Chapter Eighty-Five: Killing You Is Like Killing a Dog!

A series of system notifications rang out once more, and this time the merit points awarded were even greater than before.

There was nothing to be done. Wang Ran’s pretense was simply too shocking. To swallow heavenly materials and earthly treasures whole was the sort of thing that would make any cultivator’s eyes pop from their sockets.

After all, he was not some peerless powerhouse with heaven-defying abilities to reverse the course of fate. He was only a mere Foundation Establishment cultivator. To eat a rare treasure raw and remain unharmed was utterly beyond the comprehension of everyone from the North Marsh Sect.

Liu Junhou staggered backward again and again, staring at Wang Ran in astonishment and unease, his mind reeling. He could not understand how Wang Ran had survived the medicine power of the Square-Inch Herb.

This was absolutely not something a Foundation Establishment cultivator could accomplish. Could he be carrying some heaven-defying treasure?

At that thought, a flicker of greed passed through Liu Junhou’s eyes. A treasure capable of neutralizing the power of heavenly materials and earthly treasures would most likely be at least a level-seven spiritual artifact. Such a divine object was the kind one might encounter only by chance, and even a Nascent Soul cultivator would be tempted.

Though it was only a guess, that did not stop Liu Junhou from imagining it. In any case, he already disliked Wang Ran. Better to kill him; if there truly was a priceless treasure, then this trip would not have been in vain.

Liu Junhou could never have imagined that Wang Ran was forcibly neutralizing the medicinal power through his cultivation art. The cultivation art of a ten-star Foundation Establishment was far too rare. This vast, boundless continent—who would have thought one could really run into such a peerless genius?

A prodigy of ten-star Foundation Establishment was like a divine dragon in the heavens: a person of immeasurable future prospects. Such figures were as rare as phoenix feathers and qilin horns across the entire continent. In the last thousand years, perhaps only Wang Ran himself had appeared.

Moreover, his cultivation art was the most terrifying of all the ten-star Foundation Establishment techniques, embodying the meaning of immortality and undying existence. It had already run counter to the will of heaven. So no matter how powerful the heavenly treasure was, once it entered Wang Ran’s belly, it had to submit to his control.

He even had enough spare strength to channel his own power into his junior sister’s body, helping her dissolve the remaining force of the Square-Inch Herb as well.

The junior sister quickly understood as well. She knew she had stumbled into a tremendous opportunity. With Wang Ran clearing away the obstacles for her, this was the perfect moment to improve her cultivation by leaps and bounds. She immediately sat cross-legged and activated her cultivation art, absorbing the wondrous power of the Square-Inch Herb. Her meridians and bones gradually transformed, becoming more perfect, as though she were shedding her old self and being reborn.

Wang Ran should also have been sitting in meditation to seize and absorb the power of the heavenly treasure, but he knew there was still one trouble before him that had not yet been dealt with. So he first forced down the surging force of the treasure within his body.

Not far away, Liu Junhou saw the junior sister’s body becoming crystalline and radiant, spiritual energy rippling around her, her robes fluttering wildly—clearly in the midst of a transformation brought about by absorbing the power of the heavenly treasure. In an instant, his eyes turned red.

These opportunities had originally all been his!

At once, his gaze grew cold as a viper’s. Turning back to Wang Ran, he said with a cruel smile, “Boy, you stole my fortune and ruined my plans. No matter who you are, today I will make sure you die without a burial place!”

As soon as his words fell, Liu Junhou’s eyes narrowed. His robes billowed, and a torrent of violent spiritual power swept out like blades spinning around his body. The ground beneath his feet cracked in layer upon layer, his aura surging skyward.

“Some tiny ant with narrow vision, using your petty experience to judge others, and you still dare speak so arrogantly?”

“You think that because you rule supreme in North Marsh, everyone must submit to you? You know nothing. In my eyes, North Marsh is nothing more than a grain of sand!”

Wang Ran’s expression was indifferent. Toward this so-called number-one prodigy of the North Marsh Sect, who had repeatedly offended him, he had already run out of patience.

