Chapter 22 Xiao Ming's First Glimpse of Talent

In mid-air, the three were filled with suspicion and astonishment as they looked down at Xiao Ming and the shriveled corpse of the green-robed guard leader at his feet.

"Middle Stage Golden Core... instantaneous kill? What kind of Cultivation Technique does this kid practice?"

Elder Yin Gu's fingers, which were turning his bone beads, suddenly stopped. A sharp light shot from his murky eyes, though no one knew what he was thinking at that moment.

Tu Gang, however, was furious. His blood-red Qi soared into the sky as he roared, "You little beast! How dare you kill a Disciple of my War Demon Peak! I will definitely peel your skin and break your bones today, and throw you into the Blood Pool!"

He also felt a shiver in his heart. The kid's methods were too bizarre; even their War Demon Peak's core Cultivation Technique did not possess such devouring power. If he could capture him and extract the technique, wouldn't that be wonderful?

Moreover, the kid's combat power was so strong that if he wasn't eliminated early, it would likely cause endless trouble. Just as Tu Gang intended to take action and capture Xiao Ming, a surge of energy erupted.

Luo Hongyi stood suspended in the air, her aura locked tightly onto the two, serving as both a warning and a deterrent. Yet, in her heart, she was recalling that fleeting moment of palpitation, which made her Soul tremble even now. She thought for a long while before a thought slowly emerged.

"Could it be... the Heavenly Demon Physique? The legendary forbidden Physique?"

A storm raged in her heart. Looking at Xiao Ming again, her eyes no longer viewed him as an ordinary Disciple, but as if she were looking at a monster—a glittering, golden treasure.

Curiosity, hope, and an indescribable feeling lingered in her heart.

Just as the atmosphere solidified and everyone had different thoughts and hidden agendas:

"Boom!"

The hall door opened instantly, and a stunning figure drifted out. It was none other than the Revered Master of Heartless Peak, Luo Li!

As soon as she appeared, everyone's gaze was drawn to her again. Firstly, it was the Soul Transformation Stage pressure she was emitting, and secondly, her increasingly fiery and alluring figure and temperament. Although she had draped a cloak over herself when she came out, it still could not hide her graceful posture and the charm that carried an inexplicable attribute within her coldness.

Now, Luo Li had successfully achieved a Breakthrough into the Soul Transformation Stage! Her aura was becoming increasingly profound. Her already world-tilting appearance now added a touch of awe-inspiring majesty brought by her powerful strength.

When Tu Gang and Elder Yin Gu saw Luo Li's unmasked aura, their pupils shrank sharply, and their faces were filled with disbelief!

"Soul Transformation Stage! She... didn't she lose all her cultivation due to poison? How could she... and she even achieved a Breakthrough?"

Tu Gang roared in his heart, a surge of immense loss and a feeling of being in a difficult situation rising within him. He had been continuously pressuring Luo Hongyi to remove Luo Li from her position as Peak Revered Master, but Luo Hongyi had refused to budge. He had thought that at most, Luo Li might have found a way to recover her cultivation, which would be troublesome but still manageable. But now, she had silently recovered her cultivation and even had a Breakthrough.

One had to know that a Soul Transformation Stage combat power, especially someone with Luo Li's talent, had a completely different significance! She could fight above her level before her Breakthrough, and now that she had achieved it, it meant the Sect Master's lineage had strengthened again. Their previous arrangements and schemes had almost gone down the drain, and future maneuvering within the Sect would become even more difficult!

Elder Yin Gu's gaunt skin twitched, and a trace of gloom flashed in his eyes.

"...Not only did we fail to stop her, but we also allowed her to take a further step! Cough... It must have been that Medicinal Pill tribulation!"

It must be said that he was indeed "calculating and scheming"! Elder Yin Gu had roughly figured everything out, and at the same time, he was filled with dread toward the post-Breakthrough Luo Li and Luo Hongyi, who was already the ceiling of the Sect's combat power. The situation had begun to completely spiral out of their control.

Luo Hongyi was naturally unaware of everyone's ulterior motives. Seeing Luo Li come out, her beautiful eyes lit up, and her joy was evident: "Junior Sister! You successfully achieved a Breakthrough!"

She instantly flashed to Luo Li's side, held her jade hand, and was full of excitement. But immediately, her gaze glanced suspiciously at Xiao Ming in front of the hall, because she keenly noticed that her Junior Sister's eyes had landed on that kid the moment she came out! And, that look, it looked strange no matter how she viewed it.

"Eh~ Why does Junior Sister's attitude toward this Disciple... feel so strange?"

On the other side, Luo Li, who had just finished her Breakthrough, released her aura to perceive the situation and understood the state of affairs. When she saw Xiao Ming's blood-stained robes and the terrifying corpse in front of him, for some reason, her heart tightened, and subconsciously, her figure flashed, appearing in front of Xiao Ming.

"You... you aren't hurt, are you?"

She herself might not have noticed the hint of urgency in her voice.

However, as soon as the words left her mouth, Luo Li suddenly realized that what she had said was inappropriate. She and this Wicked Disciple were at odds, so why should she care about him? Immediately, she suppressed the strange emotions that had just welled up in her heart.

Her stunning face was instantly covered in a layer of frost, and her beautiful peach-blossom eyes restored the indifference of her usual Revered Master's dignity, as if that caring action had just been a hallucination. She snorted coldly, and in a tone of reprimand, said indifferently:

"Wicked Disciple! With your mere Golden Core cultivation, why aren't you Cultivating properly? What are you doing running here? If you were accidentally killed, wouldn't that be a disgrace to my Heartless Peak!"

