"Bold!"
Du Fen slammed his palm onto the table, instantly reducing half of the rosewood surface to dust. His eyes, filled with a blazing light, fixed on the intruders outside. "Who dares trespass into the Yunzhou Du family's residence? What crime do you commit?! Du Yang, Du Yue, you two family traitors, did I not instruct you to remain in the secret chamber and reflect on your wrongdoings?"
Du Yue pursed her red lips, looking at the grandfather who had once doted on her so much. The once incredibly benevolent elder had become like a completely different person after entering the Middle Five Realms. Not only was he short-tempered, but he was also violent and cruel. Therefore, Du Yue had no hope left for this grandfather; she was resigned.
"You are Du Fen, right?"
Lin Zhao raised an eyebrow slightly, stepped forward, clasped his fists, and smiled. "I am a friend of Xu Ming'an from Mount Jiuhua. Xu Ming'an gifted you the Zhenyuan Pill to help you break through. Why did you reveal his secrets to the Medicine King Valley, bringing him a catastrophic disaster? Did you not know the severity of it?"
"What if I know, and what if I don't?"
Du Fen waved his sleeve, and spiritual energy flames instantly enveloped him. With a gesture, several guards in the Fourth and Fifth Realms appeared behind Lin Zhao and Wu Zhi, their expressions extremely hostile.
"You."
Du Fen pointed at Lin Zhao and chuckled, "A dog chasing a rat, meddling in affairs that don't concern you. You can go die. As for you..."
He narrowed his eyes at Wu Zhi and said with a smile, "Although you've lost an arm, your beauty is indeed captivating, and your sword intent is quite potent. I shall keep you by my side as a sword-bearing maid. You can attend to my daily needs. Naturally, you will have a place in my bedchamber. As long as you obey, you will not be short of benefits."
"Father!"
Beside him, Du Xian's eyes widened in disbelief. He could not imagine these words coming from his father. "Father, how old are you? At your age, you still want to take a concubine? If you have no shame, do we Du family members have no shame?"
"Alright, alright."
Lin Zhao smiled and said, "I'll ask just one question: Did you leak the formula for the Zhenyuan Pill?"
"Yes, so what?" Du Fen stated proudly.
"Mm."
Lin Zhao nodded. "Do you admit that you repaid kindness with enmity?"
"Yes, so what?"
Du Fen raised an eyebrow and sneered, "You meddling little bastard, with just you... do you really think you can uphold justice here? Do you think you can walk out of the Du family alive today?"
"Hmph~~~"
Lin Zhao turned, took Wu Zhi's hand, and entered the main hall. He chuckled, "Well said, Du Fen, well said, a cultivator of the Violet Mansion Realm. I truly see what it means when a wolf with a successful career becomes arrogant. However, if you want to take a concubine, look..."
He glanced at Wu Zhi, whose cheeks were flushed. "She only has one arm, so she uses a left-hand sword. Although you, Du Fen, are like a frog in a well, have you never heard of a female Sword Immortal in the Northern Region who uses a left-hand sword exceptionally well?"
"Hm?"
Du Fen frowned, and suddenly, as if struck by lightning, he repeatedly shook his head. "No... impossible. How could she be Wu Zhi, the Left-Handed Sword Immortal from the Snow Region Heavenly Pool? Impossible... absolutely impossible..."
Lin Zhao smiled and clasped his fists again. "I am Lin Zhao, from the Snow Region Heavenly Pool."
In an instant, the entire Du family seemed struck by thunder. It wasn't just Du Fen and his retinue, but even Du Xian, Du Yang, and Du Yue were dumbfounded and speechless. Could this young sword cultivator who looked like a scholar be the legendary Lin Baiyi of the Snow Region Heavenly Pool? And the female sword cultivator behind him, the legendary Left-Handed Sword Immortal Wu Zhi? That was... a genuine peak Sword Cultivator of the Twelfth Realm! For a small family like the Yunzhou Du clan, what concept was the Twelfth Realm? It was something they could never reach in this lifetime, an existence as lofty as a god!
"Alright."
Lin Zhao raised an eyebrow slightly and said with a smile, "Wu Zhi, be careful with your actions. Sever Du Fen's Sixth Realm and have him return the fortune of the Zhenyuan Pill. We'll return a Fifth Realm to him as well, fair and just. As for the others who want to stand up for Du Fen and are always shouting about fighting, each of the Lower Five Realms will drop one realm. I hope you will behave yourselves in the future and stop doing evil. If humans don't take you in, heaven will."
"Understood."
Wu Zhi drew her sword. As the blade unsheathed, more than a dozen sword lights shot out instantly. The Du family's ancestor, Du Fen, let out a pained cry. After a sword strike to his brow, he slumped back into his grand tutor's chair. The guards and martial artists he had kept, each also received a sword strike to the brow. Wu Zhi's control over her strength was superb. Each person only dropped one realm, merely severing a portion of their innate cultivation base, not even seriously injuring them.
...
"Ahhhh..."
Du Fen wailed. Returning to the Lower Five Realms felt terrible. What was worse was that after his return to the Lower Five Realms, his lifespan had run out. His appearance rapidly aged, and his life force was constantly drained from his body. In an instant, he looked like an octogenarian, with none of the grace of a celestial being from the mountains.
Outside, in the courtyard, a group of guards and martial artists scattered like startled birds.
Lin Zhao glanced at them and made no move to stop them. He simply pulled over a chair and sat directly opposite Du Fen.
"You... you..."
