775: Action taken, sold out instantly (Happy New Year everyone!)

“Ancient Ruins?”

Zhao Hu pondered for a moment and said: “Brother Lin Yang, there is actually quite a bit of information about the Ancient Ruins. You can even buy some data at trading firms if you spend money. However, more confidential information is likely only available within ancient clans and sects; it's hard to come by. Our Zhao family doesn't have such information.”

“Oh, I see.” Lin Yang didn't ask further.

Zhao Hu continued: “Brother Lin Yang, since you were drawn into the Ancient Ruins last time, several more Ancient Ruins incidents have occurred over the past three thousand years, all outside the city. The frequency is a bit high. In the past, they happened very, very rarely. It's possible something has changed outside the city; it's better not to leave the city if not necessary.”

Lin Yang couldn't help but ask: “Did Ancient Ruins rarely appear in the past?”

“Yes, Ancient Ruins rarely appeared. Brother Lin Yang should know this. You are from the Zheng Mu Prefecture; in our terms, that is an inner prefecture. Ancient Ruins rarely, if ever, appear in inner prefectures. Some people might not have even heard of Ancient Ruins.”

Zhao Hu looked at Lin Yang.

Lin Yang nodded slightly; he had indeed never heard of the Ancient Ruins before.

Zhao Hu continued: “Ancient Ruins didn't appear often here either. Sometimes, they wouldn't appear for hundreds of thousands of years. But now, in just over three thousand years, they've appeared several times. This is clearly abnormal. Especially since more than half of the people drawn into the Ancient Ruins have died.”

“Huh? People have died in the Ancient Ruins?” Lin Yang was slightly shocked.

“Yes. If you die in the Ancient Ruins, you die in reality. In these three thousand years, there have been a total of five Ancient Ruins incidents. A total of thirteen people were drawn in, and seven of them have died.”

Zhao Hu sighed: “Now many people don't dare to leave the city rashly, and many trade routes have been canceled.”

Lin Yang was secretly alarmed as he listened.

Recalling his own situation in the Ancient Ruins, it seemed he hadn't faced any major life-or-death crisis.

Being trapped in the Saint Spirit Sect, the worst outcome seemed to be sinking into it forever, not immediate death.

Thinking about it now, his luck was considered good.

He hadn't encountered a highly dangerous Ancient Ruins projection world, and he had been awakened by Yu Qing.

“The Ancient Ruins really are a very special place,” Lin Yang sighed softly.

At that time, when he was with Zhao Hu and the others, Zhao Hu and his companions hadn't been drawn into the Ancient Ruins.

He didn't understand what the conditions were for being drawn into the Ancient Ruins.

Was it completely random, or were there certain conditions?

While Lin Yang was pondering, he arrived at the main hall.

Zhao Xiongshan, Zhao Chen, and several other elders of the Zhao family were all there.

This included the Great Elder, Zhao Huoshan, who had failed to break through to the Yuan He Realm twice.

Lin Yang glanced at Zhao Huoshan's complexion; although it looked normal, failing twice would inevitably damage one's vitality, and his aura was a bit weak.

Seeing Lin Yang arrive, Zhao Xiongshan had him and Zhao Huoshan get acquainted, then went straight to the point: “Guest Elder Lin, we have decided to raid several of the Bai family's assets outside the city to have a showdown with them. We hope Guest Elder Lin can assist us.”

Lin Yang nodded: “Brother Zhao Hu already told me just now. Family Head Zhao, please arrange it as you see fit; I will not refuse.”

Zhao Xiongshan laughed upon hearing this: “Since that's the case, I won't stand on ceremony with you, Guest Elder Lin. The plan for this time is very simple: several elders will lead some people to raid the Bai family's assets simultaneously. As long as we can kill a few of their elders, it will be a success.”

As he spoke, he quickly explained the raid plan to Lin Yang.

The plan was indeed very simple.

The Zhao family currently had one fewer Yuan He Realm elder than the Bai family, resulting in a significant gap in top-tier combat power.

Previously, because the Zhao family didn't want their clansmen and disciples to be killed by the Bai family, they had proactively given up most of their assets under the Bai family's pressure to protect their people.

