Ling Xiao looked at the thugs scattered around him, beaten to a pulp, and frowned deeply. He knew very well that these men were merely hired flunkies and that the true mastermind had yet to show his face. Under his sharp gaze, a slightly bolder thug trembling stammered out that it was Brother Bao who had ordered them to come.
Ling Xiao let out a cold snort, a flash of icy light crossing his eyes, and told the thug to lead the way so he could find this Brother Bao. How could the thug dare disobey? He led Ling Xiao to a remote, abandoned factory, which served as Brother Bao's lair.
Brother Bao had thought his arrangements were foolproof. Lounging lazily in a chair, smoking a cigar, he was waiting for his men to bring back good news, never expecting that Ling Xiao would actually have the nerve to show up on his doorstep. Brother Bao's eyes widened in a surge of unease, but he quickly calmed down, thinking to himself, "What kind of waves can a punk with this kid's tricks possibly make? I'll send my champion fighter out; that'll surely put him neatly in his place."
With that thought, Brother Bao stood up with a loud laugh and cast a meaningful glance at a thug behind him. The thug bowed respectfully and retreated. A short while later, a hulking, muscle-bound brute walked up—none other than Brother Bao's champion fighter.
The champion stared at Ling Xiao with eyes full of disdain and provocation, rubbing his fists together to produce a crunching sound as if warning Ling Xiao of his formidable strength. Taking an offensive stance, the champion lunged fiercely toward Ling Xiao, believing that with his years of combat experience and robust physique, he could easily reduce Ling Xiao to a state of complete helplessness.
Yet Ling Xiao merely stood his ground with nonchalant calm, not a shred of fear in his eyes. As the champion closed in, Ling Xiao sidestepped smoothly, dodging the champion's heavy punch. Then his speed abruptly accelerated, and like a phantom, he slipped behind the champion and struck him squarely on the back with a palm strike. Infused with Ling Xiao's powerful spiritual energy, the blow felt to the champion as though he had been hit by a massive mountain; he staggered forward a few steps before steadying himself.
Angered by his humiliation, the champion spun around to attack Ling Xiao once more, unleashing his deadliest combo punches. Every single strike carried a whistling gale, as if tearing the air apart. But Ling Xiao nimbly wove through his attacks, deftly neutralizing wave after wave of assault. Finally, as the champion lunged forward yet again, Ling Xiao seized the opening and kicked the champion right in the knee. The champion's knee buckled, and he dropped heavily to the ground, unable to stand back up.
Seeing his champion defeated so effortlessly by Ling Xiao, Brother Bao felt a shock run through him. Yet refusing to give up, he decided to handle the matter himself. In his younger days, Brother Bao had fought in underground boxing matches, rolling and tumbling in those dark rings for years, and had forged an extraordinary level of martial prowess.
Adopting a fierce expression, Brother Bao strode toward Ling Xiao, a powerful aura emanating from his body. Throwing a punch straight at Ling Xiao's face, what looked like an ordinary strike actually harbored astonishing force. However, Ling Xiao remained unhurried; he slightly sidestepped and threw a punch of his own, colliding directly with Brother Bao's fist.
The moment they met, a powerful shockwave rippled out from their fists, causing the surrounding air to hum with vibrations. Brother Bao felt as though his fist had smashed into an iron hammer; a wave of excruciating pain shot through him, and his entire hand began to tremble. Ling Xiao, showing not the slightest retreat, pressed the offensive, raining blows down upon Brother Bao one after another. Unable to withstand the onslaught, Brother Bao was forced back step by step, until a kick from Ling Xiao sent him flying to crash heavily onto the ground.
Seeing Brother Bao knocked down, his thugs swarmed forward in an attempt to protect their boss. Ling Xiao let out a cold grunt and vanished in a flash, instantly reappearing in the midst of the thugs. His fists fell like raindrops, every single strike delivering agonizing pain. In no time at all, the entire mob of thugs was lying on the ground groaning, stripped of any ability to fight back.
In his current disheveled state, Brother Bao realized he was no match for Ling Xiao at all. To save his life and preserve his face, Brother Bao began to plead for mercy. Crawling over to Ling Xiao, he begged bitterly, detailing his helplessness and his awe of Ling Xiao.
A wave of mockery welled up inside Ling Xiao as he looked at Brother Bao. Glaring down at the man sprawled on the ground, he said coldly, "Begging for mercy now is far too late. However, I have no desire to exterminate you completely. As long as you hand me a hefty sum of money, I'll let this matter go."
Though extremely reluctant in his heart, Brother Bao knew that parting with wealth was his only option to avert disaster. Gritting his teeth, he agreed to Ling Xiao's demand.
Ling Xiao made Brother Bao scrape together two million. Holding the money in his hands, he thought to himself quietly, "This cash has arrived just in time to resolve my urgent needs. Cultivation will probably require quite a bit of money to buy various resources in the future, so I'll just keep this for now."
In this conflict, Ling Xiao crushed Brother Bao and his subordinates with absolute strength. Later, upon learning that it was Lin Yu who had hired Brother Bao, Ling Xiao thought: If he remains so blind and ignorant, next time Lin Yu's fate won't just be lasting three seconds—he'll be permanently unable to stand up. Ling Xiao also knew deep down that his path of cultivation was still long, and he would encounter all sorts of challenges ahead. He resolved to cultivate even harder, continuously elevating his strength so that those who wished to harm him could only tremble in his presence.
Having paid the money, Brother Bao slinked away in dejection, knowing that if he didn't leave now, he might genuinely leave his life behind today. Meanwhile, Ling Xiao calmly departed the abandoned factory with the money. Upon returning to school, he didn't mention the incident to anyone else; he had no desire to cause a massive stir over such trivial matters, wanting only to continue quietly along his path of cultivation.
Back in his dorm, Ling Xiao neatly organized the money and placed it in a hidden corner of his wardrobe, planning to deposit it into his card another day. Sitting on the edge of his bed, he closed his eyes and began to review the course of today's battle. He realized there were still many aspects of his combat he could improve, and he needed to delve deeper into the Chaos Heaven-Swallowing Formula to take his strength to the next level.
In the days that followed, Ling Xiao continued living his life at school. He listened attentively in class and returned to his dorm to cultivate after hours. His appearance grew more handsome day by day, and his demeanor became increasingly steady, capturing more and more gazes across the campus. Yet he paid no heed to any of it; his heart held room for nothing save his path of immortality.
As for Lin Yu, ever since his hiring of Brother Bao had failed, he had been constantly searching for other opportunities to exact revenge on Ling Xiao. He felt that Ling Xiao was becoming an escalating threat and couldn't allow Ling Xiao to surpass him. Thus, he began plotting a new conspiracy once again...