacy which came from the ancient age. The tutors'' knowledge about these arts should be the same as his, which was zero. So, it was still better for him to practice alone.


    Before he left, he called Xin Wuming who was still on standby beside him, "Wuming."


    "Yes, big brother." Xin Wuming was d that Amon finally didn''t treat him as air.


    "I have a task for you," Amon said.


    "Anything," Xin Wuming saidpliantly.


    Amon whispered the instructions to Xin Wuming''s ear. Wuming nodded as he listened.


    "I will carry out your request," Xin Wuming said.


    "Just spend a few hours for them. Do not neglect your cultivation and art training inside the pagoda or the practice building."


    "Yes, big brother," Xin Wuming replied.


    Amon left after that. Before he returned home, he went first to the specialization buildings, whichprised four buildings. Each represented alchemy, engraving, smithing, and talisman making.


    Amon went into the alchemy building. A staff came and asked, "Do you wish to use this facility?"


    All the new students had gone either to the pagoda or the practice building. No one came to the specialization ss yet, so the staff was rather happy that one student entered.


    "I might in the future, I just want to take a look first," Amon said.


    "Oh...," The staff wore a disappointed expression but he still followed Amon as he introduced everything in the building.


    The rooms were partitioned to allow every alchemist to work individually without disturbing others. The tools were top-notch. There was also a list of avable materials that one could choose from to work with. A few standard recipes were provided free for the students. If the students wanted a higher-grade recipe, they had to pay using their academic points.


    "Many famous pill masters in this city and the capital came from this academy. We are proud to say we have nurtured those pill masters," The staff promoted while giving Amon the tour.


    "Can I buy these alchemy tools?" Amon asked.


    "No, sorry," the staff replied.


    "What about at the shop building?" Amon asked again.<sub> </sub>


    "The shop building only sells products produced by our students using these tools as well as some ingredients and materials collected by students during their missions. It doesn''t sell the tools themselves. For those, you will have to go out into the city and search among the alchemy shops."


    Amon nodded. He would do thatter after he got used to this ce. For now, the tools he brought from the Lin n were still enough for experimentation.


    Amon then paid a visit to the engraving building. They also used various tools. The knives to do the engraving came in different shapes and sizes. More advanced words of power required a certain depth or width in the carvings, hence the different knives. The staff there also exined that the amount of aether injected during the carving also had variations for advanced words of power. The staff was happy to teach Amon if he wanted to give it a try.


    Amon again told the staff he would give it a try at ater date. He went to the smithing and talisman buildings next, checking on the equipment that was used in those specialized jobs. He just did it to get a basic understanding. He had no time to dabble in them yet. At this moment, he still needed to focus on his cultivation and art practice.


    He went straight home after.


    Arriving home, he first took out a few wooden nks and carpenter tools from his space ring. These were mundane tools he had bought in White Cloud City for general purposes. He used those wooden nks and made partition walls to block off a portion of the ground floor.


    After finishing with the partition, he took out his alchemy equipment. He set them up inside this new room.


    The task upied him untilte afternoon. After making sure everything had been set up properly. He went down into the basement. He walked to the center with the circr word of power, where the aether condensation was the thickest. He took out his ck aetherium stone, ate another spirit fruit, then sat down and started cultivating.


    *


    Over the next two days, he focused on cultivation and art training. He didn''t do any alchemy. The dense aether was intoxicating, Amon felt like he could go for weeks just cultivating without stopping. But he still forced himself to stop cultivating once in a while to practice his arts.


    On the third day, he joined the second theory ss that touched on the subject of spirit beasts. Although some of the beasts taught in the lecture were already mentioned inside the encyclopedias of spirit beasts in his space ring''s library, there were also some unknown ones. Amon assumed maybe these were newer generation beasts not existed in the ancient era. Hence, they were not recorded inside the encyclopedias.


    A single lecture wouldn''t be able to cover the multitude of known spirit beasts. The tutor, who was a burly and heavily bearded old man named Ha Gild, said that his lecture would resume next week to introduce more spirit beasts to the students.


    Two days after was thest ss of the week. A history ss by a female tutor named Li Shi. In this ss, Amon finally heard a mention of the infernal branch cultivation.


    "It is said that in the past, there was no cultivation. No human was practicing the profound way. Humans were amongst the other animals scouring through thend conquered by spirit beasts. But humans were blessed by intelligence despite being unable to utilize aether. This caught the attention of one of the strongest spirit beasts, a deity beast."


    "This deity beast, its name lost to history, took humans under its wings, as one of its pets. Humans, however, showed much more potential than as simple entertainment to the deity beast. Hence, the deity beast put more attention on them. Over time, its fascination with humans turned to adoration. It cared for the humans as if they were its own offspring. And from then, it started to teach humans multiple things. One amongst which wasnguage."


    "After learningnguage, the intelligent humans showed even more potential. Hence, the deity beast decided to teach them the basic utilization of aether. Of course, the way that spirit beasts used aether was different. It was as natural as breathing to them. Hence, the deity beast''s early attempt to teach humans how to utilize aether ended up in failure."


    "However, with their intelligence, humans managed to use that basic knowledge and develop a way to utilize the aether in a way unique to them. This was how the first cultivation art was born. The first human that created this cultivation art acquired power that was otherwise impossible for humans. For this achievement, the deity beast rewarded this human by making him the leader of the rest of his kind."


    "This leader started to teach his cultivation art to the rest. Some with sess, some with less. The cultivation art also granted the leader a longer lifepared to others. After some time passed, the leader took a wife who bore him two sons. His love for his sons made him focus all his attention to teach them his cultivation art, so that they could live a life as long as him."


    "The oldest son followed his father''s footsteps perfectly. The cultivation art he practiced was giving him improvement that was even fasterpared to his father. This made the leader proud. The second son, however, was not as fortunate. He couldn''t utilize the cultivation art properly, so his improvement was very slow."


    "Even though the leader still loved his second son, the treatment of the first son who was more sessful eventually turned the second son bitter. He was furious and angry at his own inability. But the second son, however, was one with more intelligence. Despite his inability to utilize his father''s cultivation art, he learned to modify the art to suit himself."


    "The cultivation art he modified turned into an entirely new cultivation art. It produced more power. However, it also intensified all the negative emotions in his heart. When he used the power from his cultivation art, it produced dark color energy. This was when the first demon was born."

 147 Chapter 147

    The tale Li Shi told was not something that wasmon knowledge to the mass, hence all the students were listening with great interest. Although Amon was also listening, he didn''t truly put the tale in his mind until the mention of the first demon.


    Li Shi continued her tale, "After the second son sessfully learned this demonic cultivation art, he gained great power. But at the same time, his anger and envy towards his brother intensified. Giving in to his emotion, heshed out at his brother. His brother who was not aware of his murderous intention was taken by surprise. The father, who was there when it happened, put himself in harm''s way. So, instead of the brother, the second son killed the father."


    "Consumed by grief and guilt, the second son fled the scene, while the first son swore revenge. Despite killing their leader, the second son still gathered a bunch of followers. These were the ones who were more attuned to his demonic cultivation. Hence, they followed him and studied his cultivation way."


    "As for the first son, he marshaled those who were loyal to his father and started a manhunt on his brother. The two groups ended up in a fierce war with one another."


    "The deity beast, in the meantime, was absent when the incident happened. It often sometimes went off for decades, only returningter to itsir after it was done adventuring. The time of the leader''s demise was one such moment. When it came back, it was not to the loving worship of its subjects. But instead, it came back to the war-tornnd and saw its beloved humans tearing each other apart with hatred and loathing."


    "The sight broke the deity beast''s heart. It was furious. Yet, it couldn''t bring itself to decimate these pets it hade to love. In the end, it just left and let the humans deal with their own matter."


    "That is how our first conflict with the demon race happened. In the end, the humans who practiced the divine cultivation pushed the demon race back and locked them up in a prison world created by our divine ancestors. There were some who escaped capture and had since been hiding in the dark. It is our duty to eradicate such demons if we should encounter one. This is the end of our lecture. Do you have any questions?"


    Several students lifted their hands, but Amon was the first to ask a question because he just started asking without bothering to lift his hand or waiting for permission, "Since a demon was born out of a human because of a modified cultivation, does that mean there is a different way to cultivate other than the divine path?"


    "That is correct," Li Shi answered. "The way the demon race cultivate is inherently different from our divine cultivation. They even had their own different cultivation levels."


    "In that case, if amon cultivator unintentionally practices the demon cultivation, won''t he turn into a demon then?" Amon asked again. The other students who had lifted their hands were especially annoyed by this. They felt like the ones who were cut in a queue and the person doing it wasn''t even feel guilty about it.


    "Not all are attuned to the demonic cultivation art, but some cultivators are still possible to turn into a demon if they practice such art. That is why most of the books or records pertaining to the demonic cultivation have been destroyed," Li Shi answered. "This is to prevent themon people from getting ess to such a dangerous cultivation path."


    ''In this case, it will be difficult to find one to nurture my ck core,'' Amon thought with disappointment.


    Amon asked no more questions. All he was interested in was where to find cultivation art for his ck core, but he couldn''t ask openly about where to find one. From Li Shi''s answers, it was unlikely that she knew anyway.


    *


    After the ss was finished, Xin Wuming came to Amon.


    "Have you found out about what I asked?" Amon asked him.


    "Yes, big brother. I have been asking around. Here are what I have found," Xin Wuming said as he unfurled a paper that showed the copy of the map of the academy. There were scribblings all over the map. He then started exining.


    "The academy has students from nsing from all over the kingdom. I can''t record all of them. But the most prominent ns formed five factions inside this academy. Each faction is an alliance of several ns or sects. These factions seemed to have been passed down since the early years of this academy. The students from the ns that are in the faction normally join the same faction following their seniors, thus making it a continuous tradition."<sub> </sub>


    "These factions were always vying for supremacy within the royal academy. The tutors in this academy seemed to ignore this hidden power struggle. Small fights used to ur between the members, while big fights are usually done behind closed doors. As long as no one died or was severely wounded, the tutors turned a blind eye. Sometimes, they also fight publicly by using the arena."


    "The names of five factions are given by their founders. They haven''t been changed since. They are Nobles, Virtuous, Bloodless, Astute, and Heroic. The faction''s hierarchy always changes as old students leave and new students enter. For now, most agree that the nobles and Virtuous are the most dominant factions. Their member counts are the highest. Most avoid causing trouble with these two."


    "Tell me about each of these factions," Amon said.


    Xin Wuming nodded. "The Nobles are headed by the Gao n, which is one of the major ns in the capital. This faction as its name suggests, only ept n that has some blood ties to the royal family. However, they are mostly distant rtives from the past. None of the actual members of the royal family enroll in this academy. Many ns join this faction, but the most notable ones aside from Gao n are the Yan n, Wu n, and Gui n."


    Yan and Wu. Amon could predict already that he might not be having a harmonious rtionship with this faction.


    "The next dominant faction, the Virtuous, is headed by the Xian n," Xin Wuming continued. "Xian n is another major n in the capital. It is a directpetitor to the Gao n. This is why the rtionship between the Nobles faction and Virtuous faction is never good. Notable members of this faction are the Liang n and the Ice Cloud Sect."


    "The Bloodless is led by the An n. This n is said to be the descendant of an ancient kingdom before our current kingdom, Echos. Notable members of this faction include the Unity Sister Sect, which is a sect that epts only woman cultivators, and the Xie n. Although not as prominent, Big brother''s Lin n is also within this faction. Do you wish to join this faction?" Xin Wuming asked.


    "I don''t intend to join any faction," Amon replied. "Continue."


    "The fourth faction, Astute, is co-headed by two ns, Ming and Zong. Both are the ruling ns of two of thergest trade cities in the Echos kingdom. Ming n holds the Eternal Peace City in the North, while the Zong n is the ruler of Fuyang City in the South. Both are wealthy ns who have had healthy cooperation in trade. That''s why the first students of the two ns had decided to create a faction together. Notable members in this faction are the Jing n and also the White Cloud Sect from our city."


    "Last but not least, is the Heroic faction. This n is founded and still led by the Yong n. It is a n in a military city near the border. Its n master is a great general of this kingdom. Its notable members are the Gan n and Nan n. The Lei n and Wei n from our city traditionally join this faction."


    "There are other small-scale alliances and also plenty of other ns or students who don''t wish to join the power struggle. They tend to keep to themselves and avoid provoking these five factions."


    Xin Wuming then showed the map in his hand. "Aside from the main section where the tutors and academy staff used to frequent, the three other sections in this academy are given free rein to the students. Hence, the five factions carved up territories on them. There is an unspoken rule that members of opposite factions aren''t allowed to enter the territory of the other factions unless they have been given permission. Failure to do so will have the trespassers badly beaten or apprehended. Compensations will be required before these trespassers are released. These are the territories of each faction."


    In Xin Wuming''s map, he had drawn some lines and written the faction names to indicate the territory owners. Each of the three sections, freshman, junior, and senior, all had the territories of the five factions within. The Nobles had thergest territory in the senior section while the Virtuous had thergest in the junior section. The freshman had all five equally divided.


    The territories inside the freshman section were much smallerpared to the junior and senior sections. Probably because the factions had fewer members among the freshman students. many students in this section were not yet willing to join any faction. Thus, the factions couldn''t be too imperious and held toorge a territory. Many areas were unimed territory.


    "The dormitories and living ces are not part of anyone''s territory, as well as the marked pathways. If any faction prevents entry to this ce, they will invite problems from the academy staff instead. So, they leave these ces alone. Most of the marked territory are gardens and parks that have good aether distribution, which might be the result of the excess energy from the ley line underneath. This makes the ce an ideal cultivation spot after the pagoda. Other territories have spirit herbs and spirit trees that the academy had nted for students'' free use. These resources are the basis of the factions'' scuffle for territory."


    Amonmitted all this information to his memory. When Xin Wuming said that he had no more things to add, Amon said, "Follow me, let''s go take a walk."

 148 Chapter 148

    Amon and Xin Wuming walked out of the theory ss building and headed to the student section for Freshman. Xin Wuming didn''t ask where Amon was taking him. His big brother asked him to follow. He followed.


    Reaching the freshman section, thendscape turned to a more natural setting. Gardens and parks filled the ce. Several students were seen hanging out doing their own things.


    As they walked, Xin Wuming said, "Be careful, that area is Bloodless'' territory. We shouldn''t wander too close."


    Amon didn''t respond. After further walking, Xin Wuming realized that they were walking along the edges of that supposed territory without truly going in.


    As they walked, they heard amotion not far ahead. A student was in a verbal confrontation with three other students. Amon approached them.


    "What do you mean this ce is not public? Isn''t this section free for all students to roam about?" The lone student said.


    "We might all be new students here, but you should at least learn the rule fast," One of the three said. "This ce is under control by the Bloodless. Unless you wish to join, you have better piss off!"


    The lone person looked at the three. He wanted to say something but then decided it was not worth it. He turned around and was about to walk away, but two of the three Bloodless members blocked his path.


    "What is it now?" He asked.


    "Do you think our territory is one that you can just go in and out as you wish? If you do not wish to join, then you should pay a fine for intruding."


    "How absurd! If you don''t wish people to go in, then put a sign or something. And aren''t you all students as well, who gives you the right to say this is your territory?!"


    "Our might gives us right," the Bloodless member said. "Now, give us three hundred aer stones as your apology for trespassing. Or do you prefer a beating?"


    "Do you think I''m afraid of you, assholes? Come, let me teach¨Coof¡­!" One of the Bloodless members stayed behind while his two friends talked with the lone student. Now he had kicked the lone student on his back. The kick was done with martial art. The lone student vomited blood from the sneak attack.


    The lone student didn''t have the chance to use any art. When he was shoved forward, the two other Bloodless members sent their punches. They were all at the intermediate Strength stage. The lone student was powerless against the three''s coordinated attack.


    Xin Wuming turned to Amon, who just stood there watching. When the lone student was down on the ground, Amon walked toward them.


    One of the Bloodless members saw Amoning near.


    "Are you blind? Do you not see Bloodless members conducting¨Curgh¡­!" He didn''t finish his sentence as the energy from Amon''s Bone Shattering Shadow Fistnded on his face.


    Amon''s execution of the martial art was close to perfection already, even if not yet grandmaster level. His victim didn''t even notice his arm punching out when its fist energy already came mming into his face.


    The two others, who were still harassing the lone student, were taken by surprise when one of them was suddenly thrown back by an assault. When they turned to Amon, Amon had turned invisible. But he suddenly reappeared again with several trails of light following his two fists.


    The lights in the form of fists mmed onto the two Bloodless members. They were sent sprawling to the ground.


    Amon had controlled the energy so his attacks didn''t kill the two. If even Abdu''s protective art, who was already a beginning Transformation stage, couldn''t protect him against Amon''s Silent Swift Shadow Fist, these two''s bones would have all been broken if Amon used full strength.