Now, if they could kill a few of the Bai family's Nie Kong Realm elders and a batch of their disciples, it would severely damage the Bai family's vitality.

To put it bluntly, the Zhao family mainly wanted to vent their hatred this time and didn't want to let the Bai family be too proud. After succeeding, they would withdraw directly from Xiwu City and didn't intend to continue clashing with the Bai family here.

The withdrawal plan was also very simple.

After the operation, they would return directly to Xiwu City and take the Teleportation Array to leave.

Therefore, this operation had to be quick and decisive.

Of course, once they made a move, the Bai family's two Yuan He Realm experts would inevitably take action.

Supreme Elder Zhao Yuan would hold them off, trying to let others return to the city and leave.

Regarding this, Lin Yang asked: “Then how will the Supreme Elder escape?”

Zhao Xiongshan smiled: “The Supreme Elder has a way to escape. The Bai family's newly promoted clan elder is, after all, newly promoted. Unless he is willing to risk his own life to stop him, the Supreme Elder can escape.”

Lin Yang understood.

The reason the Zhao family was acting now was also because the Bai family's newly promoted Yuan He Realm elder currently had a shallow foundation and was not yet enough to threaten Zhao Yuan.

If they dragged it out, once the Bai family's newly promoted Yuan He Realm elder stabilized in the Yuan He Realm, Zhao Yuan would not be able to escape under the siege of the two.

So the Zhao family didn't want to drag it out any longer.

They intended to take advantage of the current opportunity to heavily damage the Bai family.

“Of course, the other elders of the Bai family are not pushovers; they might fight to the death, so we will inevitably lose some people this time...” Zhao Xiongshan added.

These elders of the Zhao family were all prepared to sacrifice a few.

Lin Yang didn't say anything, only saying: “Family Head Zhao, just tell me the target you need me to attack.”

“Guest Elder Lin, your strength is very strong, and we are very grateful that you are willing to help us. So this time, please trouble yourself to go to the mine closest to Xiwu City belonging to the Bai family. The Great Elder will go with you. After killing the people at the mine with thunderous force, you can return to Xiwu City immediately without delaying the withdrawal,” Zhao Xiongshan said.

He considered this for Lin Yang as well.

Being closer to Xiwu City meant returning would be much faster, preventing them from being dragged down by the Bai family's people.

With the Great Elder following, if an accident really happened, he could also buy time for Lin Yang.

Naturally, being close to the city also had a disadvantage: it was easily intercepted by reinforcements from the Bai family inside the city.

But compared to other places, this was already the best choice.

The further away from the city, the longer it would take to return, and the lower the probability of returning to the city.

Although Zhao Yuan could hold off the Bai family's two Yuan He Realm experts for a while, he couldn't hold them for too long.

So if others hadn't returned to the city before Zhao Yuan escaped, they would be hunted down by the Bai family's two Yuan He Realm experts.

Lin Yang could see that Zhao Xiongshan was still considering him, so he didn't say much and nodded in agreement.

Actually, he could directly deal with the Bai family's two Yuan He Realm elders with Zhao Yuan; he just needed someone from the Zhao family to lure them out of the city, without needing to take too much risk to raid several places.

But Zhao Xiongshan and the others clearly didn't have much confidence in his strength.

Although they believed he could be invincible within the same realm, they didn't really think he could deal with the Yuan He Realm.

So they laid out this current plan, wanting to raid several of the Bai family's assets to weaken the Bai family's power to the maximum extent.

Therefore, Lin Yang didn't mention it.

In any case, after the operation, everything would be clear.

...

The Zhao family's elders left the city in succession, hiding their tracks.

To ensure the success of the raid and not be discovered by the Bai family in advance, the Zhao family spent a lot of resources to deceive the Bai family's eyes and ears, allowing the elders to leave the city quietly.

However, not everyone left.

Some remained to continue deceiving the Bai family.

In short, through these feints, the plan proceeded smoothly.

“Guest Elder Lin, the mine we are going to is also an important asset of the Bai family. The elder stationed there is a Nie Kong Realm peak elder of the Bai family. With both of us working together, we can kill him with thunderous force. After killing him, don't worry about the others, just withdraw,” on the way, Zhao Huoshan said.

