"Hahaha, I thought it was someone important—turns out it’s just a fat sheep from Moon Hua Sect. The Holy Son has decreed, kill every disciple of Moon Hua Sect on sight, and there will be a hefty reward for it. Why are we even hesitating, let’s slaughter this fat sheep and go collect our prize."
Someone burst into loud laughter.
The others also revealed ferocious smiles.
It seemed they regarded themselves as wolves, and Ling Xiao as a fat sheep.
"Boy, what’s your name?"
One of the disciples from the Heavenly King Sect shouted.
Ling Xiao wore a playful smile and responded loudly.
"Oh, so it’s actually a big fat sheep. The Holy Son said not to let this kid live to enter the finals of the Martial Arts Festival. Whoever kills him will get a reward equal to that of the festival champion!"
Upon hearing Ling Xiao’s name, the already sneering martial artists nearly drooled with anticipation.
"Don’t rush, guys. If the Holy Son wants this kid dead, doesn’t that mean he might be somewhat capable?"
"Capable, my ass. Moon Hua Sect is ranked lowest among the Twelve Sects; how tough can this kid be? Those disciples from Moon Hua Sect fled too quickly, using secret scrolls to vanish the moment things went south, and they couldn’t be caught. But this kid doesn’t seem to want to run."
"Exactly, just Moon Hua Sect, how tough can they be, kill!"
"If you guys don’t make a move, I’m going first!"
"What’s the rush? It was our Heavenly King Sect that found him first!"
"Bullshit, it was our Mysterious Fire Sect!"
Arguments broke out from everywhere, and it turned into a debate over who would get to kill Ling Xiao. It was as if to them, Ling Xiao was truly just a fat sheep, not a person and certainly not a fellow martial artist.
"Stop arguing, all of you can go to hell!"
Suddenly, a voice came from behind Ling Xiao, and then something terrifying happened.
A black wind surged up in the corridor, then plunged into the crowd, turning into a ferocious beast that began to devour lives.
From the first scream, it was only an instant, and the black wind had ripped nearly more than half of the martial artists into bare bones.
Upon closer inspection, the black wind was not actually wind but black ants with wings, so small they were almost imperceptible to the naked eye.
"Indeed treacherous and ruthless, the strike was merciless and staggeringly strong!"
The person’s attack just now had included him in its range, but the black wind off him disappeared into smoke.
The black ants were most afraid of flame, and Ling Xiao’s body bore an invisible layer of Hellfire, naturally not something these creatures could touch.
He couldn’t help but marvel, however, at the sheer power of the black wind, which was rare indeed. Among those killed were martial artists who were at the Half-step Celestial level, making up fifty percent, yet none of these martial artists had the ability to survive even a moment within the black wind.
This was truly terrifying.
"Damn it, it’s Feng Yaorao from Dragon Sky Academy!"
"How can this woman be so vicious!"
"Who knows, just make a run for it! This woman is too powerful, and her methods are extremely ruthless. If we stay, we’ll turn into bones!"
Although those present were the pride of their respective sects, faced with Feng Yaorao’s arrival, they had no intention of resisting and took off toward other passages. They didn’t care if those paths were dangerous; anything was better than facing Feng Yaorao head-on.
To know, in the last preliminary competition, eighty percent of the deaths and eliminations among disciples were caused by these lunatics among martial artists.
It was likely no different this time.
On the contrary, deaths caused by traps, array formations, or ferocious beasts were few and far between.
The truly terrifying threats were from within their own ranks.
People like Li Youdao, Tang Jiu, Feng Yaorao, and others were all ruthless characters.
Even if they themselves were not ruthless by nature, the competition for treasures would still inevitably lead to a massive killing spree.
By now in the preliminaries, whether it was Yan Lie Huo, Ya Qian Xue, Lan Pangzi, or Luo Tianyu, they all had a number of lives claimed under their hands.
Essentially, martial artists ranked within the top hundred in the Martial Arts Festival had killed people, some even their own sect members.
Within the passage, the once boisterous battle turned dead silent in an instant, with only Ling Xiao gazing indifferently behind him.
A flirtatiously enchanting figure arrived gracefully—it was without a doubt Feng Yaorao.
It seemed that among those martial artists just now, some had seen Feng Yaorao before, otherwise they wouldn’t have been able to guess her identity correctly.
Feng Yaorao didn’t even glance at the bodies on the ground and looked at Ling Xiao with a hint of surprise, "You’re actually not dead?"
In this woman’s eyes, Ling Xiao was merely a Half-step Celestial with twenty percent power, far less powerful than her.
It should be known that the gap in every ten percent of power at the Half-step Celestial realm was much greater than the gap in the nine layers before the Transcendent Realm.
The strength of a Half-step Celestial with twenty percent power could possibly be two to three times that of a Half-step Celestial with ten percent power!
Feng Yaorao was a Half-step Celestial with eighty percent power, whereas Ling Xiao was only at twenty percent.
There was a gap of six levels between them.
This six-level gap could amount to nearly twenty times the difference in strength.
Yet Ling Xiao was somehow not dead, which puzzled her greatly.
Of course, she was puzzled.
Because that sort of discrepancy was just a common one between ordinary martial artists; Ling Xiao was too special.
He was the possessor of the Ancient Hell Dragon Martial Soul, and also held the most mysterious and terrifying Mountain and River Martial Soul, having practiced the powerful Jade-grade Entry-level Martial Arts "Twelve Golden Lotus Art."
Therefore, the actual gap between Ling Xiao and Feng Yaorao was negligible.
He was naturally not afraid of Feng Yaorao.
"Why should I be dead?"
Ling Xiao said with a slight smile, "There are still many things in the True Demon Forbidden Land that interest me. If I died so early, wouldn’t I miss seeing them?"
"Hehe, you’re quite confident," Feng Yaorao sneered slightly, a hint of mockery and disdain in her smile. She even casually played with her hair with both hands, showing no concern at all for a surprise attack from Ling Xiao.
She truly didn’t take Ling Xiao seriously.
"Have you killed any disciples from the Moon Hua Sect?"
Ling Xiao suddenly asked.
"I would like to, but regrettably, until now, I’ve only encountered you. As for your fellow sect members, when they see me, they either flee or directly use Secret Scrolls to escape, preventing me from having even a chance to try my hand," Feng Yaorao said with a sigh.
"Then you are in luck, otherwise you would be the one laying in your own blood right here!"
Ling Xiao stated indifferently.
Surprise flashed across Feng Yaorao’s face.
She had already revealed the cultivation level of a Half-step Celestial with eighty percent power. He couldn’t be unaware of it, yet he still managed to remain so calm and self-assured in her presence, and even possessing strong self-confidence.
Or perhaps he truly had the ability to challenge her?
The question was difficult to answer, but there was a more direct method.
If one couldn’t see through the opponent, the simplest solution was to make a move. Once a move was made, it would immediately become clear whether the opponent was strong or weak.