The atmosphere outside the secret territory was tense.
Jin Linfeng's face looked ugly. He glared at the b.l.o.o.d.y figure beside Liu Yun. His sleeves hurled as he roared, "Impossible. Xiao Mo could never be a demonic cultivator!"
He shook with anger. Liu Qingzhou glanced at Liu Yun beside him and suddenly dared to continue, "Qin Mo is a demonic cultivator. I saw it with my own eyes! He absorbed Attendant Meng and He's souls." He paused and swept his gaze across the crowd, tone becoming sensual, "He robbed us of our purification spirit fruit!"
"Purification spirit fruit?" At the sound of those words, everyone inhaled in disbelief. That fruit was a thing of legend, and it had appeared.
Every core formation cultivator felt their hearts skip a beat. The fruit purified a cultivator's body and improved their apt.i.tudes. It was especially effective for those stuck at the peak of core formation. If they consumed it now, even they could reach nascent soul.
Joy swelled in Liu Qingzhou's heart. He lowered his gaze to hide his resentment. "Qin Mo's eaten the purification spirit fruit, but. . ."
He did not finish his words, but everyone understood the implication. It didn't matter if it was eaten, so long as the person was still present.
"What nonsense! Xiao Mo is our Yueqing Sect's head disciple. How could we tolerate your slander!" Jin Linfeng glared at Liu Qingzhou. A fire lit in his heart, and he waved his hand, slamming his palm in Liu Qingzhou's direction.
"Jin Linfeng, what are you mad about!" Liu Yun wrinkled a brow and turned, blocking the attack.
"Hmph! He dared slander my disciple!" Jin Linfeng answered sharply, snorting.
"Jin Sect Head, you need to calm down. Liu saw it with his own eyes. One can know someone for a long time without understanding his true nature. Do you really know your disciple?" Zhengyang Sect's elder Cao Yong's eyes sparkled. He waved at Kong Fan behind him.
Kong Fan paused. Although he was Zhengyang Sect's head, he was far from Cao Yong's level of wisdom.
Jin Linfeng frowned, looking at Liu Qingzhou with disdain. His eyes flashed with displeasure. "He said he saw it with his own eyes?"
"I have evidence!" Liu Qingzhou could feel everyone's doubt. Faced with Jin Linfeng's fury, his voice slowed. "Attendant Meng and He were both Yunyin Sect's spirit solitude cultivators. Our Yunyin Sect lit a soul lamp specially for them. The lamps would be extinguished if they encountered something unexpected. The lamp will show us what happened at their time of death!"
The audience's hearts calmed. Generally, the large sects only lit a soul lamp for their important members. Yunyin Sect was no exception.
Despite his wounds, Liu Qingzhou knelt before Liu Yun and said, "Sect head, please decide for our two Attendants!"
Liu Yun glanced at Jin Linfeng. She summoned a disciple beside her and ordered, "Return to our sect and check." The young disciple bowed and departed.
Her gaze was s.h.i.+fted back to Jin Linfeng. In a serious tone that she couldn't express on her face, she said, "If Qin Mo really is a demonic cultivator, I will not spare him!"
"Impossible!" Jin Linfeng's tone was firm, but in his heart, he felt uncertain.
After days of seclusion, Qin Mo's cultivation was firmly established in the third layer of foundation building. He circulated his spirit power, and his heart filled with glee. He had come to realize the importance of strength.
He moved his right hand, and a silver sword appeared. The sword was smooth and emanated a faint purple mist. He stroked the cold blade, feeling a sense of joy at the connection.
After these days of training, it recognized him as its master. The sword was called Thunderbolt and supplying it with spirit power produced a powerful lightning strike. With a lightning spirit root, the effect was even better. It was as if the sword was tailored for him.
Swinging the long sword in his hand, he stood up and walked out. He wanted to find a monster to fight.