    The two were whimpering on the ground. The first one was sitting up with blood leaking out of his nose. "Who¡­ Who are you?! How dare you assault us? Do you know who we are?"<sub> </sub>


    The lone student looked at Amon who hade to his rescue, he was about to say thank you but Amon''s cold gaze stopped him.


    Amon walked toward the Bloodless member who was covering his nostrils trying to stop the blood from leaking. He grabbed the man''s neck and lifted him.


    "You go back and tell your people. From now on, there will be a sixth faction in this academy, the Vicious!"


    He then violently threw the man as if he was a ragged doll, into where the Bloodless'' territory was. The two others who saw Amon''s violent act quickly fled back into their territory as well.


    After the three left, Amon turned back to the lone student. He stood before him and asked, "What''s your name?"


    "Ah Bin¡­," the lone student answered.


    Amon threw a recovery pill at him. Ah Bin caught it.  He looked at the pill. It''s not like he didn''t have a recovery pill. He had some, but each pill was precious for him. They were not cheap, after all. Furthermore, he sensed that the pill that Amon had given was of a higher quality than the one he possessed.


    "If you wish the power to stand against those oppressors, then join my faction."


    After saying his piece, Amon walked away without waiting for the lone student''s reply. Xin Wuming hurriedly followed after him. Xin Wuming had originally wanted to join the fight once Amon started taking action, but it was already over before he could do anything.


    Ah Bin looked at the two. He hesitated for a bit. When the two almost went out of sight, he finally came to a decision. He swallowed the pill Amon had given and then chased after the two.


    Amon continued making his round. He never went into the five faction''s territories. He just wandered around the outside and went to defend the ones that had the misfortune of getting bullied by the five factions. As Amon had predicted, there were many such urrences. When one was in a position of power and could do things without consequences, nine out of ten would abuse the power. Just as the old saying, power corrupts.


    He defended those victims and chased away the bullies. Some retreated before a confrontation happened because they all knew about Amon''s prowess as the number one candidate. He could be said as the strongest student in the Freshman section. Every student in this section knew him, they didn''t dare face him directly. Some required beatings, so Amon gave it to them.


    Of the students that were saved, he gave all of them the same offer. Some expressed the desire to join, some didn''t. Amon let them make their own choices.


    In just one day, talks circted. Some students who weren''t involved roamed around for a chance to see Amon in action. Most were those who had already experienced getting bullied by the factions in prior days. They were eager to see the ones who bullied them getting bullied instead. Some of the ones who managed to catch Amon''s act in chasing away the bullies expressed interest in joining.


    They of course had the chance to join one of the five factions, but they didn''t. Firstly, because they knew they would just be at the bottom of the pool in those factions. They didn''t have any connection inside. Secondly, they were young and they grew up admiring stories of heroes who uphold justice. Seeing Amon chasing away the bullies gave them such satisfaction and they wished to be a part of it. The fact that Amon was building a new faction also meant that they had the chance to be at the top if they joined earlier.


    Amon''s reputation as the first rank in the entrance exam was another reason that had brought about such an interest in them. If it was any other person, they would just think that it was a busybody who didn''t know his own strength. As Zhuan San had stated, influence could be helpful in certain circumstances.


    Still, there was no way the five factions were letting this go. Where would they put their faces if such atrocities went unpunished?


    When the sun was about to set, arge crowd gathered around a garden. This crowd was the collection of the five factions. They numbered around fifty. They were surrounding two people. One was sitting leisurely on a rock overlooking a small pond. The other was standing beside the sitting one. They were Amon and Xin Wuming.


    The crowd that surrounded them were all Freshman students, so they knew Amon''s reputation. Three of the faction leaders for the freshman year are here. Amon had known about these leaders from Xin Wuming''s info. The three who were present were the freshman leaders of Virtuous, Bloodless, and Astute. Their names were Xian Hu, An Ling, and Ming Jin respectively.


    The other two factions, Nobles and Heroic, only sent representatives. Maybe because their leaders didn''t consider Amon to be worth their time, even if Amon was the first rank student in the entrance exam. Amon knew from Xin Wuming that the leader of the freshman year for Nobles was named Gao Dou, while the Heroic faction was led by Yong Gan. Amon remembered those two were also among the top ten during the second exam.

 149 Chapter 149

    One person came out of the crowd. It was Yan Long. Gao Dou didn''te, so Yan Long considered himself the leader. Even if Gao Dou was here, Yan Long still thought that he was the better cultivator, considering he scored higher than Gao Dou in all three exams. Still, the Gao n was more prominent than his Yan n, so he didn''t dare to show his arrogance when Gao Dou was around. Now, however, that person was not around.


    Yan Long spoke, "Lin Mo! Don''t think just because you are the first rank that you can do whatever you want! Do you know what you have done? How dare you anger us five great factions of this academy?!"


    Instead of responding to Yan Long, Amon looked around at the other factions. "Did the nobles faction speak for you all?" He asked.


    "Of course not!" Xian Hu eximed. He also came out and stood a little bit forwardpared to Yan Long. Virtuous and Nobles had always beenpeting. How could he let people think that the Nobles spoke for Virtuous?


    "Lin Mo!" He pointed at Amon. "You have wounded our members. You will apologize now and give uspensation of one thousand aer stones! Then, we will consider this issue settled."


    "That''s all you are going to ask?" An Ling walked out as well. She was not going to let these two factions be the star of the show. "Well, you might be satisfied with those, but I''m not. Lin Mo, you have to also give me ess to your house. Let me use the training room inside. The bloodless will not only forgive your transgression, but we will also protect you from the other factions. Considering you are from the Lin n, you can join us the same as all the Lin descendants who came before you."


    "What? Then I''m demanding ess to your house as well!" Xian Hu uttered.


    "Hmph! You, Virtuous people, have no shame. You can''t think of good demand and imitate mine instead," An Ling mocked.


    "Now, now. We are all here to demandpensation," Ming Jin joined the faction leaders. "How about this? We all enter Lin Mo''s house and train together. The house for the first rank should be big enough to amodate us four."


    "Five!" The representative of the Heroic faction came forth. "My leader, Yong Gan, will want ess as well!"


    "Hahahaha!"


    The sound ofughter stopped their chatter. They turned to the person who hadughed.


    "Lin Mo! Do you find anything funny?" Yan Long asked.


    "Yeah. Watching you clowns sure is funny," Amon replied.


    "What did you say!"


    "Are you looking to die?!"


    "You have better apologize now!"


    All five raised their voices at Amon at the same time. Their words mixed and everyone was having trouble understanding them. What everyone understood was their expressions, they looked like they were ready to lunge at Amon.


    Amon, however, didn''t show any sign of being intimidated. He slowly stood up.


    "It''s good that you peoplee here so I don''t have to waste my precious time looking for you all," he said with a clear and loud voice, drowning theirs. "I will let you know, from here on. This garden and the small woods behind me until that river over there will be Vicious'' territory. If any of your members dare to enter without permission, they will be dealt with ordingly. If any of you dare toy a hand on Vicious members, you can expect retributioning."


    "Hahaha!" It was Yan Long''s turn tough after hearing Amon''s deration. "Vicious? A new faction? What a load of bull! Do you think we, the five great factions, will be afraid of someone who daydreams? Do you think you can just have two people and call yourself a faction? Do you think you can go against us with just the two of you?"


    "Do you think it''s just us two?" Amon grinned.


    Xin Wuming who stood behind him made a whistle. Numerous students came out of the woods behind. They then stood behind Amon and Xin Wuming.


    Yan Long looked at those students with disbelief. He had heard that Amon had been offering the students they bullied to join his newly-made faction, but how could he already have so many members in such a short time? There were more than thirty people there.


    Although the number was not as many as the five of thembined, it was still a considerable increase in threat. Before, they were facing only two people. Even if one of them was the first ranker, they never thought of him as a threat. No matter how strong Amon was, no way he could fight them all. Now, with thirty additional people backing him, it was apletely different situation.


    Of course, their real number was not just the one they brought here. They had many more members. They only brought around ten people so that they could intimidate Amon. Now they wished they had brought more.


    The five respective leaders looked at one another. If a fight broke out, would they be able to cooperate? They themselves were enemies to each other, after all.


    "Are we going to fight or are we going to just stare at one another?" Amon asked.


    When the five didn''t respond, he bellowed, "If you don''t want to fight, then scrammed! Our territory no longer wees you!"


    "Do you think you can make us?" Xian Hu yelled.


    "Continue to stay and you will find out," Amon threatened.


    "Hah! Do you think you are so great because you are the first rank? You don''t even have any affinity!" Yan Long shouted. He then turned to the students standing behind Amon, "Why do you people follow him? Do you think he is anything special? He has no affinity! In five years, we will all be better practitioners than him! You are all very dumb if you let yourself be tricked by him!"<sub> </sub>


    "Then what if I also join?" A thundering voice bellowed. Arge man jumped passed the crowd andnded next to Amon. It was Wu Di.


    "If you fuss about affinity, no one can top mine! I choose to help the Vicious faction! What are you going to do?"


    "You¡­!" Yan Long was speechless. It''s this aggravating brute again.


    Amon looked at Wu Di, wondering why this man came to his aid again.


    "Wu Di? What are you doing? Come over here!" Wu Yang, the young master who had a small conflict with Amon when they entered Qishurg City, said. He was standing with the group from the Nobles faction. He had been eager to scold Amon as well, but he knew he was just a small yerpared to Yan Long, so he kept his mouth shut. However, when Wu Di, his fellow n member, appeared, he couldn''t help but speak.


    "Oh, it''s you, the spoiled child," Wu Di said after noticing Wu Yang.


    "You¡­! How dare you say that to me. You are just a bastard. Youe over here now! Our Wu n is always under the Nobles faction. If you dare to oppose us, don''t expect to be let back into the n anymore."


    "Hah! You dolt! Why do you think I fight to get the chance to enter this royal academy? I have no intention of going back to that shit hole!"


    "You¡­!!"


    "Haha, what a crowd. Let me join in as well!" This time, it was a woman''s voice. This woman jumped into the inner circle in a simr manner as Wu Di. When shended, Amon saw that it was Tuang Yin.


    "What do you want?" Amon asked.


    "Some people wanted to harass my boyfriend. Of course, Ie to help," She dered.


    Boyfriend? Everybody was wondering whom she meant.


    Amon ignored her. He returned his attention to the freshman faction leaders. "I will give you people one minute. If you don''t vacate this ce by then. We will settle this with our fists," Amon dered. After that, he folded his arms and counted the time internally.


    "Do you think you can scare us with these ragtag members?!" Yan Long yelled.


    "Lin Mo, it is better that you not provoke us," An Ling said.


    "Sister Ling is right. If you truly want to build a new faction, building a good rtionship with the existing ones is betterpared to making an enemy out of all of us."


    Amon just stared at them. He didn''t bother to respond anymore.


    "Hey! Do you listen?!" Ming Jin uttered.


    "Forty seconds more," Amon said instead.


    "You lunatic!" Ming Jin scolded.


    "Haha, let''s have a good fight!" Wu Di eximed.


    "Yeah!" Xin Wuming showed his readiness, he shouted to the others behind, "Everyone, get ready!"


    "Hmph! Let''s leave! He is not worth it to get called into the tutor''s office for having arge-scale fight," An Ling said. She turned around and left. Her members followed her.


    One person left causing another to follow. The Heroic faction also left. The leader was only a representative. If they got into a fight here and caused members to be wounded, he would have to answer to Yong Gan, the real freshman leader of the faction.


    With two factions leaving, their number was now equal to Amon''s group. Ming Jin didn''t see it as a prospective fight. He also issued the order for his members to leave.


    The Nobles and the Virtuous were thest to leave. They both left threats before they left.


    "You, watch your back!" Xian Hu threatened.


    "Don''t you think this is over!" Yan Long also said.


    Amon snickered. He was amused that retreating people enjoy throwing such threats. As if it would save their pride.

 150 Chapter 150

    After the factions were gone, the students behind him made a triumphant cry. Amon didn''t think there was anything to celebrate. This was just the beginning. They didn''t actually win anything yet.


    "Hmph! Good riddance," Wu Di announced. He then pped Amon''s shoulder. "Brother Lin, if you ever need anything. Just call me, and I will do my best to help! You are an inspiration to us all. When I heard you go around to protect these people from being bullied, I came at once to see if I can offer assistance. I always look up to people who uphold justice! You have my admiration! Keep up the good work. I wille and help around whenever I can."


    Wu Di gave Amon a farewell salute and then left.


    ''Justice? Heh, a simple-minded fool. But, probably a useful one...,'' Amon thought while staring at Wu Di''s back.


    An approaching voice apanied by ppings broke Amon''s train of thought, "Bravo, brother Lin Mo, bravo!"


    Amon turned to the voice and saw it was Zhuan San who approached.


    "Are you hiding at the side all this time?" Xin Wuming asked.


    "Of course, you can''t expect me toe out and make myself an enemy to the five factions now, can you?"


    "What happen to the mutual protection you mentioned before?"


    "No fights happened. Additionally, your boss never exactly confirmed the partnership," Zhuan San replied. Then to Amon, he said, "Still, if you are going to be like this and pick a fight with the most powerful groups around in just the first week since we enter this academy, I might need to rethink this partnership offer."


    "Then no need to partner up. I never ask for it, anyway," Amon said.


    "So cold. But brother Lin, isn''t it smarter to justy low and cultivate quietly until you are strong enough?" Zhuan San asked.


    "Don''t lump me in with the other boring people you know. I don''t do things quietly. I had enough of staying under the radar, it''s time to make some noises. This ce has a controlled environment. There is a limitation on how far my enemies can do here. I can take on a few calcted risks while building my influence."


    "Going against those factions are calcted risks? Hehe, brother Lin Mo. It is indeed interesting to know you. But still, you criticized me when I express interest in rounding up loners to form my circle. Now, you are doing exactly that."


    "I didn''t criticize you, I simply asked," Amon said. "You can me yourself for beingte in taking action."


    "Haha, don''t get me wrong, brother Lin. I ain''t upset about it. Even if I do it first, I won''t get the same result as you. I don''t have the charisma and recognition that you have. I mean, look at them, in just one day, you have already made all these people follow you."


    The thirty-something students had all dispersed and done their own things, but they kept around the area. They cultivated, trained, and chatted with one another in the area. Now that they had their territory, they could use this ce to cultivate and train while they waited for their turn to use the cultivation pagoda and the training buildings. The dormitory they were staying at didn''t have the facility to do that, after all. Unlike the top ten''s private dwellings.


    "Still, I can''t say that I envy the ce you choose to mark your territory," Zhuan San said. "The flow of aether here is just so-so. The trees in the woods didn''t produce any spirit fruits. This ce is not much better than any other ce."


    "If the ce is too good, other parties will fight more ferociously for it," Amon said.


    "Yeah. The best ce is already upied by the five factions," Zhuan San agreed.


    "Let them keep those ces, for now. We are just a small gang at the moment, but we will grow."


    Zhuan San looked at Amon with a glint. Was he nning to strengthen his faction to seize the other factions'' territories?


    "Gang? What''s a gang?" Tuang Yin asked. Amon looked at her, he thought the girl had also left already when themotion was over.


    "It''s a term where I was from. It meant a group of ouws who banded together," Amon answered.


    ''Where he was from?'' Xin Wuming wondered. He was the same as Amon from White Cloud City but he never heard that term.<sub> </sub>


    "So, we are ouws now?" Tuang Yin asked.


    "We? Themotion is already over, why haven''t you left?" Amon asked back.


    "So cold. Is that how you talk to your girlfriend?" Tuang Yin talked back.


    Amon decided to ignore her. He had no interest to entertain this girl. Zhuan San was looking at the two with a meaningful smile.


    "Anything else you want to talk about? I still have many things to take care of," Amon said to Zhuan San.


    "No. Please don''t worry about me. You just do what you do," Zhuan San said. However, he was not leaving. Amon thought about chasing him away but decided against it. Amon was not yet sure about this person, so it''s better to not antagonize him."


    Amon left Zhuan San and walk some distance away before calling everyone to gather. Tuang Yin was tagging by his side. Amon decided to continue ignoring her.


    After everyone gathered, Amon took out some small pouches from his space ring. Each pouch contained several wads of paper. The inside was a healthy dosage for one-time use of Thousand Dream Powder, the recreational drug that Amon had created from his Thousand Dream Poison.


    He described the nature of this drug and told his members to sell them to the other students. They were allowed to give one student one wad of free sample. After that, the buyer had to pay twenty aer stones for one wad. The members who sessfully sold the drug would be given a thirty percentmission.


    At the same time, Amon asked them to spread the word to recruit more members into their faction. Amon told them each member would receive one free dosage of this Thousand Dream Powder weekly. For members who stayed for longer than three months would receive two free dosages each week.


