The Trap Closes
Three overwhelming auras slammed down like iron mountains, instantly sealing a thousand-meter radius.
Branches snapped.
Trees bent.
Small beasts hiding in burrows were crushed into pulp by the pressure alone.
This wasn't a "capture" anymore.
This was an execution ground.
The two Black Dragon Sect men who had been stalling finally exhaled in relief.
If reinforcements hadn't come…
they couldn't have held Lin Ye.
But something still felt strange.
Why hadn't Lin Ye run earlier?
Then again—
it didn't matter.
A dead man didn't need explanations.
Black Dragon Sect: Heaven-Plundering Hall
The three figures descended, forming a triangle, boxing Lin Ye in.
The leader was gaunt, hollow-eyed, like a vulture.
His name—
Jiang Feng.
Black Dragon Sect, Heaven-Plundering Hall Master.
Within Black Dragon Sect, there were three great halls.
Heaven-Plundering Hall was responsible for one thing:
stealing what the sect needed.
Jiang Feng's cultivation—
Moonwheel Second Realm.
The two beside him were his left and right protectors.
Two half-step Moonwheel experts.
Jiang Feng stared down coldly.
"So you're Lin Ye."
His gaze was sharp enough to rip flesh.
But then he frowned slightly.
He realized—
his aura couldn't truly lock onto Lin Ye.
It was like trying to pin down smoke.
Lin Ye ignored his stare completely.
Instead, Lin Ye asked calmly:
"The other half of the treasure map."
"Is it in your hand?"
It was an answer and a question in one.
Jiang Feng's eyes turned darker instantly.
"Hand it over."
"I swear by Black Dragon Sect's name—your life will be spared."
His voice was calm, but it carried the arrogance of a predator.
To Jiang Feng, Lin Ye's strength was troublesome.
Better to take the map first…
then decide how to deal with him later.
Lin Ye's expression didn't change.
"Give me yours."
"And I can let you walk away."
"This is your last chance."
His tone was even.
Serious.
Not joking at all.
Jiang Feng smiled coldly.
Then—
his aura erupted.
It was like a beast opening its jaws and lunging straight for Lin Ye.
Nether-State Clash
"Nether State!"
Lin Ye activated his Nether Profound Vein without hesitation.
In an instant—
the Nine Nether Underworld King Tiger's power descended upon him again.
A supreme aura, filled with destruction, surged from every direction.
BOOM!
Jiang Feng's aura collided with Lin Ye's—
and exploded outward like a shockwave.
The two half-step Moonwheel protectors were forced back.
Even the two Star River men who had been stalling earlier were blasted hundreds of meters away, coughing blood as they climbed up.
They didn't dare approach again.
"Terrifying…"
That was only the initial aura clash.
If real techniques came out—
this forest would become a graveyard.
Jiang Feng's eyes narrowed, then lit with battle intent.
"Good."
"You're finally someone worth fighting."
He assumed Lin Ye was forcefully raising his strength through a secret method.
To him, that only meant Lin Ye was buying time.
Moonwheel was true endurance—true depth.
Secret methods always had a price.
Nightmare Blade Art
"Nightmare Blade Art."
Jiang Feng's crescent blade flashed.
Black blade qi slashed out in rapid succession.
Lin Ye dodged with movement technique—
but then his eyes sharpened.
Those blade qi weren't dispersing.
They struck tree trunks and bounced…
then split—
one became two.
The forest filled with blade qi.
In moments, over a hundred strands swarmed, ricocheting and multiplying like a hunting net.
"An illusion-type blade art."
Lin Ye frowned.
It was a refined technique.
But—
quantity didn't equal quality.
He lifted the Crimson Lotus Tribulation Cauldron.
"Break."
He smashed it into the ground.
BOOM!
A wave of force rippled outward—
and the entire Nightmare Blade Art shattered like glass.
Jiang Feng's eyes flickered.
Before he could adjust—
Lin Ye struck.
Crimson Lotus Karma Flame
Lin Ye slapped the cauldron.
A terrifying flame erupted from within.
Crimson Lotus Karma Flame!