He did not like causing trouble, but when trouble came looking for him, he would never avoid it.

“Hah! A mere sixth-level Foundation Establishment cultivator dares lecture me?” Liu Junhou burst into laughter after hearing this, his killing intent intensifying. He roared, his power swelling further as spiritual force gushed out in a torrent, transforming into a streak of light that vanished from where he stood.

“So fast!”

A North Marsh Sect disciple cried out in alarm. By the side of the Square-Inch Pool, there was no longer any trace of Liu Junhou to be seen, only the whistling wind all around, proving that he was there.

“I heard long ago that Senior Brother Liu cultivated a movement art of incredible speed. Today, I finally get to see it for myself!” another North Marsh Sect disciple said excitedly, clearly long enamored of this famous finishing move of Senior Brother Liu.

“Exactly. At Senior Brother Liu’s speed, that boy probably won’t even be able to see his movements before he’s killed!”

The disciples of the North Marsh Sect were all thrilled, praising Senior Brother Liu to the skies.

Above the heavens, countless streaks of light flashed as spiritual power danced wildly. The human figure could not be seen clearly, and only Liu Junhou’s voice could be heard, circling about in mockery.

“Boy, I told you long ago that I would make your life worse than death.”

“With the strength of half a Golden Core, what I can do is far beyond your imagination. This time, not only will I torment you, but the treasures on you and the woman beside you will all become mine as well!”

“As for your corpse, I’ll take it back to refine it, forcing out the medicinal power of the Square-Inch Herb. When you’ve completely lost all value, I’ll throw you out to feed the dogs!”

Countless afterimages flickered across the sky. Under Liu Junhou’s vicious taunts, Wang Ran stood with his hands at his sides, motionless, as if sensing something.

Suddenly, his eyes sharpened. He gave a soft snort, stepped forward in a single instant, extended a palm white and jade-like, and struck through the air.

Boom!

A deafening blast suddenly thundered in all directions. Then, to everyone’s shock, where Wang Ran’s figure had landed, a young man was half-kneeling on the ground, blood streaming from his seven openings, the crown of his head pinned beneath Wang Ran’s one-handed grip.

It was Liu Junhou!

And at this moment, a smile still hung at the corners of his mouth, not yet fully faded. Clearly, before he could react at all, he had already been sent crashing to the ground by Wang Ran’s palm.

How terrifying was the force of Wang Ran’s strike? Even the fleshly body of Overbearing Elephant Xu Ke could not withstand it, let alone Liu Junhou, who had never cultivated body-tempering arts. In an instant, that invincible force shattered his organs and broke who knew how many bones, leaving him nearly dead.

Hiss—

A chorus of sharp inhales rose and fell in waves. Some of the more timid disciples even dropped straight onto the ground, their legs soaked with fear.

They could not accept it. The invincible Senior Brother Liu in their hearts had been defeated just like that.

The loss came far too fast for them to react.

One moment, Senior Brother Liu had been speaking eloquently; the next, he had been pressed into the ground like a dead dog.

Aside from Chu Yichen, who watched from afar and shook his head, having long foreseen this scene, no one—including Liu Junhou himself—had expected such an outcome.

“I told you before: if you repeatedly offend me and I do not kill you, that is mercy. If I truly wished to kill you, it would be as easy as killing a dog!”

“Who exactly are you?” Liu Junhou’s gaze dimmed rapidly. With the last of his strength, he trembled out the words, as though he wanted to die with complete understanding.

“Wang Ran. In Yunzhou, people like to call me Wang Situ.”

After speaking, Wang Ran turned and walked toward his junior sister, no longer sparing a glance for the people of the North Marsh Sect. He left only Liu Junhou’s final bitter laugh and a whisper no one heard.

“So you are... Wang Situ.”

With a dull thud, this number-one prodigy of the North Marsh Sect, this arrogant half-step Golden Core expert, fell to the ground and never breathed again.