CHAPTER 142: 142 - I’VE SEEN IT HAPPEN.

"Fuck, he’s only one, let’s attack together!" One of the demonic cultivators shouted, exchanging glances with his three companions.

After a moment’s hesitation, they advanced, their demonic Qi destroying everything in front of them.

Qingyi closed his eyes for a brief moment, feeling the air around him.

His eyes suddenly opened, glowing a deep purple as he used the first form of the Stormy Monarch sword art.

All the demon cultivators saw was a flash of light.

Qingyi’s blade became a blur as one of them fell, his chest pierced by a deep, bloody hole.

They barely had time to react when the handsome young man’s thrust turned into a horizontal slash.

A powerful blade of Qi flowed towards them with frightening power.

They raised their swords, roared and tried to defend themselves, but to no avail.

Their blades fell to the ground, split in two by a slash of molten metal.

Their bodies followed soon after as bloody slashes appeared on their abdomens, cutting them in half.

Qingyi barely paid any attention to the torn bodies, smiling softly at his new power.

Those five were at the peak of the Golden Core realm, but he finished them off in just three moves without even fighting at full strength.

Before, at the very least he would have had to sweat a bit to deal with opponents of this level, but after a single day of being trained by his master, everything had changed.

His skills were much more powerful and his blade infinitely sharper.

Having a master who truly taught him how to fight instead of simply repeating nonsense about purity and celibacy was truly incredible.

With a sigh, he leapt above the house, watching the other battles.

Juechen was still standing over the one who seemed to be the leader of the group. The white scabbard of his sword was blood red.

He hadn’t even drawn the blade, using only the hard leather to defeat his opponent.

"Argh! You bastard, my master won’t let you get away with this!" The leader of the group whimpered, opening his mouth and trying to bite a small bag of poison between his teeth.

Juechen didn’t allow him to commit suicide, plunging the tip of his sword into the demon cultivator’s mouth, muffling his cries of pain.

"Ah..." Juechen pressed his finger into the man’s neck, knocking him out before standing up.

"Junior Brother Qingyi, are you finished?" He smiled at the handsome young man.

"Yes, senior brother." Qingyi turned his face, staring at the other two who were still fighting their own battles.

"Should we help them?"

"No. Cultivators of noble origin have fragile pride. Hurting that pride is not a good idea." Juechen shook his head, putting a question mark on Qingyi’s face.

"Senior Brother Juechen isn’t of noble origin?" Qingyi asked, surprised.

Of course, there were commoner cultivators among the core disciples, but they were rare.

Apart from him and Feiyan, he doubted there were more than one or two. Such positions of power were almost always monopolized by noble houses.

"Not at all. I was plowing the land like a bull to survive when the master spotted me during one of his trips and asked me if I was interested in farming."

"I can’t believe I almost turned him down then, hahaha!" Juechen laughed, but Qingyi could see a hint of melancholy in his eyes.

They just watched in silence as Huntao and Ruhu ended their battles, observing Qingyi with a strange look.

Although the handsome young man had shown all his power to Qingxue, he was still suppressing his cultivation with the three-bladed monarch set and none of them knew of his true power.

How had a cultivator of the third stage of the Golden Core realm managed to end his battle before them, cultivators of the ninth stage of the Golden Core realm?

Qingyi sounded even more absurd than the rumors said.

"What kind of artifact did you use to finish off your opponents so quickly? You should have saved it for a real battle, not for those wimps!" Ruhu growled angrily.

"I can show you, if you like, but I very much doubt that your mommy will appreciate having to take care of two children with broken hands." Qingyi smiled coldly, his grip on the heaven-defying thunder sword growing stronger.

"You damn pretty face!"

"Enough!" Juechen interrupted them, throwing the unconscious demon cultivator over his shoulder.

" We’re going straight to the Ice Flower City. People are dying right now. You can have an official duel to settle your differences when you get to the sect."

"Ugh... lucky bastard!" Ruhu threw another menacing glance in Qingyi’s direction as he turned around.

The handsome young man just shook his head, unable to hide a thin thread of murderous light in his eyes.

He was familiar with this type of person and knew that Ruhu would probably try to do something stupid.

’Ah... I’ll just keep my guard up for now.’ Qingyi decided in his mind before focusing on the mission again.

Soon, they found themselves walking along a narrow path.

Ruhu and Huntao stayed behind, guarding the flanks of the group while Qingyi and Juechen carried the demonic cultivator in the center.

"How much power are you hiding?" Juechen asked, breaking the silence.

"Uh? What’s senior brother talking about?" Qingyi raised an eyebrow, turning his face to the brutish man.

"You didn’t use any artifacts, I would have noticed if you had. You allowed yourself to receive that first attack to get out of our sight and fight more freely. So tell me, how much power are you hiding?"

"Ah... I’m no match for senior brother’s perception..." Qingyi scratched the back of his head.

"I’m at the sixth stage of the Golden Core Realm. Apologies for deceiving you, Senior Brother Juechen."

"No need to apologize." Juechen shook his head, a gentle smile playing on his lips.

"In reality, you’re right to hide your power.

There are already people with a lot of suspicions about the speed of your advance to the golden core realm, but that can be attributed to your encounter with the expert from the nine peaks basin.

But if they find out that after returning, you’ve already made three other advances, these suspicions could get even worse.

They might believe that you have some transcendental artifact and that this is the path to transcendence."

Juechen raised his face, observing the cloudy, pristine sky. "I’ve seen it happen."

"My master and his master may not be the kind of people to take action against their own disciples, but many... no, most of the elders of the sect are driven by nothing but greed."