    Amon wasn''t afraid that using this drug would cause him trouble with the academy staff. Unlike in his past world, there was no recreational drug here. The drugs in this world were mostly cultivation and restorative pills, which were freely used inside this academy. Amon''s Thousand Dream Powder was perhaps the first recreational drug to exist in this world. It would take some time before an addiction problem started showing and the authority took action about the issue. Until then, Amon intended to fully utilize this drug to his advantage.


    "Can I try some?" Tuang Yin asked.


    "May I also?" Zhuan San joined. The fellow had sneaked in and joined in to listen.


    "Non-members please leave," Amon replied.


    The students that had joined Amon''s faction one by one took the pouches. They were at first unsure about this faction. Most of them had gathered here due to a fit of fervor. Almost all of them were from poor and small ns. The wealthy ns had mostly joined the five factions. Hence, they were used to oppression. However, this didn''t mean they enjoy it, though. When Amon made himself their champion to stand against those bullies, they at once came under his banner.


    They admitted it was an act of impulse. They couldn''t deny how satisfying it was when they saw those groups from the five factions retreat. They had been bullied in their home cities. They thought when they came to this academy, the situation would be different. But it was the same. Just within this one week, they already felt like things had returned to how it was where they came from. So, when Amon came and chased those bullies away, they felt good.


    Yet, none of them was thinking this was a long-term thing. Some of them had already started thinking of distancing themselves from Amon lest they became the target of the five factions'' retaliation.


    Now, however, Amon had given them an avenue to make some ie. Selling one wad would them amission of six aer stones. Each pouch contained a hundred wads. If they could sell all of them, wouldn''t they receive six hundred aer stones from themission? They were all from poor ns, so they all had limited funding. Such a number was meaningful for them.


    Many of them were skeptical, though. Amon''s description of the drug was wonderful, but was it truly so? Amon had permitted them to test one of the wads themselves. Amon understood by experiencing the effect themselves, they would have a better understanding of the products, and hence could better market the products.


    So, all of the students who had received the pouch started to look for a private corner to give the drug a try.


    Zhuan San approached a random student and offered to buy the first wad. He then took that wad and went away to give it a try.


    Tuang Yin followed his example.


    Amon left them be. He left instructions to Xin Wuming to act on his behalf when he was gone and toe to look for him in his house if needed. He had set so his outside barrier permitted Xin Wuming to enter.

 151 Chapter 151

    Amon walked home after that. He had nted the seed for his faction, now he would let them grow. They might need nurturing from time to time, but it shouldn''t cause him to neglect his personal growth.


    When he approached the foot of the mountain where the top ten''s houses were located, he found there to be a group of four people waiting. From their appearance, they didn''t look like freshman students. They looked older. Two were men, the other women. One of the two men saw Amon, he notified the others. The four then walked over to Amon.


    ''They were waiting for me?'' Amon thought after seeing the four''s reaction.


    Amon stopped and waited for the four to approach, all the while paying attention to their small movements.


    ''All of them might be stronger than me,'' Amon thought.


    "I thought junior and senior students are restricted from entering the freshman section," Amon said when they arrived.


    "It''s just a general rule. No one will fuss about it as long as no problem urs," One of the men said.


    "So, you are not here to cause a problem?" Amon asked.


    The man who spoke smiled. He then said while gesturing to hispanions, "Let me introduce ourselves. I am An Wong. This is Lin Fei. The two lovelydies here are Xie Muling and Mei Lin."


    "Bloodless faction?" Amon asked. Three of them were from ns that were in the faction. He supposed thest one, Mei Lin, was a member of the Unity Sisters Sect.


    "You are quite knowledgeable for a freshman student," An Wong said. "Yes, we are all members of the Bloodless faction and I am the leader of junior year."


    "It is interesting meeting the freshman leader and junior leader of your faction on the same day, perhaps I can meet with your senior leader as well?" Amon said.


    "Who do you think you are? Do you think our leader from the senior section has the time for a worm like you?" Lin Fei uttered. Out of the four, he was the one showing an unfriendly expression toward Amon.


    An Wong waved for him to calm down. He then asked Amon, "So, you''ve met An Ling?"


    An Wong''s words indicated that these junior members of the faction were not aware of what happened just now between Amon and the five factions of the freshman ss.


    "I thought she refused to go and recruit him?" Mei Lin spoke to An Wong.


    "Well, that sister of mine might be prideful and stubborn, but it seemed she still knows when to put down her pride for the good of the n."


    "She didn''te to recruit me. Are you people here to try to recruit me?" Amon asked.


    "We are giving you the chance to join our faction," Lin Fei uttered. "Recruit makes you seem as if you are important. You are not!"


    Amon sneered. "Then, why did four members from the junior ss have toe all this way for me? Not to mention, one of you is even the faction leader," He asked.


    Lin Fei''s face turned red. He wanted to talk back but he was stopped by An Wong''sugh. "Haha. There is no need to mince words. We dide to recruit you because we do think of you as worthy. The first ranker in the entrance exam. You joining the Bloodless faction will give our faction more credibility and invite more people to join."


    Amon grinned. "Unfortunately, you have wasted your time."


    "How dare you make fun of us?!" Lin Fei yelled. "Who do you think you are to dare say no? We have given you face bying here ourselves, you think you can live a peaceful life in the academy after this?"


    "Heh, a peaceful life is at the bottom of the list of things I desire," Amon snickered.


    "You...!"


    An Wong again waved at Lin Fei to calm down. He then asked Amon, "May I know the reason for your refusal?"


    "Go asked An Ling. She will tell you," Amon said.


    An Wong frowned. Did her sister do something that offended Amon? He had told her his desire to recruit the first ranker who happened to also be a Lin n. He even asked her to do it since she was in the same freshman ss as Amon. But her sister had refused. She considered it beneath her to go and recruit someone. If Amon came and asked her for a membership, then that''s a different matter. An Wong, however, thought it was better to do the recruitment before the other factions snatch Amon away. That''s why he was here.<sub> </sub>


    "If my sister had done something that offended you, I''m sure it''s just a misunderstanding. There is no need to dwell on it," An Wong said to Amon.


    Amon grinned and thought amusingly, ''It is I who have offended her.'' To An Wong, he said, "Go and ask your sister. You will know."


    He then walked past the four without excusing himself. But after taking several steps, someone abruptly stood before him. It was Lin Fei.


    ''At least beginning Transformation stage,'' Amon thought after seeing Lin Fei''s movement.


    "Lin Mo! Don''t think you are special just because you are the first ranker in the entrance exam. You are still just a bastard in our Lin n. Do you not believe I will teach you a lesson here and now on behalf of our n?"


    "Sure, go ahead. We will see how you exin to the tutors about fighting in the freshman section, right after you wake up in the infirmary ward," Amon said. Energy swirled around his body, preparing for a confrontation. He was also paying attention to the three behind him, in case they tried to sneak an attack on his back.


    "There is no need for violence," Amon heard An Wong''s voice from the back but before he knew it, the man was already beside Lin Fei, holding his arm as a gesture for him to stand down.


    ''His movement art is very profound,'' Amon thought.


    "It is a pity that you don''t wish to join," An Wong said. "But I will not force it. Since you are unwilling, we will leave you."


    Amon resumed his walk again afterward.


    "Lin Mo!" Lin Fei''s voice was heard again. "I''m d that you don''t join Bloodless, which means I will have a chance to deal with youter. Lin Fen is my little sister, and I know you are the reason she had been disqualified and failed to enter this academy. I also know that it was you who caused several of our n members to suffer injuries during their journey here. Our n had given you food and shelter and this was how you repay us. Make no mistake, I will im all these debts sooner orter."


    Amon stopped when Lin Fei called him again, but he didn''t turn back. He now replied without turning back. "Come at me any time." He then resumed his walk.


    Lin Fei gritted his teeth. He was very eager to teach this arrogant kid a lesson.


    "Let''s go. This is not the ce," An Wong said to him. "We will get into trouble if an incident happens because of us here."


    Lin Fei nodded reluctantly before following the three and left.


    Amon didn''t put the four in his thought. Once he was back in his house, he went to the basement and cultivate.


    *


    Amon was back to his routine for the following days, joining the theory ss when one was avable, cultivating and training his arts in the afternoon and night. In the morning, he experimented with poison and also produced more Thousand Dream Powder for his weekly stock.


    None of the initial members who joined his faction quit. After consuming Amon''s Thousand Dream Powder, they were hooked. Additionally, they still got additional ie from helping him distribute the drugs. More and more got addicted to his drugs. Those that came from poor ns opted to join Amon''s faction to get the free batch as well as the additional ie by helping Amon sell the products.


    Amon received a steady ie of aer stones from his members and at the same time, his faction grew in number. Amon gave them instructions to either stay within the main section or their territory. It was not yet time to look for trouble with the other factions. He left Xin Wuming in charge of organizing the members on a daily basis.


    Amon drafted basic rules as guidelines to keep everyone in line. Every member had to abide by them. Together with the rules Amon also devised a timetable for them to follow and maximize their time in this academy. He prohibited them from taking any missions for now.


    In the second week, Amon started to take the specialization ss. He tried all of them. The alchemy teaches general recipes. The tutor in the ss exined that there was another way to get better recipes aside from using academic points, but one had to be willing to spend more time doing alchemy here. If the tutor considered the student masterful enough, the tutor was allowed to teach them new recipes.


    Amon had no desire to be a pill master. He studied alchemy only to help him to better learn his 101 Primal Poison Tome. So, Amon only spent two days dabbling in alchemy before he moved on to the next building.


    Inside the engraving building, the tutor also exined the same thing. Aside from using academic points, Amon might be granted new words of power if Amon spent enough time producing products and were deemed to be masterful enough. Amon spent another couple of days and then went to the smithing building.


    In the smithing, Amon learned the basics by crafting a simple knife. Amon took the chance to learn how to make a flying knife by using his avable ones as a model. The tutor gave Amon advice and pointers to help Amon better learn the craft. He ended up spending almost a week inside the smithing building.


    By the end of the week, he was now able to make his own flying knives, as long as he had the tools and materials. Unfortunately, the ones he had made were properties of the academy, so he couldn''t take them. He received academic points for them, though.

 152 Chapter 152

    Even though smithing was fascinating, Amon had no need for it after learning how to craft his flying knives. He went to thest building in the Specialization ssplex, the talisman making.


    Amon had read some information regarding talisman making from books, but he had never tried it. Now, he intended to learn its basics. The ss here provides tutors and tools, it was the best ce to learn.


    Talisman making involved using paper made of special material and ink produced from alchemy using spirit beast''s blood infused with aer stones. Simr to the tools from the other specialization ss, there were different grades of paper and ink for the craft. The ones provided in this ss were, of course, the lowest grade ones.


    The process of talisman-making was almost simr to engraving. It involves words of power as well. But while engraving produced a product thatsted, talisman making produce a product that was only to be used once. A talisman would disintegrate once it was activated and carried out its intended purpose.


    Amon spent a few days inside this Talisman-making ss to learn its basics. The basic word of power he learned during this talisman-making ss was different from the ones he learned for engraving. The tutor, however, exined that some words of power could be used for both specialization jobs. These words of power were not circted to the public, though.


    The basic word of power he learned during the ss was to make the talisman explode. It was the create the same talisman as the ones inside his space ring, the ones he had taken from Wei Lun''s corpse inside the White Cloud sect''s secret dimension.


    He should have expected it. The one avable for Wei Lun to learn was most likely the most basic talisman. Wei Lun was not a high-ranking member in the Wei n to afford higher-level words of power.


    Talisman-making was as punishing as engraving. One mistake in drawing the lines would end up in failure. The paper would then be wasted and a new one had to be used. A wrong thickness on the drawn lines could also contribute to failure. Thus, the academy limited a student to only ten tries within a day.


    Before they were even given permission to use proper talisman paper, they had to learn calligraphy writing first. Only when the tutor saw that the student''s writing was perfect most of the time that they were allowed to give talisman-making a try. Of course, writing while injecting aether into the paintbrush was much more difficult than when they were just training with calligraphy writing. Hence, most students still failed all the ten tries they were given during their first attempts.


    Amon managed to seed on his first day''s attempt, but he still wasted eight tries, though. He produced two exploding talismans out of his ten tries of the day. This impressed the tutor a lot. The tutor said he had a great talent for talisman-making and showered him with praises, in the hope that Amon would continue to spend his time there.


    The next day after that, Amon no longer showed up.


    Amon was only interested in learning the basics, he didn''t have enough time to focus on everything. He might only have enough time to focus on one specialization out of the four. He chose to improve his engraving skill.


    So, aside from cultivating, training arts, and experimenting with poison on his own. The rest of his time he spent attending the theory sses when they were avable and practicing engraving at the engraving ss.


    The daily matter with the Vicious faction he left to Xin Wuming. He gave him instruction and batches of the thousand Dream Powders when Wuming visited him daily to give a report on the faction''s progress.


    More members joined. Mostly because this new faction wasn''t discriminating when epting members. Vicious just epted everyone that was interested. Another reason was because of the growing poprity of the Thousand Dream Powders. Many joined to get a free weekly quota or to get some extra aer stones ie by helping distribute the powders.


    During the asion when Amon checked in on his territory, he found that Lin Anwen had joined his faction. Amon asked him why he didn''t join the Bloodless where most senior Lin members were, he answered that he didn''t know those Lin seniors. Amon was the only one he knew within this academy. The other Lin members who came with them, Lin Fen and Lin Baxiong, had failed to enter this academy.


    Amon didn''t mind, as long as Lin Anwen followed hismand.


    Despite the growing number of members, Amon gave Xin Wuming the instruction to organize the members so that only forty members were hanging out at any one time inside their territory. The others were told to spend their time inside the pagoda or training buildings or roamed around the main section. They were given strict warnings to not wander near the other factions'' territories, though.


    Still, despite the warning, incidents still happened. They were all living inside the same freshman section, after all.


    This incident happened three weeks after the freshman students joined the academy. Xin Wuming came to Amon''s residence in a panic. When Amon asked what was wrong, he said one of their members had been held by the Nobles faction.


    The Nobles imed that this particr member had trespassed their territory and thus he was apprehended. The leader of the Vicious faction had toe and offer a public apology as well as provide one thousand aer stones inpensation if they want the member back.<sub> </sub>


    Amon sneered. He had been wondering why it took such a long time for this to happen. He knew that sooner orter, one of those factions would look for trouble. They were probably waiting to see who acted first and would act ordingly after seeing Amon''s reaction. In the end, it was the Nobles faction that seemed to have lost patience.


    If Amon didn''te to beg for the release of his faction member, then other students would see that the Vicious faction was all bark and no bite. That this fledgling faction was unable to protect its members. If this was the case, no one would be willing to join anymore. The existing members might even leave.


    If Amon came andplied with their demand, that would show the rest of the students that the fledgling faction was beneath the five original factions. The Vicious faction would lose its reputation and this would dissuade other students from joining.


    Either way, the Nobles believed with this move, they had crippled the Vicious faction. The other four factions had the same viewpoints. They didn''t involve themselves in this conflict but they paid attention to how the matter was developing.


    "Gather our members," Amon gave Xin Wuming hismand. "But take the members separately. I will go to our territory and move with our members from there. You moved with the others. When you arrived..."


    Amon told Xin Wuming what to do. After that, the two left Amon''s house.


    Arriving in the garden that is his territory, Amon saw around forty students with glum looks. They had heard about one of them getting snatched by one of the five factions. They were eager to go help this poor member, but they were afraid of offending those kids from the big ns. All of them here came from second-rate or third-rate ns. If they offend those big ns'' kids, they won''t have a good future. Some of them were already having the thought of quitting the Vicious faction.


    Amon understood the meaning of their expressions. He thought it was normal. They had lived under an oppressed state of mind, where they had to bow to those bigger ns. The world they lived in was based on hierarchy. Those that didn''t know their ces were always getting squashed.


    "Everyone! Gather around!" Amon called.


    They saw their leader and came over with weak steps. They stood around facing Amon at the center.


    After seeing everyone approached, Amon asked, "Are you afraid of those kids from the big ns?"


    They looked at each other, but no one answered Amon''s question.


    "Are you afraid that you will get into trouble from those big ns for offending their kids?" Amon asked again.


    ? Still, no one answered. Everyone knew they were indeed afraid. But being asked in such a blunt way, they couldn''t help but be ashamed of their cowardice. Their heads hung low from embarrassment.


    "There is no need to feel ashamed, I know you do," Amon said. "But are you going to let this feeling govern you? Are you going to let yourself forever be under their thumbs? Why do youe here?!"


    Amon''s voice grew louder with histest question.