WHOOSH!
He seized a handful of flame and dragged it across the Cold Iron Sword.
Blood煞 qi reinforced it.
The sword didn't melt.
Instead—
it became even more terrifying.
Lin Ye swung.
"Blood Slaughter Nine Carnage!"
Nine blood sword qi surged forward like a tidal wave.
Jiang Feng instinctively retreated—
ten steps…
twenty…
thirty…
Then his face changed.
Because Lin Ye's true target…
wasn't him.
It was the two half-step Moonwheel protectors.
A feint.
A slaughter plan.
Lin Ye's thinking was simple:
You came here. None of you leave.
The protectors' pupils shrank.
They had been "support."
They hadn't expected Lin Ye to turn the blade on them instantly.
"Black Cloud Armor!"
Both protectors released layered qi armor at the same time.
No time to dodge.
If they turned even slightly—
they'd be erased.
Their armor slammed into the sword qi.
The third sword qi shattered the armor.
The remaining sword qi swallowed them whole.
BOOM! BOOM!
Their bodies exploded.
Blood sprayed.
A strange invisible blood energy was absorbed into Lin Ye's Nine Nether Blood Sea.
Deep within—
something stirred.
A blood-sea reef rose rapidly from beneath the surface.
Lin Ye's mind flickered.
He split a strand of focus inward.
Carved on the reef—
a technique appeared.
Star-Shattering Palm Art: Blood Luo Heavenly Waterfall Palm!
His eyes flashed.
His Blood Slaughter Nine Carnage was only Star-Shattering low grade.
This palm art—
was Star-Shattering high grade.
As for Heaven-Piercing Finger and Luo Sheng Palm…
they were merely high-grade Earth-tier at best.
Without hesitation, Lin Ye used half his focus to comprehend it on the spot.
With Nine-Turn Asura Art as foundation—
the technique poured into him like a river.
He learned absurdly fast.
But—
splitting focus while Jiang Feng attacked in fury—
made Lin Ye begin to give ground.
Jiang Feng's Killing Surge
"Only this much?"
"Making an enemy of Black Dragon Sect…"
"is the greatest mistake of your life!"
Jiang Feng roared.
His crescent blade rained down.
The two protectors' deaths enraged him.
Their losses were common in Heaven-Plundering Hall—
but dying like this was humiliating.
Lin Ye finally raised his qi armor.
"Asura Blood Armor!"
CLANG!
He blocked a slash.
Jiang Feng's eyes lit with excitement.
Lin Ye was forced into defense.
Meaning—
Lin Ye was running out of options.
"Your broken armor…"
"dares to show itself before me?"
"Break!"
His blade qi surged.
With one slash—
Lin Ye's Blood Armor shattered completely.
It had already been near collapse after tanking tribulation lightning earlier.
Now it broke.
Jiang Feng's battle intent exploded.
Without armor—
Lin Ye had nowhere to hide.
He spun, charging power.
"Polar Demon-Slaying Slash!"
A blade qi tens of meters long cleaved down like a falling moon.
Lin Ye couldn't dodge in time.
He met it head-on.
"Shatter Calamity Claw!"
BOOM!
The claw shattered the blade qi.
But Jiang Feng wasn't concerned.
That was only the setup.
His true kill technique had already formed—
and struck like the fang of death.
"Threefold Return to Origin—Extreme Nightmare Kill!"
A condensed blade qi appeared, far denser than before.
At the moment it formed—
all life within a hundred steps seemed to be drained away.
The forest went cold.
Jiang Feng's eyes were full of absolute confidence.
Secret method trash.
Borrowed strength.
How can you compare to a true Moonwheel Second Realm?
But then—
he saw Lin Ye's gaze.
Under that terrifying blade—
Lin Ye showed no fear.
No panic.
No hesitation.
Only calm.
Like iron.
Like stone.
Like a sea that never moved.
Lin Ye spoke, voice quiet—
but it carried an ancient murderous weight.
"Blood Luo Heavenly Waterfall Palm."
The moment the words fell—
a storm of annihilation erupted.
And slammed into Jiang Feng.