Du Fen spat blood, his expression weary as he looked at Lin Zhao. "Lin Baiyi, what else do you want? To seize my Du family's assets? To enslave the men of the Du family, or perhaps you have taken a liking to that girl Du Yue and wish to make her your concubine?"
Lin Zhao frowned and said, "What you value, I may not necessarily value. So I am not here for those things, but to sit here, waiting for your lifespan to expire, waiting for you to breathe your last. If you, Du Fen, do not die, I feel that the matter is only half done. And do not resent anyone; there is no need. You were already a person destined to die. Xu Ming'an extended your life, and you repaid his kindness with enmity. Now I am reclaiming Xu Ming'an's fortune, so it is heaven that is taking your life, not I, Lin Zhao. I am merely acting according to circumstances."
Wu Zhi stood behind Lin Zhao, her sword, Cheng Xin, resting on the ground. Her beautiful eyes narrowed slightly. If anyone dared to harm Lin Zhao at this moment, she would kill without hesitation. A Sword Cultivator of the Twelfth Realm, what was wiping out the entire Du family? The Great Shang Dynasty would certainly not pursue it; it was merely a martial world vendetta. Local officials only had the ability to manage the Lower and Middle Five Realms. As for the Upper Five Realms, they could only report to the Mountain Sea Division, but would the Mountain Sea Division bother with such trivial matters?
Not far away, the Du family patriarch, Du Xian, looked on calmly as his father, who was constantly losing his life force, died with no remorse. Originally, Du Xian had greatly respected his father. Unfortunately, as Lin Zhao said, a wolf with a successful career becomes arrogant. Once Du Fen became a celestial being of the Middle Five Realms, his true nature was immediately revealed. Everything about his former benevolent ancestor was a pretense. Those in the Lower Five Realms who acted too recklessly could not survive long. Once they entered the Middle Five Realms, they became lawless.
In fact, if Du Fen had not taken the Zhenyuan Pill and had simply died of old age then, it would have been the best outcome. Du Xian was grateful to Xu Ming'an for the gifted pill, but he also felt immense regret. The final outcome was too ironic.
...
Not long after, Du Fen's lifespan expired, and he died in his grand tutor's chair, unwilling.
Lin Zhao stood up and clasped his fists lightly towards Du Xian. "This matter only concerns Du Fen and has nothing to do with the Yunzhou Du clan. Therefore, Patriarch Du Xian need not worry. The Snow Region Heavenly Pool will not hold a grudge against the Du family. This matter here is concluded, and everything ends here."
"Mm!"
Du Xian bowed. "Speaking of which... thank you, Mountain Master. Otherwise, Du Yang and Du Yue would still be detained."
"Patriarch, take care of yourself."
Lin Zhao said, "The sins that Du Fen committed while alive must be repaid by you bit by bit. Perhaps the Du family will face trouble in the future, all due to karma. How you handle these matters and how you ensure the Du family's survival depends on your ability."
Du Xian nodded. "Please rest assured, Mountain Master. Du Xian knows what to do."
"Good, let's go."
Lin Zhao turned and said, "Wu Zhi, let's go home."
"Mm."
Wu Zhi smiled and nodded. Du Yang and Du Yue both bowed their fists and lowered their heads towards Lin Zhao and Wu Zhi, who were enveloped in sword light, to express their gratitude. They could not bring themselves to hate this Lin Baiyi at all, as everything he did was justified and reasonable, and he acted with great restraint. Had it been someone else, the entire Du family might have been wiped out!
...
Just then, a bell sound suddenly rang in his ear. Finally, the long-awaited plot compensation reward arrived.
"Ding!"
System prompt: Congratulations on completing the [Pill Formula's Fury] plot. You have received plot compensation rewards: Current level experience +200%, Charm +5, Golden Mullet Coins +12, Reputation +20000!
...
"Swish swish!"
Two streams of golden light fell from the sky. Lin Zhao leveled up from level 151 to level 153. The long-lost feeling of leveling up. However, even at level 153, he was still far behind other top players. Currently, Lin Zhao's level ranked 39th in the national server, but it seemed to not matter; he didn't care anyway. Lin Zhao had long seen through it. Was level important? It was, indeed, but not the most important. In this game, "Tian Xia," what was truly important were realms, magic treasures, and even the combined effect of levels, equipment, and the like was not as significant as magic treasures. Therefore, Lin Zhao pursued high realms, strong sword intent, and an abundance of magic treasures; this was the foundation of a Sword Immortal!
Late at night, returning to the Natural Residence, he looked at the gourd vine. The remaining four gourds were growing vigorously, emitting auspicious light in the darkness, exuding an aura of treasure. He glanced at them, dismissed the thought, returned to his room, and drew Talismans of Heavenly Thunder, Iron Cavalry Killing Formation, and Spear Like a Forest. After exhausting his stamina, he went upstairs, got into bed, and slept soundly.
...
The next morning, the Natural Residence was shrouded in mist, as if it were an immortal realm.
Outside, the sounds of Dong Cang and Liu Li Ying fetching water could be heard. In the pond, Chen Ben was retrieving the fish traps to take out loaches and mudfish. Lin Zhao slowly woke from his dream, lay on the bed, and breathed a sigh of relief. The next moment, he suddenly sat up. When he looked at the immortal gourd, Bai Hua, placed by his bedside, he was shocked to find that in the first layer where Bai Hua nurtured the flying sword, there were two Ephemeral Flying Swords!
"One gives birth to two?!"
Could the Ephemeral Flying Swords replicate themselves? He was dumbfounded.