    "Is it not to change your fate? Is it not to escape the circumstances of being in a weak n where you have to always bow to those stronger ns? Did you note here hoping that you can join the royal kingdom so you no longer have to bow to those ns? Are your resolves that weak? If you still carry that feeling of inferiority here, then nothing will change! The kingdom will not bother with weaklings. If you want to be acknowledged, then you have to show your strength. The strength to tell those big ns'' kids that all of you are no less than them!"


    "All those big ns, do you think they were big right from the start? They also started from nothing! It is with the courage to brave the waves that one can change their destiny. This kingdom of Echos, how do you think it came to be? It''s because the founder of this kingdom defeated the old kingdom! If the founder didn''t have the guts to stand tall and went against the previous kingdom, there will be no Echos kingdom. The current royal family will still be bowing to the old kingdom."


    "Only by having the audacity to challenge these bigger ns, you will have a chance to ovee them. I now offer you the chance for that! I am going to head over and challenge the Nobles faction to free our friend whom they had held against his will. Any of you who don''t want toe with me, you can leave now! We will go our separate ways. Only those of you who are brave enough to challenge your fate maye with me."


    "Now, who wants to leave?!"

 153 Chapter 153

    The students that stood around Amon, although they came from poor ns, they were the best those ns had to offer. Different from those rich ns who sent their young generations who are talented yet the ns didn''t wish to nurture directly. These poor ns didn''t have enough resources to properly nurture any of their talented descendants. Hence, they sent their best in the hope that the royal academy could help them grow. Even ifter they ended up leaving the ns and joining the royal kingdom, it was still better than letting them rot in their poor ns.


    Hence, all these students even though having a feeling of inferiority against the big ns, they also possessed the pride of being the best from where they came from. All of them had the thought that if only they were provided the same resources as those big ns'' descendants, they won''t lose.


    Most of all, they were all hot-headed teenagers. After being challenged in such a way by Amon, how could they back off?


    Amon''s words had struck a fire inside them. They had been feeling oppressed for so long. Ever since they were born, they were told to be careful to not offend those big ns. Only now that they heard someone tell them to stand up against these big ns. This was what the small voice inside their hearts had been telling them to do for a long time, ever since they first experienced bullying from the big ns'' kids. They thought this voice had vanished already. Now, this voice hade back with a holler. Telling them that it was time to stop taking shit! It is time to stand the fuck up!


    "Hahaha! I don''t know about them, but I''m for sure going to join instead of leaving!"


    A teenager with a body asrge as Amonnded beside Amon.


    ''The simpleton,'' Amon thought after seeing Wu Di. This person was not officially his faction member, but since he had offered himself, Amon didn''t object.


    "Brother Lin Mo, count me in! Your speech about challenging fate and overthrowing the oppressors has truly riled me up. I''vee to this academy precisely to break away from those assholes in the Wu n. I''ve always hated those bullies who abuse their power. Kidnapping a student in broad daylight, I came as soon as I heard. I will follow even if you don''t let me!"


    "Count this big sister in as well!" Tuang Yin came forward. Amon had seen her among his crowd, he just ignored her. She was also not truly a member of the faction, she came and go as she pleased. She didn''t abide by the rules and timetables that Amon had established. The others tolerated her because they had seen her help during the confrontation with the five factions.


    "Anyone giving trouble to my boyfriend''s faction will have to answer me!" She dered.


    ''Will you stop it with the boyfriend thing,'' Amon thought. But he didn''t try to chase her away. She was an additional pawn to be used.


    With the two''s announcing their fiery support, the others were also affected. They started to show their determination as well. Amon looked at them. He could see the me in their eyes. Nobody showed any intention of leaving. He had stoked enough fire. Any further words might have the reverse effect. He had to strike when the iron was hot.


    "I''m going! Any of you who wish toe with me, thene!" Amon eximed and started walking.


    He heard footsteps following behind him and grinned.


    *


    In a wide field with beautiful scenery filled with decorative sculptures, tended nts, a small pond, and a small garden filled with flowers, around seventy students were hanging out leisurely. Surrounded by them was one student who was bound. His face was ck and blue with blooding out of his nostrils. He was shivering in fear as the students around him continued to antagonize him.


    "See what you get for joining a nobody faction?" An antagonizing student said. "You are such a fool. You should have expected this to happen. Not only do you not join the Bloodless like the other Lin people that came before you, but you also have to go and support an upstart from your n. You deserve this beating."


    "Brother Lin Mo will not give in to your demand!" The bound student eximed. The bound student was no other than Lin Anwen, the only other Lin member that had managed to join the academy in this batch.<sub> </sub>


    The Nobles had targeted him because he was from the same n as Amon. Since Lin Anwen had chosen to join Amon''s faction instead of the Bloodless which had many of their seniors in the Junior and Senior sses, they figured that he might have a special rtionship with Amon. They thought that with Lin Anwen as a hostage, Amon would be anxious and act to their advantage.


    They had had people monitoring that upstart faction. They mostly had forty members seen. It was normal considering the faction had just been established. To get that many students joining was already impressive. They had thought at first that the initial thirty members would reduce. But instead, they increased. But the increase seemed to stop at forty as that was the number of students they saw within the faction''s territory. Even if there were more who were having activities elsewhere, they should be no more than fifty.


    Hence, they didn''t think the need to force all their members to be present here. They had around eighty members in total. Seventy were here, the other ten were doing their activities elsewhere. Including the freshman faction leader, Gao Dou.


    "Hmph! All Gao descendants are selfish. They never truly bother to lead the faction, they just do whatever they want. They should have just given the rein of leadership to us, the Yan n," A man uttered. He appeared the oldest among the teenagers here. That''s because he was. He was not of the freshman ss, he was from the Junior ss. His name was Yan Dose, a cousin of Yan Long.


    "You are right, cousin," Yan Long agreed. "I am the one who organized everything. That Gao Dou didn''t even bother with anything."


    "Maybe you shouldn''t talk too loud about this, people might hear," Wu Yang said. Since he had a grudge against Amon, he was the second most passionate person to stage a conflict with the Vicious n. He was Yan Long''s second inmand due to that.


    "Hmph! Let them hear," Yan Dose said.


    "But, cousin, why are you here?" Yan Long asked.


    "The news about a new faction appearing in the freshman ss had spread to the junior and senior ss. Although most of us thought this new faction was nothing but a tasteless joke that will disappear on its own, some of us still express concern. If anymoners think they can go and create a new faction, this can be a bad precedent for the others. I am here to make sure whether we should take them seriously or not."


    "They are just a joke. There is no need to take them seriously. After this, they will slowly disperse by themselves," Yan Long said.


    "Hopefully that is the case," Yan Dose said.


    The five factions had also been developing their influence. The freshman ss was always the best ce to recruit new blood. Most of the members in the Junior and Senior factions were the fixed members who joined during their freshman years. Hence, whether their faction could continue to thrive after the next five years very much depended on the freshman years. Otherwise, they would have to poach other faction members to increase their number or try to recruit those who were unaffiliated. However, if a student wasn''t interested in joining a faction during their freshman years, it was unlikely they would do so when they entered junior or senior years.


    During their vigorous campaign, the Nobles had collected eighty members. They had heard the Virtuous had roughly the same headcount. The remaining three factions, Bloodless, Astute, and Heroic, were rumored to have around sixty to seventy members.


    Of course, despite they were trying hard to get members, they still ced strict requirements for people joining. They were the five factions, after all. They had a reputation to keep. They couldn''t just let anyone enter, which they understood was what the new Vicious faction was doing, epting any stray dogs that were willing. For this, they looked down on Vicious even more. Even after lowering their application requirement to non-existent, this faction could still only get forty members. It wasughable.


    There was a total of 982 students who had passed the entrance exam and be freshman students, so there were still plenty of students to be recruited. But many among these students also formed their own smaller groups or simply wished nothing to do with the five factions. Normally, the total number of students who ended up in the five factions was around half of the existing students. With one additional faction appearing, it reduced the potential recruit since now they had one more faction topete with. Hence, none of the five factions were thrilled when they learned about this sixth faction.


    Yan Dose looked in the distance. His ears picked up the sounds of many footsteps approaching.


    "They trulye, eh?" He said.

 154 Chapter 154

    Soon, the others also heard it. They then saw arge group of people walking over. They had been rxed because they thought Amon would choose the easy way and ignore their demand and let Lin Anwen rot here. But now that Amon showed up, they hurriedly stood up and gathered to put on an intimidating disy.


    Yan Long looked back at his members, their number was almost twice the opponents. There was no need for concern.


    Yan Long looked to the front again and found that the enemy not only had one of his most hated people in this academy but two. That brute, Wu Di, was walking beside Amon.


    ''Fine then, I will embarrass them both at the same time,'' Yan Long thought.


    Yan Long waited for them toe nearer. He just stood there with an arrogant expression. Yan Dose stood at the side quietly.


    Amon arrived and stopped in front of Yan Long. They only had three meters of space in between them. The ones he hade with stood behind him. Some had worried expressions, the fire that they felt when they departed had diminished by a little. But many still wore determined looks. The march had instead further reinforced them, making them feel like they were together in this. They felt like a family. It gave them a feeling that they could take on these people even if they were less in number.


    "Where is Anwen?" Amon asked. He stood tall and folded his arms.


    ''Heh, let''s see how long you can continue to act tough,'' Yan Long said in his mind. He then made a wave. Two students dragged Lin Anwen out.


    "Bro¡­ brother Lin Mo¡­," Lin Anwen said weakly. He was touched that Amon had shown up for him.


    Amon didn''t show any expression upon seeing Lin Anwen''s battered body. He had expected as much. His underlings, though, felt anger built up within. Especially those who had started viewing this faction as their new family. One of their families had been beaten, how could they be calm about it?


    However, it was an outsider of either side who spoke first. "You bunch of degenerates! Who do you think you are to beat a fellow student?!" Wu Di yelled.


    "Shut up, you brute!" Yan Long shot back. "So, are you formally with the Vicious faction now? Good, we will just deal with you together, but now is not your turn to speak up."


    "I will speak when I want, you twat! If you want me to shut up thene and make me!" Wu Di didn''t relent.


    "Do you think I''m afraid of you? Have you gotten a good look at your surrounding?"


    The members of the Nobles faction spread out. With more people, they could afford to surround the smaller group.


    "You think you can win with more people? Bring it on! I will show you what it meant to cross me," Wu Di uttered and assumed a fighting stance. The others from both sides were also getting ready for a fight due to Wu Di''s provocation.


    "Halt!" Yan Dose, who had been quiet beside Yan Long, ordered. Stopping the Nobles members from lunging forward.


    Amon didn''t do anything to stop his underling, but they were not rash enough to attack a force stronger than them. Wu Di also stayed in his position. He might have talked big but he knew their chance wasn''t good.


    "Freshman Lin Mo, did that man just now spoke on your behalf," Yan Dose asked, referring to Wu Di.


    "And who are you?" Amon asked back. The person who had just spoken was older than them. Amon also hadn''t seen him among those who had passed the entrance exam.


    "He is our superior in the Nobles faction, one of our seniors in the Junior ss. Show respect!" Yan Long announced.


    "What''s a junior student like you doing here anyway?" Amon asked.


    Yan Dose chuckled, "My name is Yan Dose. I''m here to make sure that our freshman members uphold the promise. You can rest assured that once you concede to our demands, we won''t trouble you anymore. We are, after all, not savages. As long as everyone acted appropriately, we should all be able to get along."


    The Vicious members were irked. They had kidnapped one of their friends and this guy was talking as if he had the moral high ground. As if he was doing them a favor."


    "And what are your demands?" Amon asked.


    "Just a simple apology and one thousand aer stones forpensation for your transgression two weeks ago. A few of our members were injured by you. We have to give them something to appease them, you see? Your donation of aer stones will smooth things over."<sub> </sub>


    "Those people were beating us. They deserved Boss Lin Mo''s beating!" One of the students that followed Amon eximed.


    "Freshman Lin Mo, you might need to teach your underlings some manners. They just keep on interrupting when they should be silent. If you want, I can help you teach them some lessons."


    "Won''t you get into trouble if youy a hand on a freshman student inside the freshman section," Amon asked.


    "Hehe. It should be all right if I just give a few pointers. With your permission, of course. This way, I believe your underlings won''t report it to the tutors," Yan Dose replied.


    "Now, why would I do that?" Amon asked.


    Yan Dose shrugged. "I''m just offering to help discipline your underlings. If you don''t appreciate it, I won''t force it."


    "Stop stalling! Are you going to apologize and pay thepensation or not?" Yan Long asked.


    Amon grinned. "You are right," he said.


    "About what?" Yan Long was confused.


    "I am stalling, but the wait is over now," Amon replied, which puzzled Yan Long even more.


    Despite having a conversation, Amon''s eyes had been paying attention to the surrounding. He had instructed Xin Wuming to bring the rest of their members here. Ones that were instructed to stay away from their territory.


    The reason Amon had limited the number of students hanging out inside their territory to forty people was to create the illusion that their faction growth had stuck on that number. The real number of members they had gained was actually close to eighty, the same number as the Nobles and Virtuous.


    Amon had predicted a confrontation would happen sooner orter. Previously, the five factions had been caught unaware. They at first thought they were only dealing with a rogue student, only to find out that this rogue student had manpower behind him. After that, the five factions chose to observe this new adversary before taking action. Amon knew all five factions would be sending people to take a close watch on their territory, so he used this to his advantage.


    The Nobles thought that the Vicious faction only had forty members, that''s why they had dared to go ahead with this n. Perhaps if Amon didn''t mask their number, all five factions would still act reserved and leave his faction alone for a while more, but that was not what Amon wanted. Amon wanted to give them an impression. An incident that told them if theye to bite Vicious, they would be the ones that got bitten back.


    Although his current members'' numbers were simr to the top factions, his members mostly came from poor ns. They might be talented but their development, as well as their arts, were most likely weaker than those top ns'' descendants. Thus, in a direct confrontation, his faction would be at a disadvantage even if they had an even number.


    However, it would be different if they got a jump on their opponents, which was where Xin Wuming came in. Amon had seen him and the rest of his underling sneaking from behind while the Nobles had their attention on them.


    "Attack!" Amon immediately gave themand. At the same time, his fist punched out with Bone Shattering Shadow Fist.


    The energy from the fist rushed at Yan Long. Yan Long was taken aback but he was deft enough to put his two arms up for a guard. Even then, he was sted back by the impact.


    "What¡­?!" Yan Dose was simrly bbergasted. Never for a second that he believed the current talk would devolve into physical fights. They clearly outnumbered the opponents, after all.


    When Yan Dose wanted to warn Amon of the stupidity of his action, Amon vanished from sight. He appeared again mystically where Lin Anwen was held. Trails of shooting stars followed his wake. These shooting stars mmed into the ones who were holding Anwen as well as the others nearby, causing them to fall back.


    Amon grabbed Lin Anwen and threw him back to where Vicious members were. Many Vicious members were still frozen in ce, simr to their opponents. During the march, Amon reminded them to act once he gave the order. But still, Amon''s action had been too abrupt. Amon not only caught the opponents off guard but also his own underlings.


    Wu Di and Tuang Yin were the first to react, they struck without hesitation at the nearest enemies. The others soon followed their leads. The Nobles members weren''t going to just let themselves be punching back, they were also retaliating.


    "Don''t touch that Yan guy from the Junior ss!" Amon reminded. If they hit him first, Yan Dose might use the excuse of self-defense. But if Yan Dose hit first, he could be reported to vite the rule of making trouble in the freshman section.


    "How absurd!" Yan Dose said after watching the scene. "Are they so eager to get a beating?!"


    Yan Dose then heard amotion from the back. He turned and found arge group of students wearing face masks ambushing them from behind.

 155 Chapter 155

    The students who came with Xin Wuming were all wearing face masks. This was Amon''s instruction.


    Even though Xin Wuming was a natural leader, as had been proven during the battle royale in White Cloud Tournament, Amon wasn''t convinced that Wuming would be able to persuade the remaining members to attack one of the top factions in this academy, like what he did with the forty underlings that came with him. Hence, Amon had told him to offer those members several things instead of trying to deliver a motivational speech.


    Firstly, each member participating in the attack would be granted three hundred aer stones. Secondly, everyone was allowed to cover their faces so that the Nobles members won''t recognize them in case they were worried about retaliation. But of course, if they stayed with the Vicious faction, they would still be a target of retaliation. This brought them to the third offer, which was that they were allowed to leave the Vicious faction after this fight, if they chose to. There would be no hard feelings.


    After getting these offers, all the rest of the members agreed to go join. They saw this as an opportunity to make quick money, channel their frustration on those big ns'' bullies, and remove themselves from the confrontation before things escted further with the five factions.


    Amon''s nning had allowed the Nobles members to get pinned in between his two forces. Being caught unaware, the Nobles members werete in their reactions. Many had received hits before they could channel their aether to execute a proper art.