The cave Qin Mo and Lin Zizheng were staying in was located next to a jungle. Many monsters lived in this jungle, so there was no need for him to actively seek them out. He entered the forest and many surrounded him.
Thunderbolt emitted a purple light, growing extremely excited.
Qin Mo bent forward and entered the herd. The shadow of his sword flickered, and only his white clothes could be seen.
"Ao ao ao!" The monsters howled, and their numbers continued to increase. He grew more and more determined.
"Bang!" The last monster fell to the ground, and Qin Mo withdrew the sword with a slow breath a sigh of relief.
He arranged his own messy clothes and prepared to leave.
"Roar!" A shriek came from behind, and a sharp blade flew right at Qin Mo. His heart tightened, and his figure flashed. Avoiding the attack, he turned to see a black panther behind him. It stared.
The beast was pitch black and covered with red spots. A white mist cl.u.s.tered around the panther's claws, as if it was walking on clouds. Called the gale panther, each lingered around spirit solitude and were very fast.
Qin Mo's lips curled upward, and there was no sign of retreat in his eyes. He was eager. The gale panther came right on time. The monsters before were numerous but were no challenge to him. He knew if he wanted to make progress, he must constantly experience the test of life and death.
The gale panther looked at the monster corpses all over the ground, eyes flas.h.i.+ng with anger. This ant dared destroy its fellow monsters in their own territory. Its mouth opened wide and shot a wave of wind blades in Qin Mo's direction.
The longsword cut through the air at his command, blocking the wind blades one by one, then returned to his hand.
He turned, raising the sword in his hand, and performed the sword skill. In a low voice, he murmured, "Shattered Sky Sword!"
The spirit power around him violently stirred and poured into the sword.
This skill was the inheritance he got from the prayer mat. The ability gathered spirit power and absorbed it into the sword holder. His strength wasn't high, so he could barely use spirit power within ten meters of his surroundings for this skill. But, even if it was only this limited range of spirit power, it should not be underestimated.
Many spirits poured into it. Thunderbolt's blade buzzed. For a moment, the purple light erupted and turned into a huge lightning bolt which arced toward the gale panther.
A trace of fear flashed through the panther's eyes. The white mist under its feet grew. It transformed into a black blur as it dodged to the side.
As if the lightning grew eyes, it followed. With a m.u.f.fled "chi," a large flame burst from the gale panther's body,
"Ao ao ao…" A painful cry burst from the gale panther's mouth, and its huge body trembled. It laid down and rolled, desperate to put out the flame.
Qin Mo took a long look at this situation. Clenching the longsword in his hand, he crept closer to the beast and stabbed it.
Just as he did, a silver flash cut through the dense jungle. A figure scuttled out of its depths and attacked the panther with him.
"Ao!" The horrible cry of the gale panther echoed, causing weaker monsters to shake with fear.
A long lance stuck out of the panther's body alongside Qin Mo's sword. The two weapons were just enough to pierce its skin. The gale panther screamed a few more times before it finally went still.
Qin Mo looked in the direction of the lance and saw Lin Zizheng standing opposite the gale panther. As if sensing his gaze, Lin Zizheng smiled at him and jerked the lance from the body.
A few drops of blood fell on Lin Zizheng's smiling face. Without knowing why, Qin Mo's heart skipped a beat. He felt a strange aversion towards him.
The more he looked, though, the more he realized Lin Zizheng still looked gentle and innocent. He shook his head. Maybe he saw it wrong!
Together, it was even easier to deal with the monsters. As the days pa.s.sed, Qin Mo and Lin Zizheng tossed around more and more beasts. The screams echoed almost daily.
Before he entered the secret territory, Jin Linfeng told Qin Mo the time limit. When everyone left the secret territory, Qin Mo and Lin Zizheng stood together. He looked back at the territory behind him and touched the qiankun bag at his waist. His harvest from the trip was rich. Not only did he obtain Thunderbolt, but he also found the Green Root gra.s.s Jin Linfeng needed to refine to nascent soul.