This fierce but weak scolding sounded extremely interesting to Xiao Ming. He laughed inwardly, but on the surface, he was extremely respectful, bowing and saying:

"Revered Master is right. This Disciple will definitely Cultivate well in the future and will not fail Revered Master's teachings! Actually, the reason this Disciple acted was that while passing by earlier, I saw someone trying to break the Restriction and force their way into the Vice Sect Master's hall. This Disciple was worried about Revered Master's safety, and in a moment of anxiety, I acted. Please punish me, Revered Master!"

Xiao Ming appeared to be an obedient and good Disciple on the surface, but in reality, he was quite mischievous. However, he had to admit that he was indeed a bit panicked because he couldn't grasp what this silly woman's attitude toward him was now. However, what made him slightly relieved was that he could clearly feel that compared to before, Luo Li no longer had that unwavering belief to kill him at all costs.

Even so, Xiao Ming did not dare to be presumptuous in front of others, fearing that this silly woman would suddenly explode in anger and lose control, dragging him down with her.

Luo Li was choked up by his "obedient" appearance. In her heart, she inexplicably felt a bit of secret joy and pride, but she was also very annoyed because she couldn't find any fault with Xiao Ming's words. At this moment, she was holding back a nameless fire in her heart with nowhere to vent, so she could only glare at him fiercely before turning to the air and smiling slightly at Luo Hongyi.

On the other side, in the Core Disciple residential area not far away, inside a relatively exquisite courtyard.

The windows in the room were wide open, directly facing the standoff in front of the main peak's Vice Sect Master's hall. And by the window, a high-spirited male Disciple who had just achieved a Breakthrough to the Late Golden Core Stage was standing, hugging his newlywed Dao Companion, who was beautiful in appearance and carried a touch of heroic spirit between her brows.

"Junior Sister, look! Those two are Peak Revered Master Tu Gang and Elder Yin Gu. It is said that they are both powerhouses of the Soul Transformation Stage!"

The male Disciple said with excitement, his eyes full of longing and yearning, "If one day I could also be like them..."

Although his Dao Companion in his arms was also curious, her delicate eyebrows furrowed slightly, and she whispered:

"Senior Brother, for a battle between such great powers, we should avoid it for now, so as not to be caught in the crossfire..."

Her personality was clearly more cautious.

"What are you afraid of..."

Before the male Disciple could finish his sentence, a sudden change occurred!

The space inside the room rippled like water, and a terrifying pressure carrying a decadent fragrance suddenly descended, instantly trapping the two tightly!

A figure dressed in a black robe appeared silently in the room. His face was handsome and demonic, his skin was pale, and his white hair reaching his waist moved without wind. It was Old Ghost Yu Mo, who made everyone in the Sect turn pale at the mention of his name.

He didn't even glance at the male Disciple, his evil gaze falling directly on the female Disciple, looking her up and down as if looking at a piece of merchandise, and commented:

"Hmm~ Not bad! Congratulations! You have the qualifications to be favored by me!"

As he spoke, he strolled leisurely in front of the two who were trapped. Under the glare of her Dao Companion's crimson eyes, he extended a pair of slender fingers and slowly and gently lifted the female Disciple's chin with his fingertips.

"Ptui! Go to hell! If you dare to touch me again, I will immediately self-destruct!"

Although the female Disciple was trapped, she used all her strength to squeeze out the angry scolding through her teeth, her eyes firm, preferring death to surrender.

"Oh, is that so!" Old Ghost Yu Mo smiled playfully, his gaze first sweeping over the female Disciple's slender figure and her pretty face that carried a touch of heroic spirit, becoming increasingly interested in her.

Then, he saw a faint pink halo swirling around his fingertips, which, through the fabric, slowly wandered from her high-set chest, gradually exploring downwards.

"Mm-ah... mm..." The female Disciple's body trembled violently, and a strange, numbing heat surged uncontrollably from the place that had been touched. Although she tried her best to restrain and suppress it, that feeling still made her moan aloud. She cleared her thoughts, maintaining a clear mind, trying to resist that bizarre sensation, but her fair cheeks still unconsciously flushed with a red hue, and her legs became slightly weak. Her eyes were instantly filled with humiliation and terror.

Old Ghost Yu Mo took in every change in her body, laughing sinisterly, his voice filled with pathological pleasure:

"Hehe... Why must you suffer like this? Listen, how excited your body is! It is much more honest than your mouth..."

His fingertips applied a little pressure, and an even stronger, strange sensation instantly invaded. In the end, she could not help but let out an even more high-pitched sound from the depths of her throat than before, and her eyes became slightly blurred.

But she had a tough personality, and she bit the tip of her tongue hard. Blood flowed in her mouth, and she instantly became a bit clearer, her eyes gathering a resolute hatred again, hissing:

"...Demon! You... don't even think about it!"

"Oh? So stubborn?" Old Ghost Yu Mo was not angry but happy, as if he had seen some interesting toy. He loved watching those chaste and strong women, the process of their pride falling apart bit by bit under his hands.

"Interesting, very interesting... I am even more looking forward to it?"

As he spoke, a flash of light appeared on his fingertips, and a Medicinal Pill surrounded by a pink halo appeared in his hand, emitting an alluring, strange fragrance.

"This... this is...!" When the female Disciple saw the pink Medicinal Pill, the strange feeling that had been suppressed by the sharp pain began to rise again, making her body unbearably hot. Even though she had never seen this object before, the heat coming from her body, as well as the perverted, evil smile of this demon in front of her, made the female Disciple's Soul tremble.

She struggled desperately, but could only make "ho-ho" sounds of resistance, her eyes full of terror and despair.

Old Ghost Yu Mo admired the fear that she could not hide in her eyes, as if tasting the most delicious delicacy, and finally fed the Medicinal Pill into her mouth, teasingly saying:

"Don't be anxious... Eat it, and you will embrace your truest self... I am looking forward to it very much!"