    With this advantage, the Nobles members were unable to retaliate.


    Xin Wuming led the ambushers and barreled into the opponents without a care for himself. His skin was dark and rough. After getting his affinity known, He had been provided with a basic metal-element arcane art from the Practice ss. This art was called iron skin. The art made his skin as hard as metal and difficult to be pierced.


    Xin Wuming already had an undying body due to the special constitution after consuming the Thousand Year Mandrake, so this defensive art was seemingly pointless. But Amon had advised him to keep this special constitution a secret for the time being. When Wuming informed Amon of the free arcane art the Practice ss gave him, Amon was supportive of him learning it. This art could mask his special constitution so that it was unlikely for anyone to find out about his special constitution.


    On the other side, Tuang Yin was no less ferocious. Her hands were coated with me. Those that were touched by her were burnt. This ming hand arcane art was also one that was provided by the practice ss. She used it to supplement her original martial art even further, Eagle w.


    The three fingers on both her hands were shaped into a w. She moved dexterously as her fiery ws struck her opponents. Those that were caught by her ws were both burned and also had their bones cracked as her three fingers tightened with an iron grip.


    Many who at first looked down on her simply because she was a woman were now regretting it. Especially those that were caught by her eagle ws.


    Not far away from her was Wu Di, who simrly charged into the enemy''s fray without fear. After he threw two unsuspecting opponents who blocked his way to the ground, he came face to face with Yan Long who was still reeling from Amon''s first strike. Wu Di''s hand shone with glowing light. He had gotten this arcane art from the Practice ss, same as Xin Wuming and Tuang Yin. With his S-affinity, he quickly learned the art to the skilled mastery.


    "Hey, twat! I will use you as a practice dummy for my new art," Wu Di uttered.


    His glowing hand stabbed forward. The light around his hand became solid. It was as if he was projecting a de made out of light from his hand. The light de was aiming to stab Yan Long''s shoulder.


    Yan Long, whose affinity was with the water element, immediately use an arcane art of the element. But the art was not one granted by the academy, it was one he had learned from his n. This was an arcane art he had learned long ago, so his mastery was better. With his high masterybined with his affinity, the art took shape almost in an instant. A water bubble appeared around him, protecting him.


    However, Yan Long was still a fraction of a secondte. Wu Di''s light de was already halfway when the water bubble formed. Its tip managed to pierce into Yan Long''s flesh before the water bubble stop the light de from going further.


    "Argh...!" Yan Long groaned from the pain. "You, asshole! I will kill you!" He screamed in anger.


    He jumped back and at the same time his water bubble transformed into a pair of whips. These whipsshed at Wu Di.


    "Give me your best shot!" Wu Di wasn''t fazed by Yan Long''s threat. His muscle bulged and his skin tightened until his blood veins were noticeable. Those who were nearby felt Wu Di''s aura burst upon the transformation.


    His arms then blocked the iing water whips. The water whips caused a red mark on his arms but otherwise, he was unharmed. Wu Di advanced even as the whips continue tosh at him rapidly. His arms turned into a blur with many images. It was as if his arms had multiplied. The arms struck the whips that tried to hit him while he continued to push forward.<sub> </sub>


    Yan Long couldn''t help but feel intimidated by Wu Di''s forceful advance. The brute was almost upon him. He wanted to step back but his back bumped into another person who was also under pressure from the attacks from the back. Yan Long''s mind went nk for a beat. The pause caused his water whips to slow down, which let Wu Di make a lunge.


    Wu Di''s hand came at Yan Long again. The light de that had punctured Yan Long''s shoulder before was again formed on that advancing hand. Yan Long crossed his arms in front of him in an attempt to defend himself. The water whips merged and became a water bubble again. It hovered in front of Yan Long''s crossed arm.


    Yet, before Wu Di''s light de hit the water bubble, something got in between.


    It was a person, Yan Dose. Wu Di''s light de struck Yan Dose''s body but it didn''t cut through. Ayer of solid earth was blocking Wu Di''s light de.


    Yan Dose was the only one not fighting since no one from the Vicious faction wasing at him. He had intentionallye in between Yan Long and Wu Di. Firstly, to protect Yan Long from additional harm. Secondly, to give himself a reason to join the fight.


    Of course, even with the reason of self-defense, he would still be reprimanded and be given punishment for being involved in a fight with freshman students. But the punishment between self-defense and initiating a fight with a freshman student was the difference between heaven and earth. He didn''t want any punishment at all, but he couldn''t just let the Nobles of freshman years get defeated under his watch. The shame he had to bear would be uneptable.


    "Freshman, how dare you attack a junior student?" Yan Dose said to Wu Di before his fist shot forward.


    The fist alreadynded on Wu Di''s sr plexus before Wu Di registered what was happening. The punch forced Wu Di to retreat several steps back as he gasped for air.


    "You, people, who don''t know your ces. Feel the might of a transformation stage cultivator!" Yan Dose eximed and stomped the ground.


    A shockwave radiated on the ground, causing everyone to lose their footing. At the same time, several stones close to where Yan Dose was standing flew up as if getting pushed by the ground. Yan Dose made a wave, and these stones shot in all directions, hitting many of the Vicious members. He didn''t target their vital parts, though. He would be in big trouble if any of them die from his attack.


    After making his attack, he was about to demand everyone stop fighting. He figured that these two moves from him should have scared most of these freshman students to obedience. Yet, before he could speak, he saw the brute he had beaten back, Wu Di, was not down. The man was now rushing back at him.


    When he was about to give this brute a stronger art to put him down for sure, he saw a shadow from the corner of his eyes.


    "Watch out!" He heard Yan Long''s voice.


    He turned to his left where the shadow hade from, punching out at the same time. But the shadow had ducked away. He had a good look at this shadow now, it was Amon. Amon''s fist was about to hit his waist, but the same earth shield that had blocked Wu Di''s light de appeared and blocked Amon''s Bone Shattering Shadow Fist.


    When Yan Dose was about to retaliate, he felt something hot locking his right arm. He turned and saw Tuang Yin''s two fiery ws grabbing his arm. While he was still stunned, Amon kicked his knees and caused them to buckle. Amon then grabbed his right arm. Amon''s fingers squeezed the pressure points in that arm.


    While he was incapacitated, Wu Di arrived. Wu Di''s light de came shing, but Yan Dose''s earth shield appeared again and blocked the light de.


    Even though the earth shield provided a very strong defense, it was not a continuous defense technique like Xin Wuming''s iron skin. The shield formed only a few seconds and protected only a small area. After that, it took some time before Yan Dose could form the shield again.


    After seeing the art in action twice, Wu Di could discern its nature. He had prepared a follow-up once his light de was blocked. His fist shot out andnded squarely on Yan Dose''s face.

 156 Chapter 156

    Wu Di didn''t stop with just one punch. He brutally hammered his fist again and again at Yan Dose''s face. His martial art that caused his muscle to bulge gave him unusuallyrge strength. Each punch of his was enough to shatter rocks.


    Yan Long, who was now tussling with Xin Wuming, was unable to provide help. He could only watch in disbelief as his cousin was ganged up by the enemies.


    Yan Dose felt the pain coursing through his brain. He felt warm blood flowing down his nose. He was unable to believe it. He, a junior student, a beginning transformation stage cultivator, was disabled and turned into a punching bag by three freshman students with lower cultivation.


    He howled and used all the aether inside him. The explosive energy allowed him to break free of Tuang Yin''s grip. His palm struck the girl with strong martial art and sent her reeling back with an inner wound. Then the free arm went forward with the same palm art. He couldn''t care less now if he caused excessive injury to these freshman students.


    His palm struck Wu Di''s chest. A loud impact urred. Wu Di was again thrown back. This time, blood spurted from his mouth.


    When Yan Dose was about to turn to Amon who was still grabbing his left arm, he felt a blow to the side of his head. Then another right at the back of his head. He felt dizzy. What confused him was why he couldn''t seem to channel his energy to his left arm and free himself as he did with Tuang Yin.


    Before he realized it, he found Amon''s legs climbing onto his head. The two legs mped on his neck and pulled his body down. He fell to the ground with Amon''s scissor choke mping his neck.


    On the way down, Amon used one hand and mmed his elbow to Yan Dose''s elbow with his other hand still holding the arm. Amon then followed up with a punch using Bone Shattering Shadow Fist at the same spot. The two consecutive impacts broke Yan Dose''s elbow.


    "ARRGGHH¡­!!!" Yan Dose screamed out in pain.


    Amon tightened his leg-choke, trying to make Yan Dose lose consciousness, but the strength of a transformation stage couldn''t be underestimated. He felt like his legs were mping a piece of steel pir instead of a person''s neck.


    "I WILL KILL YOUUU¡­!!!" Yan Dose shouted despite the choke. His one remaining arm stretched and a longsword appeared in his hand.


    ''He has gone mad!'' Amon thought in consternation. Weapon usage was prohibited inside the academy except in the arena. For Yan dose to ignore this rule meant that he was no longer thinking straight.


    Amon immediately let go of his hold as the longsword came stabbing. He rolled away while Yan Dose pushed himself up and came after Amon.


    With only one arm holding the longsword, Yan Dose stabbed forward with a sword art. Multiple sword lights shot out with curved and unexpected trajectories. Amon had sensed the killing intent and moved away as fast as possible. One of the sword lights still cut through the side of his arm. Even after using Hardened Bronze Body, Amon still suffered a deep cut. Without the defensive art, Amon might have lost his arm already.


    The sword lights continued and hit the student behind. The ones who were hit received grievous wounds. Amon had ced his back where more Nobles members were crowding, so the sword lights that went passed him hit many of the Nobles members. Still, with how chaotic the brawl was, Amon noticed one of the people that was hit by the sword light was his underling. That person lost a leg from the sword light.


    Amon was ready to take out his weapons to deal with this madman, but noticing a couple of specks in the sky made him change his mind. He retreated and put more distance between himself and Yan Dose.


    Yan Dose wasn''t about to let Amon go. The boy had truly hit his nerve. The pain from his broken left arm continued to sting. Every time he moved, it was like a hundred needles were stabbing him. He didn''t let the pain stop him. The pain instead fueled his hatred and the desire to crush Amon.


    Yan Dose made a strong sh. Powerful energyshed out. The energy cut through both the ground and the air, creating arge gash on the ground. Amon jumped to the side, evading the sword energy. This time Amon''s back was to a vacant space, so no coteral damage.


    Before Amon''s feetnded, another sword energy came again. It was a consecutive sword art. Amon was unable to dodge this second one. His body turned bronze in anticipation of receiving the blow, but he was sure he wouldn''t be unscathed. He turned his body position slightly so that the sword energy didn''t hit his vital part.


    When the sword energy was about to hit, someone pushed him to the side. The push helped Amon escape the sword energy''s path. Amon looked at the one who pushed him. It was Tuang Yin. Because of the push, Tuang Yin''s arm had entered the sword''s path instead.


    The energy went past Tuang Yin''s arm and it was sliced cleanly apart.


    *


    A few seconds ago above the sky, two men were floating above the brawling mass. One young and one old.


    "What the heck is going on down there?" One of them, the older one, asked. "I don''t believe it when the report came in, but I still fly here to make sure."<sub> </sub>


    "It has been decades since we have a mass fight like this," the younger one said.


    "This is even worse than thest one. How many students are fighting down there, two hundred?"


    "A bit less than two hundred, I think. Should we stop them?"


    "Of course, we should stop them!" The older one eximed. "Mass fights like this tend to be chaotic, and mistakes are easier to ur. There might even be a loss of life."


    As they were talking, they saw one of the students fighting down there pull out a sword. He started to use sword art without reservation and hit the other students.


    "Fuck! Hurry and go down!" The older one eximed. His body immediately shot toward the ground.


    *


    Tuang Yin was kneeling on the ground, holding her cut arm. Yet, she only uttered a low groan. Amon couldn''t help but be impressed by the girl. But he couldn''t afford her his attention, Yan Dose was alreadying at him again with his longsword. The man seemed determined to finish off Amon.


    "Your life is mine¡­!!!" Yan Dose yelled as he thrust his sword. Energy traveled through his hand and into the hilt of the sword before it traveled along its de. When it reached the sword''s tip, the coursing energy condensed and was about to be released.


    Amon could sense the danger from that sword art. If that condensed energy was released, he was sure it could puncture anyone here.


    But before it did, a thin light came down from above. It urately hit the sword Yan Dose was holding. The impact forced the sword to be torn out of Yan Dose''s grip.


    Yan Dose looked at his sword that had fallen to the ground with anger and disbelief. He then screamed, "Which asshole dares to intrude¡­?!"


    ? An old man then appeared in front of him. The movement was so abrupt that one moment there was no one, the next second, this old man was already before him, staring at him as if a ghost suddenly appeared.


    Yan Dose was about to scold this person before realization hit him. The words that were about to escape his mouth were choked back in his throat. Panic started to set in. Even the pain in his left arm was forgotten.


    "Tu¨CTutor An Guan¡­!" Yan Dose stammered.


    An Guan replied by pping Yan Dose. The p forced Yan Dose to kneel. Blood spilled from his mouth.


    "STOP ALL THIS AT ONCE¡­!!!" An Guan''s voice thundered out. He released oppressive pressure that forced all the students to have difficulty moving.


    "A spirit stage¡­," Amon estimated. He had sensed simr pressure from Pai Kuan and Lin Weida. It was not strange considering this old man was flying before. He was one of the specks Amon had seen in the sky.


    All the students stopped their fighting. The ones who wore face masks were further away and thus were not as affected by An Guan''s pressure. They tried to turn around and flee, but another person floated down from the sky and released pressure not weaker than An Guan. Everyone stopped then.


    Some of the students were on the ground, unable to stand because of their wounds. Several academy officers in uniform came then. They had departed together with An Guan but because they couldn''t fly, it took them slightly longer to arrive.


    "Quickly bring those who are hurt to the infirmary!" An Guanmanded them. The officers immediatelyplied and started picking up those students that were in the worst condition. Tuang Yin was one of them.


    "As for the rest of you¡­ Follow me! We are going to get to the bottom of this!" An Guan eximed.

 157 Chapter 157

    An Guan took everyone to the administrative building. One part of this building was also a correctional facility, used to deal with students who hadmitted vitions. There were several small cells as well asrge cells in this facility.


    All the students who were involved in the brawls were currently kept in therge cells. They were separated into two groups based on their factions and were kept in two different cells.


    The leader of each group had been brought to the head security office for interrogation.


    An Guan, aside from being the chief tutor who taught the practice ss, was also the head of security in this academy. That''s why he had rushed to the scene after receiving a report about the brawl. At this moment, he was in his office. Before his desk were the two students who were the leaders of the groups who had caused the ruckus, Amon and Yan Long.


    "So, let me get this straight. You, Yan Long, were holding one of his friends against his will," An Guan said after listening to both their stories.


    "As I said before, we invited him peacefully and were just persuading him to stay for a time," Yan Long said.


    "Zip it! I don''t need your bullshit. Don''t interrupt me! I will ask you if I require your input," An Guan scolded.


    Yan Long''s face showed a hurt expression but otherwise, he didn''t say anything further.


    "And you, Lin Mo, gathered your remaining friends and go over and start a fight to save your captive friend. Is that correct?" An Guan asked Amon.


    "That''s correct," Amon replied.


    "Can''t you just talk it over nicely?" An Guan asked.


    "That was what I was trying to do, tutor An Guan! I have been trying to talk with this maniac, but he and his friends just start attacking without any reason!" Yan Long uttered.


    An Guan gave Yan Long an annoyed look. Yan Long realized he had interrupted without being asked again. He lowered his head for an apology. An Guan then turned to Amon again, expecting an answer.


    "Our kind only understand one thing, power! Talking won''t solve anything. If we want to make them stop doing the same thing again, we have to inflict pain on them. So that they won''t dare to repeat this transgression again!"


    "Our kind?" An Guan asked while rubbing his temple. At the same time, he thought, ''F*ck! This boy doesn''t even bother to try making an excuse.''


    "Cultivators. We are fighters. We make our enemies understand our intention using our fists," Amon replied.


    "Enemies? They are your fellow students¡­," An Guan said.


    "They acted like one, so we treated them as one."


    An Guan rubbed his temple again. ''Is this the first rank freshman Lao Zen had asked them to pay attention to?''


    An Guan leaned back onto his chair and tapped his desk. After a while, he said, "A lot of students have been wounded. A few even suffer serious injuries. Someone will have to take responsibility."


    "That''s easy, he started the fight. So, he should be the one responsible," Yan Long quickly said.


    An Guan looked at Amon, who was silent. "What do you say?" He asked.


    "Those with serious injuries were wounded by the junior student associated with his group," Amon replied.


    "Because of a fight that you started!" Yan Long eximed, trying to make sure An Guan didn''t forget this point.


    "I fought because you kidnapped one of my men," Amon returned.<sub> </sub>


    "We were just giving him our hospitality!" Yan Long uttered.


    Amon didn''t bother to give any further response.


    "Tutor An Guan, you have to uphold justice," Yan Long said. "Yan Dose, my cousin, never intended to hurt anyone. It was only due to this person''s provocation that he had made an error. He was simply trying to defend himself. Lin Mo''s people hit him first!"


    "It doesn''t matter. He is already in the wrong when he was found on the Freshman ground. He was never supposed to be there!" An Guan said. "His punishment is the heaviest. If he is not of the Yan n, he will have been expelled already. His academic points have been deducted and he will have to pay for the pills and medicines required for the wounded students to recover. For those who have lost limbs due to his sword attacks, he will have to source the regrowth pills on his own within these three months. Failure to do so will have him expelled."


    "But¡­ But¡­, there are five people who need the pills¡­," Yan Long stammered.


    "That''s right. So he better hopes your Yan n is willing to spend to help him out of this mess," An Guan replied. "If he fails, the academy will have to request the stock from the kingdom but we will bill your n for the expenses."


    Yan Long was speechless. Regrowth Pills were not exactly cheap. But the price was not the most troublesome thing, they were also very hard toe by. The pill was made from very rare ingredients and only the best pill masters could concoct them. If any regrowth pills came up in the market, every prominent n would fight for them. Hence, these pills were usually only purchasable in an auction, and they also only appeared on rare asions. Thus, Yan Long was not confident they could source five regrowth pills within the three months deadline.


    Furthermore, both he and Yan Dose were not exactly the top priority for the Yan n. That''s why they had been sent here to the royal academy instead of being nurtured directly within the n.


    Yan Long felt a shiver. He pitied Yan Dose but at the same time, he was d that it was not him who had been demanded to source for the regrowth pills.


    Amon also understood the rarity of the regrowth pills. He still had four in his ck space ring. If people knew he had them, this alone was enough to make him a prime robbery target, not to mention the other valuables inside his ring.


    He had tried asking San Guo to source for more, but San Guo had failed to procure any. Even if he had the aer stones, getting the pills meant opposing the prominent ns who were also targeting the pills in the auction. San Guo was not that daring enough.


    "Before you worry about your cousin, you have better worry about yourself first," An Guan said after seeing Yan Long''s pale expression. "You two are not off the hook yet. Even though your punishment is not as severe as Yan Dose''s, you will still get a punishment."


    "We didn''t break any rule as Yan Dose did. Isn''t fighting allowed inside the academy?" Amon asked. "Only he who used a weapon and severely wounded others. We did not."


    "Fighting is allowed to encourage your fighting spirit as a cultivator, but not inciting a mass altercation like what you two did. If you are nning a mass fight, then do it behind closed doors where it doesn''t bother others, and make sure that no one is seriously hurt!" An Guan replied. "We will spare your underlings, but not you two. We know about these factions you boys have created. Since you are their leaders, then you two will have to bear their wrongdoings."


    "Bu¨CBut¡­ I''m not the¡­"


    "Quiet! Do you want me to give you a harsher punishment?!" An Guan scolded and cut Yan Long''s words.


    Yan Long was dejected. He was trying to say that he was not the leader. The real leader of the freshman nobles faction was Gao Dou, who was absent during the brawl.


    "10,000 academic points have been registered as your debt. Both of you will have to work off this debt," An Guan said.


    Yan Long''s eyes turned wide. Li Niang didn''t announce the minimum academic points required for a freshman student to consider eligible to pass into the junior ss, but it was also not a secret. Many students had gone and asked about it in the information center. They found out that the required minimum standard was 50,000 academic points. Any freshman whose points were below that number would have to leave the academy by the end of their five years term.


    Having a 10,000 academic points debt meant that they had to collect twenty percent more than the other students.


    Amon had collected a few academic points since he had produced some items from the specialization sses. From the number of points he had received, he could understand better the significance of this debt. When he produced the item, he was given only 1 academic point. Since it was a product created from the most basic recipe, Amon didn''t think the given point was too little. But if he used this as a basis to pay off the debt, this meant that he would have to produce at least six items every day for the next five years.


    During Amon''s visit to the specialization sses, he only produced an average of five items a day. Of course, he didn''t try his best to rush at the time, but he still used an entire day to produce those five. If he used this avenue to work off his debt, he wouldn''t have the time to do anything else.


    While Yan Long wasmenting the extra hardship, An Guan was not yet finished. An Guan mercilessly added, "And from now on, any academic points you two received will receive a five percent fine. This condition is permanent until the end of your freshman years."

 158 Chapter 158

    Amon had researched the possible academic points given by the other sses.


    The theory ss had yearly written tests that were carried out in one full week, covering different subjects taught in the theory sses. Each of the seven days tests granted a maximum of 500 academic points. If a student got a full score on every test throughout the five years, the maximum they could get is 17,500 academic points.


    The cultivation ss was graded yearly. If a student fully advanced a small stage in one year, they got 5,000 scores. This small stage was the beginner to intermediate, or intermediate to peak. Continuing such a feat in five years would them 25,000 academic points. Which was, of course, impossible. That meant one would need to advance almost two full stages in five years. At their cultivation level, this was not doable without some sort of miracle pills.


    The practice ss had four sparing sessions within a year. The maximum academic points a tutor granted on each sparing was 1000 academic points. If a student was granted a full score on every sparing session in the five years term, the maximum possible was 20,000 academic points.


    The specialization ss didn''t have any estimated maximum score. In theory, if one could produce high-level products in big quantities, they could get as many academic points as possible. However, being freshmen, their skills and also the recipes provided to them were only the lowest-level ones.


    Based on Amon''s trial run on the specialization sses, it was safe to say that the average a talented student could produce was five products per day. With 1 academic point granted for each product, even if they spent a full 365 days working within the year. After five years, they would collect only 9,125 academic points. Again, this was considered if they only produce the lowest level products, but Amon thought it was safe to use this score as an estimate. There was no way a student spent 365 days just working on specialization sses. They would have neglected their cultivation and art practice then.


    Thest ss, Mission, was also one that had no upper limit. One could amass as many academic points as the missions theypleted. Hence, Amon used the standard minimum requirement for an estimate. A student was required toplete either twenty one-star missions or one five-star mission within a year, and the other stars in between.


    Amon had visited the mission center. Even among the same star missions, they rewarded different academic points. Amon used the five-star mission for an estimate. Despite rewarding different numbers of academic points, the average a five-star mission rewarded was 3,000 academic points. In five years, this minimum requirement would give a student 15,000 academic points.


    The academic points in the first three sses were if one considered the students getting perfect scores, which was highly unlikely. The average one most likely got was half those scores, which were 31,250 academic points. As for thetter two sses, they had no upper limits, but thebined average scores were 24,125 academic points.


    In this way, as long as one performed averagely within all five sses, one would get 55,375 academic points. It''s above the minimum standard of 50,000 academic points required to pass into the junior ss.


    Amon, of course, had to target more. He had experienced the benefit of living inside the top ten amodations, he couldn''t ept less. Hence, the 10,000 academic points debt and 5% fine meant he had to struggle more than the other students if he wanted to keep his first rank position.


    But Amon didn''t regret his action. It was necessary. After the brawl, the other factions wouldn''t see his new faction as a pushover anymore. This should keep them at an arm-length and allow his faction to grow. That''s why he intentionally made such a big scene of it. The next conflicts could be settled more covertly.


    An Guan dismissed Amon and Yan Long after announcing their penalties. Their faction members were also released.


    Yan Long gave Amon an angry look before leaving. He med Amon for the penalty. He was so eager to get back at Amon. But after experiencing how crazy Amon''s response that resulted in the brawl just now, he didn''t dare to make any move. He couldn''t afford another penalty. The current one was already too much for him. He couldn''t sacrifice his own future for the faction. The faction was supposed to help him advance within this academy, not the other way around. So, he buried his hatred and walked away.


    Amon didn''t spare him any nce. He just went directly to where his faction members were gathering. He then led them back to his territory. The only ones not with them were Tuang Yin and one of the members whose leg was cut by Yan Dose''s erratic sword art. They were still in the infirmary. Wu Di didn''t follow them. He was never a real member of the faction. He said goodbye to Amon and left.


    After arriving in their territory, Amon gave each of them three hundred aer stones and three free wads of Thousand Dream Powder. The aer stones were only promised to those who followed Xin Wuming, but Amon still give the others equal pay.


    They were stupefied. They had never heard the other factions giving payment. Those other faction members were forced to do the tasks or else they were not considered a member anymore. They couldn''t help but feel grateful.


    Paying such a sum for almost eighty members, Amon had to fork out more than twenty thousand aer stones. This amazed the members even more. They understood Amon didn''te from any prominent n, which meant Amon had given them a considerable amount of his personal wealth. Their sense of gratitude went even deeper after thinking of this point.


    "Does it feel good?" Amon asked them after handing out the rewards.<sub> </sub>


    "Huh?" Everyone was lost hearing Amon''s question.


    "Beating up those people who have looked down and disrespect you all this time. Does it feel good?" Amon asked again.


    "It certainly is!" Xin Wuming eximed. He was standing with the others facing Amon.


    Amon nodded. He then uttered, "As have been promised to some of you. If you wish to leave and escape the retaliation of the Nobles faction, you are permitted. There will be no hard feelings. But you will have to bear the fact that you run away from the fight and will forever be the person they look down upon. If you have no problem with being such a person, then go ahead. I also don''t need cowards in my faction. But if you stay, I will demand that you put all your hearts in. There will be consequences if you ask to leave this faction after today. But for those who stay, I can promise you this. We will climb atop the five factions and make them fear us. By the end of our stay in this academy, we will be the ones looking down upon them instead of the other way around. So, who wants to leave?!"


    No one moved away. Even the ones who had worn face masks during the brawl. They had originally did n to leave after receiving payment. But after Amon pointed it out to them, they did feel good after trashing those elite youths from wealthy ns. Usually, they had to avoid offending those youths, even when they were actually better or in the right. But now, they had beaten up quite a lot of those youths during the brawl. They had fought with all the pent-up rage against those bullies from their past. And ording to their leader, they were not stopping anytime soon. Instead of feeling the need to avoid conflict as they had always done, they instead felt excitement and expectation. Together with friends who were not afraid to stand up against those bullies and fought together with them, they felt pride and strength like they never felt before.


    Amon smiled. He could read their feelings from their expressions.


    "Good. Now go back and rest. Come back here tomorrow. I will give you all your instructions then."


    Everyone dispersed. Xin Wuming was about to leave as well but Amon called him over.


    "Big brother? What can I do for you?" He asked.


    "You have done a lot. You should be rewarded as well," Amon asked.


    "Big brother. I will always be happy to help you, there is no need for a reward. I can''t ever repay the special constitution you have granted me."


    "You work for me, you follow my way," Amon said, handing him one thousand aer stones and an arcane art book.


    Amon had spent quite a sum of aer stones rewarding his underlings, but from the wealth he had umted from White Cloud City and selling the Thousand Dream Powders to the other students, this sum was affordable. Buying his underlings'' loyalties was more important at this time.


    As for Xin Wuming, he was Amon''s right-hand man. It was only fair that he was rewarded more than the others.


    Xin Wuming didn''t truly crave the aer stones, but the arcane art book that Amon offered was another matter. It was a book containing metal element arcane art. It was one of the books from Amon''s pyramid legacy. It was a mid-tier practitioner art. It was a better grade than any art the academy provided for free at this moment.


    "I... thank you, big brother," Xin Wuming said and bowed.


    "Come to my house tomorrow morning. I will give you the next instruction, then," Amon said.


    "Yes, big brother!" Xin Wuming answered, still bowing.

 159 Chapter 159

    Amon didn''t return to his residence. He went to the infirmary instead. Arriving there, he asked the nurse for the whereabouts of Tuang Yin and his underling who had his leg cut. After getting their location, Amon headed there.


    The two were put in the same room. When Amon entered, he saw eight beds, but six were vacant. Only two were upied, by Tuang Yin and his underling.


    "Yo, my boyfriend! What takes you so long to pay a visit?" Tuang Yin immediately called once she saw Amon enter.


    Amon didn''t spare her a nce. He went directly to the bed that had his underling. Tuang Yin continued to call after him but Amon treated it as if he didn''t hear her. After a while, she stopped and pouted on her bed.


    "Bo¡­ Boss¡­," his underling greeted when Amon approached.


    "Ah Bin, how are you feeling?" Amon asked. His wounded underling was Ah Bin, the first student he and Xin Wuming had recruited.


    "I am fine¡­ The nurse has given me recovery pills. But for my amputated leg, they said they will need to wait for Yan Dose to deliver the regrowth pill within three months. Unfortunately, during that time, I won''t be able to attend many of the sses. The nurse will help bring me to the theory sses, but I won''t be able to practice any art with my condition. I can only cultivate, but here, not in the pagoda¡­ And they said even after getting the regrowth pill, I will still need some time before my leg grows back."


    Amon could hear the sadness and helplessness in Ah Bin''s voice. This situation would cause him tog behind the other students.


    "I know. That''s why Ie." Amon took out one of the four regrowth pills from his space ring. "This is a regrowth pill. Consume it," Amon said.


    "Wha¡­ What¡­?" Ah Bin couldn''t believe his ears. As someone from a poor n, he neverid his eyes on a regrowth pill before, so he couldn''t confirm Amon''s im. But he could feel the aether exuded by the pill and knew that it was not anymon pill. Also, he believed Amon''s word.


    "I¡­ I can''t¡­ This is too precious¡­ It''s yours¡­ I can wait for the one Yan Dose bring¡­," Ah Bin stammered.


    "And waste three months?" Amon asked. "You will fall behind the other students by then."


    "I¡­ I¡­"


    "Take it! I am giving it to you," Amon demanded.


    "I¡­ Thank you, boss! I won''t forget this!" Ah Bin no longer hesitated. He epted the pill and put it into his mouth immediately.


    Amon waited until Ah Bin swallowed the pill before saying, "Good, that is one of the two regrowth pills I have in my possession. Now rest and focus your aether cirction to help the pill regrows your leg."


    Hearing Amon''s words, Ah Bin felt even more grateful. He knew how precious the pill was. For Amon to give away one of the two remaining ones in his possession showed how highly Amon regarded him. For someone who had always been seen as unworthy except by his own family, this treatment made him truly appreciate Amon''s generosity.


    In fact, Amon never cared for any of his predicament, but he needed to show that he could take care of his underling. He had learned in his past life. If you took care of your subordinates, they would take care of you. He couldmit atrocities to the world, but he still needed to be good to those closest to him. Otherwise, he would be vulnerable when he was alone.


    It was as Lao Zen said, humans needed one another to do great things. This was true in his past world where powers came with numbers. The more support you have, the more powerful you are. All the game of politics was about securing allies and gaining as much support as possible. If you have one million people standing behind you, people would think twice before crossing you.


    He might have unsurpassedbat ability in the past life, but his position as the world''s most feared military general didn''te from thisbat skill. It was from the army he built. An army that sowed terror on all the countries in his past world.


    This cultivation world might make someone into a being as if God who could look down on all others. Even then, he believed the same principles applied. After all, if he could amass an army of one million with God-like power. What can one arrogant God who thought he could solo everything does against his God army?


    "I will give you back when they give me the regrowth pill from Yan Dose," Ah Bin said.


    Amon chuckled and patted his shoulder. "Get some rest," he said and left. If the academy found out that Ah Bin''s leg was already growing, he didn''t believe they would still give the regrowth pill to Ah Bin. They would just keep it for themselves.<sub> </sub>


    Amon believed the act of giving this regrowth pill to Ah Bin was necessary. Once Ah Bin recovered, this act would be known to his other underlings. People would see him as a leader who took care of them. This would let him earn their loyalties even more.


    Amon had lied to Ah Bin that he had only two regrowth pills. The purpose was so that when somebody had the same incident againter, he only needed to showpassion without the need to fork out any more regrowth pills, by using the reason that he no longer had any of the pills. The image of him as a caring leader was already nted, he didn''t need to continue to reinforce it unless necessary.


    The reason that he said he had two regrowth pills instead of just one was that he nned to give the second one away as well.


    "Here," Amon offered it to Tuang Yin.


    Tuang Yin had already heard their conversation so she already knew what pill was in Amon''s hand. But she was still pouting because Amon had continued to ignore her. Not to mention, Amon came to Ah Bin first instead of her. She sacrificed an arm for him, for heaven''s sake! And he came to her second! She felt like yelling at him.


    Since Tuang Yin was acting sulky, Amon simply put the regrowth pill beside her bed and then walked away.


    "Hey, Hey! Wait! Aren''t you going to say anything to cheer me up?" Tuang Yin hurriedly called when she saw her pouting tactic didn''t work. "I don''t need this regrowth pill, take it back!"


    Amon stopped after hearing. "You don''t need it? Are you saying you are fine waiting three months for the one from Yan Dose?"


    "My n is delivering one as we speak. They should arrive in two weeks," Tuang Yin replied.


    ''So, she was from a wealthy n,'' Amon thought. Which shouldn''te as a surprise considering her prowess to be able to get to the top ten.


    "Two weeks is still a waste if it hinders you from joining the practice ss," Amon said. "You are the constant seven during the entrance exams. If you take it easy, you won''t be able to stay in the top ten. Take mine. If you don''t want it, just throw it away then."


    Amon then resumed leaving again.


    "Hey, hey! Wait! Come back here!" Tuang Yin continued to call, but Amon ignored her.


    Although Amon had no problem making use of anyone around him, he still preferred to repay a favor when he could. Furthermore, if this news were spread. People would see Amon as someone who did right to those who did right by him. It could help to influence more allies to his side.


    If Tuang Yin had been one of his subordinates, then it would have been different. Amon considered it his underlings'' duty to sacrifice themselves for him.


    Since Amon had left, Tuang Yin couldn''t do anything. She looked at the regrowth pill in her hand. She actually very much wanted to consume this pill right now. Waiting two weeks for his n would be as Amon said, a waste of time that might cause her to fall behind the others. She couldn''t afford that. Not if she was determined to stay in the top ten, just like what Amon reminded just now.


    She had refused Amon''s regrowth pill simply because she wanted Amon to feel indebted to her, but it seemed that Amon didn''t let her. She never thought that her scheme to gain Amon''s gratitude fell short of Amon''s scheme to spread his influence.


    "Damn him! ying hard to get," Tuang Yin popped Amon''s regrowth pill into her mouth and swallowed it.


    Ah Bin was looking at her from the other bed.


    "What the hell are you looking at?!" Tuang Yin scolded. Ah Bin quickly turned away.


    Amon returned home afterward. He had to prepare everything. Things were changing now after hisst act. His new faction could be said as formally established now. No one was going to think the Vicious was just temporary anymore. Now, what he needed to do was paving a way for its growth and made sure that it survived.

 160 Chapter 160

    Amon didn''t go into cultivation after arriving home. He took out a stack of papers from his space ring and put it on a table. The papers contained information about his current faction members. They were information Xin Wuming had collected based on his request. It contained information about each member''s cultivation level, affinity, learned arts, temperament, background, and notable experiences.


    Amon sifted through the stack of papers, which was a lot considering there were around eighty members in his faction and Amon had requested the information to be as detailed as possible.


    Even though he was just spending a little time on each paper, all the information wasmitted to his memory.


    While he was still reading, he heard a call from outside, "Student Lin Mo, this is Lao Zen, I brought tutor Li Shi with me. May we enter?"


    The barriers not only prevented students from trespassing but also the tutors. It was an enchanted formation simr to the one Amon encountered below the pyramid inside White Cloud Sect''s secret dimension, only lessplex and weaker. Lao Zen could force his way in with his cultivation level, but of course, he preferred not to do that.


    Amon was wondering what the head tutor of this academy was visiting him for. Could it be because of the disturbance he had caused earlier today? But wasn''t his punishment already given?


    He tidied up the papers and store them back in his space ring. He then went to the entrance and used the mechanism there to set the barrier to allow these two tutors to enter.


    Lao Zen and Li Shi came into the house then. The two looked around the room. Amon had redecorated the interior with some furnishings. A part of the floor was even walled off, that was where Amon had made a room for his alchemical experiments.


    "You have been busy," Lao Zen remarked.


    "It didn''t take long to renovate this ce," Amon replied.


    "I ain''t talking about this house, kid," Lao Zen said. "You are here only three weeks, and you have already made a ruckus that gives our head security a headache. There haven''t been mass fights in this academy for decades, and I heard you are the instigator."


    "I throw the first punch, but they instigated the conflict by detaining my friend."


    "By friend, I''m sure you mean your underling," Lao Zen said. "We have heard about your faction. Pretty bold of you to make the sixth faction when you have none of the wealthy ns'' descendants supporting you. But, we are also interested in seeing how far you can go. The kingdom is looking for someone who can lead as well as fight. If this faction of yours can survive the three terms you study here, then you will prove to be a valuable asset that is worth recruiting."


    "What makes you think I want to join the kingdom?" Amon asked.


    "Hahaha," Lao Zenughed. "We will see. But my advice to you, student Lin Mo, for your own sake, do not reject too many offers."


    Amon nodded. "I don''t believe youe here just for a chat?"


    "We are not," Lao Zen replied. "Do you remember me saying that you might get offers for tasks due to our high expectations from your aplishments?"


    "This is one of those?" Amon asked.


    "This is one of those," Lao Zen confirmed. "Li Shi here will exin to you about the offered mission. Before she does, please remember again my advice just now about not rejecting too many offers."


    "Thank you, tutor Lao Zen," Li Shi said. Then to Amon, she said, "Student Lin Mo, I guess this is the first time we talk directly."


    "I enjoy listening to your lecture," Amon said. Li Shi was the tutor that delivered the lecture in theory ss that touched on historical subjects.


    "That''s very nice of you to say. I hope you are not saying it just for civility," Li Shi said with a smile.


    "I ain''t civil," Amon replied.


    Li Shi turned to Lao Zen, to which Lao Zen just shrugged.


    "I still have many things that need taking care of. What is this mission you want to offer?" Amon asked.<sub> </sub>


    "I see that you are a direct person," Li Shi said. "Very well, in that case, I will go directly to the main point. I want you to join my team to go investigate a recently excavated ancient site."


    "Ancient site?" Amon asked.


    Li Shi nodded. "It is a ruin of an ancient n, or probably even the past ruling dynasty before our kingdom, Echos. It has just recently been found by a local n. Luckily, we received the news of this finding before this local n caused too much damage to the ruin with their intention to plunder the ce for valuables. A garrison from the kingdom had been sent to secure the site. As the kingdom''s chief archeologist, I have been tasked to investigate the ce."


    "What''s my role in this? Why do you need a freshman student in this archeological mission?" Amon asked.


    "Because of your achievement in the third exam," Li Shi answered. "You see, this ruin is nothing normal. Despite it being millennia old, one of its enchanted formations was still active. I figure it must be one of its defense mechanisms that activated when the local n tried to force their way in. The formation generated a strong mental pressure within the ruin. Everyone that goes in will be assailed by a headache. The deeper one goes in, the stronger the formation applies pressure to the mind."


    "I see...," Amon said. "In this case, the local n that discovered the ruin should not have ventured in too far. Any treasures stored within should still be intact."


    "We are not there to plunder its treasure. It is to study the ruins. The knowledge it contained is more valuable than any treasure," Li Shi uttered.


    "In that case, you won''t mind if I take any treasure that I find inside the ruins, will you?" Amon asked.


    Li Shi went quiet upon hearing. She didn''t know what to say. Lao Zenughed instead, "Haha, I told you he is an interesting one, didn''t I?" He then turned to Amon, "To answer your question. No, you can''t keep any treasure inside the ruins. Any treasure found within belongs to the kingdom. There will be a second team that will go in to search the ce for treasures, but not until Li Shi here cleared the ruins for them to enter. Any knowledge contained within the ruins might be lost once this second team entered. As for the first team, anyone aside from Li Shi will have to give their space rings to be checked before entering. The same procedure is done before leaving the site. Anything not belonging to you will be confiscated by the kingdom."


    "I see," Amon said without any expression. This was the same case as when he entered White Cloud Sect''s secret dimension, which meant there was still a chance for him to keep something from inside the ruin.


    "So, let''s say I can enter the ruin because I can withstand the mental pressure. What am I doing inside? I''m not exactly knowledgeable about ancient history," Amon said.


    "You will be my eyes and ears in case you can enter the deeper part that I can''t," Li Shi replied. "I will give a limited-rangemunication device. You can use that device to describe to me everything that you see inside."


    Amon knew about such a device. Madam Lin had one as well.


    "What is the grade of this mission? How many academic points does it grant?" Amon asked.


    "Five stars," It was Lao Zen who answered. "Uponpletion, you will be granted a minimum of 5,000 academic points. Some extra points are possible if Li Shi here deemed you worthy of them."


    ''5,000 academic points. It is more than a normal five-star mission,'' Amon thought. A normal five-star generally rewarded around 3,000 academic points. These ruins must be very important for them to give out a reward so generous.


    "I''ve heard about your situation. Although I think An Guan was a bit too harsh in giving out the punishment, security is his department, I have no say in it. Since you have a debt and a penalty for your academic points, I strongly suggest you ept this offer. It''s not every day you can find a mission that provides such a generous sum of academic points. One that is up your alley, even. Any other students might not be able to carry out this task, but with your mental power, you should have no problem. It''s an easy earning."


    ? Amon pondered Lao Zen''s words.


    "When is the mission and how long will itst?" Amon asked.


    "Our departure schedule is two months from now," Li Shi answered. "For how long, I can''t say. Studying excavated ruins might take up weeks or even months."


    "Won''t my study be affected if I am absent from the academy for too long?"


    "Five-star mission normally takes a long time toplete," Lao Zen replied. "That''s why the minimum requirement is for a student to only do one such mission in a year. Don''t worry, if the task is not yet done after three months, you are allowed to return. You will still be considered as havingpleted the mission. If we still need your help, we will extend the offer as a new mission, so you can get double the academic points. As for the studies you missed during the mission, any theory sses are recorded. You can go to the information center to request a viewing. You will need to provide the details of your mission, though. Only theory sses missed during missions will be provided with viewing. The same case with the sparring session that takes ce every three months. As long as it is due to missions, the tutor can reschedule the sparring sessions."


    "All right, I''m in," Amon said. "Where should I go on the day of departure?"


    "Go to the mission center and report there. Someone will then take you to the gathering point."

 161 Chapter 161

    After Lao Zen and Li Shi left, Amon resumed his task of studying his faction members'' information. After studying everyone''s information, he took empty papers and made several notes.


    He worked until midnight before it waspleted. He then went down to his basement and cultivated.


    The next morning, Xin Wuming came to visit as instructed.


    Amon asked him to sit down at the table before he showed him the information he had cataloged as well as the notes he made.


    Amon had grouped up the faction members into many groups. Each group normally had three to five students. Xin Wuming saw himself in one of these groups. Amon told Xin Wuming that from now on, their members should take on missions following these groupings. So, they had to find a mission that was suitable for the number of their groups.


    Amon had checked the mission center. There were plenty of missions for groups. Doing group missions solo didn''t mean that it would be more beneficial. The mission points granted when one did it solo or with a group were the same. For example, if a student picked up a mission that allowed three students toplete with a reward of 100 academic points. Doing it solo didn''t mean the student would get 300 academic points. The student would still only get 100 academic points. This was to motivate the students to work in a group instead of doing everything solo.


    However, every mission still had a limit to how many students may apply for it. Some missions even allowed up to twenty or thirty students to participate. These were usually four or five-star missions.


    Amon told Xin Wuming that the groups he had selected may bebined, but not split. Two or three groups were allowed to do the same mission. But members in one group may not be split to be distributed to other groups.


    Amon had set it so that each of the members within a groupplemented each other. Members of the same group were also the most likely to be able to work together. Most importantly, at least one member in each group had a decent movement art.


    Amon had told his members to wait for his permission before taking missions. It was because missions were carried out outside the academy ground. Inside the academy, they were protected by the rules. Outside, it was not so. Amon was confident his faction would have no problem dealing with any of the five factions, as long as they were all freshman students. But if they encountered the junior and senior members, it was a different story.


    Junior and senior students generally had higher cultivation levels. It would be a problem if his faction members shed with them. Inside the academy, the junior and senior members were not allowed toe into the freshman section. In the main section, they might cause trouble, but not too much since they were still bound by the academy''s rules.


    But if they met outside the academy, then they would be in trouble. The same rules still applied outside the academy when a student killed or heavily wounded another student, but if there was no eyewitness, then no one could say anything.


    That''s why Amon ced at least one member with good movement skills in each of the groups he selected. So, at least one could flee. Amon gave Xin Wuming the instruction to tell that member that he or she should not hesitate to flee whenever they encountered junior or senior students that meant them harm during their venturing out there. Once those students saw one member flee, they would no longer dare to deal too heavily with the remaining freshmen that were left behind. If anything happened to those freshmen, they would be the prime suspects.


    Additionally, Amon told Xin Wuming to inform their members to only take one-star or two-star missions. Such a mission usually could bepleted inside Qishurg City or in the vicinity of Qishurg City. They didn''t have to venture too far away. Hence, reducing the risks.


    Qishurg City''s citizens knew that the academy students were under the academy''s protection. As long as the students carried the academy badge, no one would dare to harm them unless they were willing to face the academy''s retribution.


    Xin Wuming saw that some members were not grouped. When he asked about those members, Amon told him these were members that he thought were not ready to take on missions yet. He instead gave them other tasks, selling the Thousand Dream Powders within Qishurg City.


    Amon instructed them to price the drugs higher in the city, but the members selling would also receive a highermission. They could use the aer stones from this to buy cultivation resources in the city, to assist their cultivation. Once Amon thought they were ready, Amon would assign groups to them for taking on missions.


    Aside from that, Amon also gave Xin Wuming a series of practice drills for the members to undertake. It was military drills from his past world. It won''t help the members in cultivation but it should help them in improving their coordination, precision, and discipline.


    After leaving his instruction, Amon dismissed Xin Wuming to deliver his instructions to the members. He then went back to focus on cultivation and art practices.


    *


    Amon went to his daily routine. Cultivating, training his arts, and experimenting on poison. Xin Wuming came in three times a week bearing reports. Nothing significant happened. After thest altercation with the Nobles, the factions now understood the Vicious was a group that bit back. All five factions hoped that one of them would go into a sh with the Vicious again, but none of them wanted it to be themselves. So, they just watched each other without any serious move.


    Some small engagements still happened, but those weremon urrences inside the academy. No one was seriously wounded.


    Vicious members followed Amon''s instructions. Some started taking missions to start working on their yearly quota. They formed into groups following Amon''s arrangement and took only missions that were in Qishurg City or nearby.


    A few members went into the city and started distributing Amon''s Thousand Dream Powders. The recreational drug turned into a sensation soon. Many were looking for it. Aside from selling his drugs, Amon also tasked the members who were distributing them to recruit local people. These locals then became runners who distribute the drugs for them. The members no longer had to sell directly and could focus themselves on cultivation and training.<sub> </sub>


    With a stable ie, Amon used it to buy low-grade cultivation pills and shared them with his members, helping them grow as well as earning their loyalties even more. It would have been easier for him to give them spirit herbs or fruits from his secret ntation, but these raw materials were notmon products. If he gave them continuously, someone might start asking questions. End products like cultivation pills avable at shops were moremon.


    With this assistance, the growth of Vicious'' members did not lose to the five factions that had better territories.


    Ah Bin could walk again one week after Amon gave him the regrowth pill. Amon asked him to focus on cultivation and practice within the academy before starting to take missions. He ended up trying the specialization ss. After a few days, he discovered that he had a knack for alchemy. He spent a lot of time there. In addition to the tutor''s guidance, Amon also gave him a few books from the pyramid legacy about alchemy, helping his understanding of the subject grow further.


    Two weeks after the brawl, Tuang Yin came to his house. She called for Amon to allow her entrance. Amon ignored her at first, but the girl was relentless. She seemed to be able to continue shouting non-stop. Amon decided to just see what she was up to.


    After letting her in, she handed a regrowth pill to Amon, telling him that this was the pill her n had brought over. This was to return the one Amon had given her. Amon said it was unnecessary. She was wounded because of saving him, so it was the right thing for him to help her heal. But she insisted. Amon didn''t want to waste his time arguing so he just epted the regrowth pill.


    Tuang Yin asked Amon if he mind her hanging around. Amon replied he does.


    "Do you hate me?" Tuang Yin asked.


    "I don''t," Amon replied.


    "So, why are you so cold to me?"


    "I''m cold to everyone."


    "Well, that is true." Tuang Yin scratched her head.


    "Why are you so interested in me, anyway? You don''t know me. What is your purpose?" Amon asked.


    "People call me a slut," Tuang Yin said.


    Amon gave her a look that said what did that have to do with him?


    "Even my family does, behind my back mostly," Tuang Yin continued. "Just because of how I have no reservations talking or hanging out with boys, or even getting physical with them. I guess that''s why my family chose to send me here instead of grooming me to be the elders of the n. They have given up trying to make me a princess. However, what they don''t realize is that I don''t just date any boys. Yes, I talk and y with all of them, but I only choose to date the strongest."


    "That''s interesting," Amon remarked. "So, if someone stronger beat your current boyfriend, you will date that stronger someone?"


    "Yes," Tuang Yin replied.


    ''No wonder they call you a slut,'' Amon thought within.


    "But I know you are the strongest of them all. No one is going to beat you," Tuang Yin said. "So, I know there is no need for me to look at another man anymore after seeing you."


    "There are plenty of people stronger than me."


    "Because they are older. You will beat them once you reach their age."


    "You seem certain."


    "I am," Tuang Yin said, then she added, "Do you want to have sex?"

 162 Chapter 162

    "No," Amon replied.


    "Why not?" Tuang Yin asked.


    "It''s a waste of time. I have other better things to do," Amon answered.


    Tuang Yin couldn''t believe her ears. This was the first time a man refused when she offered sex. Not only she had a beautiful face, but her figure was also one that could make any man lose self-control. Well, almost any man now she realized. She was kinda lost about what to say after hearing Amon''s response.


    After several seconds, she finally asked, "Man¡­ Don''t you know how to have fun?"


    "I have fun when I crushed my enemies under my feet," Amon replied.


    Tuang Yin shook her head. This man was abnormal. But she guessed that was also what gave him the drive to be stronger than others.


    "Then do it as repayment for me saving you from Yan Dose''s attack!" Tuang Yin eximed.


    "What¡­?" It was Amon this time who couldn''t believe his ears. Was this girl taking some drugs that make her horny?


    When Tuang Yin saw Amon''s speechless expression, she said, "Come on! Indulge a girl in her fantasy, will you? Every time I consume your Thousand Dream Powder, it is with you I fantasize about doing it all night."


    ''So, it is indeed because of drugs¡­,'' Amon thought.


    "And you did owe me from that save from Yan Dose!" Tuang Yin reminded him again when Amon was still being silent.


    "Hmph, I gave you the regrowth pill to recover, didn''t I?"


    "And I returned one to you just now, so you still owe me."


    "So, if I do this, we consider us square?" Amon asked.


    "We''ll see¡­ If you sessfully satisfy me," Tuang Yin said with a teasing voice. She also assumed a teasing pose and expression.


    "Slut," Amon said.


    "Hey, you shouldn''t be rude to¡­ ahh¡­!" Tuang Yin''s voice trailed off when Amon suddenly yanked her to the side and pushed her down.


    "Wait, wait! Shouldn''t we go to the bedro¡­"


    *RIIIPPP!*


    The harsh sound of fabric tearing was heard. Amon had crudely ripped Tuang Yin''s clothes as he pinned her to the floor. Her tworge tits spilled out as the tight dress that hold them together was no more. Yet, Amon didn''t seem to be stopping anytime soon. He continued to rip the rest of her clothes off until she was fully nakedying on the floor.


    "Asshole! That is my favorite dress," Tuang Yin uttered.


    "You asked for sex, didn''t you? What? Do you think I am a gentle person?"


    "No, but¡­"


    "Turn around!" Amon uttered.


    Without waiting for Tuang Yin toply, Amon used his hands to forcefully turn her around, exposing her round ass to him.


    "Hey, hey! Shouldn''t you kiss me first or something?!" Tuang Yinined. She then felt her legs getting spread apart and something hard touching her clitoris. This hard thing pressed onto her vaginal opening. It was still tight since she hadn''t exactly felt aroused enough, but that hard thing insensitively forced itself inside.


    "Ouch¡­! Hey, you are hurting me!" Tuang Yin protested, but Amon was already inside her, and he was moving at a fast pace from the get-go.<sub> </sub>


    "You should have expected this, shouldn''t you? If you want sex with me, then you do it my way," Amon said. His fucking momentum increased.


    Amon thought that this should teach this girl a lesson. See if she still dared toe to tease him again after this.


    But when Amon thought that Tuang Yin would beg him to stop, she instead arched her ass up and fucked him back with equal ferocity. She even used her two hands to push herself up, fighting Amon''s pinning while her hips moved in conjunction with Amon''s thrusts.


    "You think I''m afraid of you? Come on then! Give me all you got¡­!" Tuang Yin yelled.


    The two ended up brutally trying to fuck each other to submission.


    The contest went on for some time. Sweat covered their bodies as both of them were unwilling to slow down. Not because of the pleasure the coption brought, but simply because they assumed slowing down meant the others admitted defeat. It was more of a match now instead of a pleasurable act. Each p between their flesh was as if trying to cause a bruise instead of a loving act, each impact produced a loud sound. Tuang Yin grunted from the punishment but refused to back down.


    The two continued, testing the limit of one another''s endurance.


    Amon had learned to master his body in the past life. In this one, his cultivation allowed him an even better mastery of his body. Hence, he could consciously hold off his ejaction even after a long and intense fuck. But after three hours, he finally could not hold it any longer.


    "Hngrhh¡­" He grunted as fluid was forcefully discharged from his penis.


    Even then, he didn''t slow down. To him, pleasure and pain were the same. He had learned to endure pain, and so too was the sensation of pleasure. He didn''t let his mind slip nor feel excited about it. He let the feeling pass by as though any other mundane feeling. This was why he was no longer passionate about sex like other normal creatures, which he considered lesser beings since they were still governed by the desire for such carnal pleasure.


    Tuang Yin had been fighting to change their positions. Even after managing to push herself up from being pinned t on the floor, she was still in a submissive position since she was being prated from behind with the doggy style.


    When she felt Amon ejacte, she thought this was her chance. Men were normally the weakest and mostpliant at this time. She summoned all her strength then and tried to push Amon so that she could force him down and have her on top. But instead, her two arms were forcefully taken by Amon, causing her to lose footing. She then felt her arms getting twisted to her back and she was again pinned down on the floor.


    With the armlock, Tuang Yin lost all ability to fight back. She could only stay still as Amon continued to fuck her at the same fast pace.


    This went on for the whole day. Amon had climaxes another two times through the process. Tuang Yin again tried to fight her way up but failed, Amon never loosen his hold even for a second.


    This coption confirmed the assumption Amon had after seeing Madam Lin''s intercourse episode. A cultivator''s body indeed provided better sex staminapared to the normal body. In his past life, he won''t be able tost this long with such a fast and non-stop pace. Even now, he felt like he could still go on for a long time.


    Tuang Yin tapped his hand, which was still holding her down. "Lin Mo¡­ I¡­ I surrender¡­ Let me¡­ Let me be on top¡­ Please¡­?" She said weakly.


    Amon ignored her for a full minute before he slowed down and eventually stopped. Only then, he noticed the sweat that had drenched both their bodies. The floor around them was wet. The stench was heavy, but the two acted oblivious of it.


    Amon had tried to teach this girl a lesson, to stop wasting his time. He was surprised by the girl''s tenacity tost this long. But he was even surprised that even now, she didn''t ask him to stop. Instead, she asked to be allowed on top.


    After a slight pause, Amon considered her perseverance to deserve a reward. Amon released her and pulled his manhood out with a plop. Some sperm leaked out from the gaping vagina. Amon then wentying down on the floor, his penis was still fully erect.


    Tuang Yin rose weakly. She turned back. Despite her tired expression, Amon still saw fire in her eyes. She might have said the word surrender just now, but this girl was nowhere near giving up. She just said it to persuade Amon since brute force didn''t work. Somehow, this turned Amon on.


    She suddenly lunged forward and sat on Amon''s hard cock with dexterity belying her tired expression. She wasn''t going to allow Amon to change his mind. Her two arms grabbed Amon''s shoulder with her eagle w art, preventing him from using his arms. She then pounded Amon''s cock ferociously. Her huge melons went up and down following her rhythm.


    Amon could forcefully break away from her shoulder lock, but he decided to let her.


    "Heh, see how tough you are now, big boy? Just let mama take care of you," She said teasingly without slowing down.


    Her actions actually stimted Amon to arrive at climax sooner than before. Another load of cum filled Tuang Yin''s inside.


    "Hehe, with how you keep on pumping inside me, I would think you are trying to get me pregnant," Tuang Yin said. "Is that what you are trying to do?"


    "Don''t be absurd. I have killed all the sperm with my aether before they were released," Amon said. He believed in having someone to love will weaken him. Such a person could be used against him. He never had children, even in his past life. He underwent vasectomy as soon as he came to age in his past life. He didn''t think an offspring might affect him but he still preferred not to take a chance.


    "So ruthless," Tuang Yin said disappointingly. "But never mind, this means I can have you all for myself."

 Chapter 163. Four Factions in the Same Mission

    Chapter 163. Four Factions in the Same Mission


    They ended up fucking the entire night as well.


    When the sun came up the next morning, Amon knew his body could still continue, but Tuang Yin looked very exhausted already. She was unlike Amon, after all. She still needed sleep like other normal people, but the girl continued being stubborn.


    "Stop! We have wasted enough time as it is!" Amon dered. "I consider this as repayment enough. Now, get off! I still have many things that need doing."


    "Does this mean you concede?" Tuang Yin asked.


    Amon stared at her without saying anything.


    "I''m just joking! Fine, fine! She rose and let Amon''s penis go. "Damn! it''s still so hard!" She eximed and pped the erect rod.


    Amon ignored her and went to clean himself with a bath. Despite being very tired, Tuang Yin chased after him and joined him in the bath.


    "Hey, maybe we should learn the dual-cultivation art! Since we are going to do this often, Tuang Yin said while their bodies were rinsed by running water.


    "Who said we are going to do this often?" Amon said.


    "Well, a few times a week then?" Tuang Yin asked. "Come on! Are you telling me you didn''t enjoy it?" "Enjoy or not is inconsequential. It was an unimportant act. It brings no improvement to my power: "That''s why I said we should learn dual-cultivation art. My n has one. I don''t mind teaching you. "No," Amon replied. "A dual-cultivation art altered your body to make it more susceptible to absorbing acther during coption. But at the same time, the altered body will be less suitable for any other standard cultivation art."


    "Then we just have sex more often!" Tuang Yin said, beaming.


    "No!" Amon replied firmly.


    "Ugh, you are no fun," Tuang Yinined.


    Amon didn''t care for her disappointment. As he had said to Madam Lin, he wasn''t going to let his cultivation be relying on another person. Never for a second, he thought this rtionship he had with this girl to be a permanent thing.


    After washing themselves. Tuang Yin asked to sleep in Amon''s house since she was too tired already. Amon let her use his bed. He rarely used it anyway.


    ''Isn''t he tired as well? Tuang Yin wondered when he saw Amon go downstairs to the basement. She cannot follow since there was another barrier. The permission applied to the barrier outside the courtyard was separate from the permission on the barrier to the basement.


    ''Is he still going to cultivate? Tuang Yin thought with awe. She was about to faint already and this guy could still go on. Maybe she shouldn''t have fought for the top position. She told herself to let Amon do all the work the next time they fucked.


    In the basement, Amon went to the center of the room and sat down cross-legged. He cleared his mind and then cultivated. For his unique body, cultivating was the same as resting.


    W


    In the following weeks, Amon spent the days with his routine, attending theory sses, attending


    engraving sses, cultivating, training his arts, experimenting on poison, managing his faction, and asionally, entertaining Tuang Yin with a fuck when she came visiting.


    No big incidents with the five factions after that big brawl with the Nobles. Some small altercations still urred. Fights happened. But nothing that Amon thought to be worth his attention. Amon thought it was good for his faction members to fight. Otherwise, they would be dull. Amon even asked Xin Wuming to increase the sparring training for those who didn''t go out on missions or attend any other sses.


    For those that ventured outside the city for missions, no big problem as well. There was an incident where they met a junior group from the Astute faction. These junior members antagonized them, but following Amon''s instruction, one f them with the best movement art split once this group came


    into view.


    The junior student could chase, but they were not too far from the city. Even with a better movement art, that fleeing freshman student would have arrived in the city by the time the junior student caught up to him. The junior student won''t be able to do anything with the city guards around.


    The ones that were left behind received a beating. But they knew if their one friend hadn''t fled as instructed, these junior students might do something even worse than a beating.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Amon learned a new martial art during these weeks. A martial art utilizing ws. He found two suitable w arts in the library inside his ring. Both were mid-tier practitioner arts. One was called Bone-crushing w, the other was Flesh-tearing w.


    Bone-crushing w turned his fingers into as strong as iron. His w would be able to crush the enemy''s bones and inflict inner wounds. The Flesh-tearing w was the opposite. It manipted the acther to form sharp energy at the end of his fingers. If Amon used this w art on an enemy, it could easily tear the enemy''s flesh as if his hand was holding sharp knives on each finger, inflicting outer wounds.


    After brief consideration, Amon chose to learn the Flesh-tearing w. The reason was that this art was verypatible with his Poison w art. By tearing the opponent''s skin, he could then easily inject his poison into the opponent''s bloodstream.


    On the day when Li Shi''s team was meant to depart, Amon gave Xin Wuming detailed instructions on what to do for multiple scenarios that might ur. Amon of course couldn''t prepare for all contingencies but with the ones he had prepared, he believed Xin Wuming could react better. Xin Wuming himself refrained from taking any mission while Amon was gone so that their faction was not leaderless during Amon''s absence. With how often they saw Tuang Yin go to Amon''s house, the faction members had already considered her asdy boss. But she never actually took care of the faction, and Amon never asked her to. It was still Xin Wuming who acted as the leader after Amon. Arriving at the mission center, Amon informed the person in charge about his identity and his mission. He was then ushered to a room. Inside the room, there were four other students, three men and one woman. They were all older than Amon. The four looked at Amon who just came into the room with questioning expressions.


    One of them, a burly man, asked Amon, ''Kid, do youe into the wrong room?"


    Amon looked for a chair and then sat on it,pletely ignoring the burly man.


    "Hey, kid! Are you deaf?!" The burly man bellowed.


    "Keep your voice down, will you? The only woman in the room said. "Tutor Li Shi said there will be five students in this mission. He was probably the fifth one!"


    "The kid? You must be joking, right? He looked like a freshman student. What is a freshman student doing with a five-star mission? And isn''t this a special five-star mission that is given only by invitations?"


    "Maybe that''s why he can join, he is invited. Normal five-star missions are not open to freshman students."


    "They are not open for a freshman for a reason. Five-star missions are way out of the league for a weak-ass freshman student''


    "We just have to wait for tutor Li Shi to clear it up, then,'' the woman said, deciding to not argue


    anymore.


    The burly man returned his attention to Amon, who now shut his eyes and cultivate. The burly man felt blood climb up his head, how dare this freshman student treated him as air? He walked over to Amon.


    "Hey, Lei Gun, what are you doing? Don''t cause any trouble or you will be kicked out of the mission," the woman said to the burly man called Lei Gun after seeing him walking toward the freshman


    student.


    "I''m just greeting our junior,'' Lei Gun replied.


    Lei Gun stood before Amon, who was still ignoring him. ''Hmph!" Lei Gun harrumphed and released his intermediate transformation stage aura from up close.


    The aura would have intimidated normal students, but Amon had been pressured before by Martial realm experts. The aura released by Lei Gun, despite being strong, was not enough to cause Amon to


    fidget.


    Lei Gun frowned when he saw no response from Amon. He felt even more annoyed now. "Hey, impolite teenager!!" Lei Gun shouted as his fist shot forward. The fist went past Amon''s head and hit the wall behind. It produced a loud sound from the impact and the wall cracked.


    "Lei Gun..." The woman warned.


    Lei Gun was still staring at Amon, who still didn''t move an inch. But Amon''s eyes slowly opened. Those eyes now stared back at Lei Gun. Lei Gun didn''t see any trace of fear in those eyes. Instead, they were as cold as the ckest night, and it made Lei Gun feel ufortable. He felt like he was face to face with a deadly predator.


    "Gun... Stand down, One of the other two remaining men uttered. His voice carried an authoritative


    tone


    Lei Gun turned to the man, looked back at Amon, harrumphed, and walked away. He came to the side of the man who had asked him to stand down.


    The third man in the room chuckled. He said, ''Brother Yong Lei, you should have put a leash on that


    dog of yours.


    "What did you say?!" Lei Gun mmed his hand to the wall behind him. Now there were two cracks


    in the wall of this room.


    "Just kidding. Man, the Heroic people are truly too tense. Don''t you agree, Jie Mei?" The third man


    asked the lone woman.


    "Keep me out of your squabbles, Zong Kui; Jie Mei replied.


    "Hahaha! It''s rare that we from three different factions worked together on a mission. I wonder if it


    will go smoothly, Zong Kui said with augh.


    "Four factions" The man called Yong Lei said.


    "Four?" Zong Kui asked with a questioning nce.


    "That boy is the leader of the new faction that appeared recently in the freshman years, the Vicious!"


    Yong Lei said while pointing at Amon.


    The other three turned to Amon with wide eyes after hearing Yong Lei''s announcement.


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