The reason it was him and Lin Yang for this operation was to join forces to kill that Nie Kong Realm peak elder of the Bai family.

In fact, under normal circumstances, Zhao Huoshan could do it alone.

After all, he was at a level where he could attempt to break through to the Yuan He Realm twice.

It was just that after two attempts, he had been somewhat affected, so Lin Yang was paired with him.

Lin Yang nodded and, led by Zhao Huoshan, approached the mine.

When they quietly approached the mine and even the Villa where the Bai family elder was staying, the Bai family's Nie Kong Realm peak elder was completely unaware.

There were even some sounds of illicit activities coming from the Villa.

It sounded quite lascivious.

Lin Yang's expression became slightly strange.

Seeing this, Zhao Huoshan transmitted his voice: “This old thing, Bai Dan, is most lustful. Actually, with his cultivation, he doesn't need to personally sit here.”

“But to satisfy his desires, he came here to guard the mine and turned this place into a den of vice, indulging in pleasure day and night.”

“Within the Bai family, with others around, especially the Yuan He Realm clan elders, he couldn't go too far, but here, it's his own territory, and he can indulge however he wants.”

Lin Yang was speechless for a moment.

Practitioners were not all pure-hearted and focused on seeking the Dao.

Especially those who knew they had no hope of further advancement; their various desires and quirks were even more extreme.

Like this Bai family elder in front of him, he was typical.

Stuck at the peak of the Nie Kong Realm for many years with almost no possibility of breaking through again, he simply let himself go.

Because their cultivation was difficult to advance further, some people would even gradually become mentally twisted, and the quirks they developed were unimaginable and incomprehensible to ordinary people.

He transmitted to Zhao Huoshan: “Let's do it now.”

Zhao Huoshan nodded slightly.

The next instant, the two exchanged a look and, with tacit understanding, attacked simultaneously.

Dao Power surged, instantly leveling the entire Villa.

“Who?”

A roar rang out, and Bai Dan's expression changed drastically.

He still had a person pressed beneath him.

However, before he could react, he saw a flash of white light.

Chi.

A soft sound.

A bloody hole appeared on Bai Dan's head.

The next instant, a seven-colored flower bloomed, completely enveloping Bai Dan's body.

Before his Dao Power could even erupt, his consciousness began to dissipate.

He didn't even see who had killed him.

Thump.

Bai Dan's naked corpse fell to the ground.

“Ah~ Ah~!”

Only until Bai Dan's corpse fell did several terrified screams ring out in the room.

The sharp sound pierced the night sky, and everyone in the mine was instantly alarmed.

Swish, swish, swish.

When the others at the mine arrived at the leveled Villa and saw Bai Dan's corpse, everyone was stunned with fear.

“Who? Who actually killed Elder Bai Dan...”

“Quick, go report to the Family Head!”

“...”

The mine fell into chaos.

Everyone was extremely terrified; being able to kill Bai Dan instantly, the strength of the intruder was something they couldn't imagine.

Soon, someone looked at the women who were so scared they didn't even have time to put on their clothes and asked what they had seen.

The answer they got was naturally a blank slate.

...

“Guest... Guest Elder Lin... You...”

At the same time, Lin Yang and Zhao Huoshan were already returning towards Xiwu City.

Zhao Huoshan's expression was very strange.

Or rather, very dramatic.

There wasn't a specific adjective that could describe his current expression.

He looked at Lin Yang with the eyes of someone looking at a monster.

Just now, he and Lin Yang had agreed to attack at the same time.

However, he hadn't even had time to fully erupt with his strongest power before Bai Dan had already been killed.

By the time he reacted, Lin Yang had already flashed away from the mine.

At this moment, the shock in Zhao Huoshan's heart was beyond words.

Lin Yang had actually instantly killed Bai Dan!

Yes.

The battle just now could be said to be an instant kill.

Although Bai Dan was engaged in the act of man and woman, his vigilance might not have been that strong.

But in the end, he was a real Nie Kong Realm peak cultivator, yet in front of Lin Yang, he was only worthy of being instantly killed.

This level of strength made Zhao Huoshan feel both shocked and somewhat fearful.

If Lin Yang could instantly kill Bai Dan, he could naturally instantly kill him too.

Zhao Huoshan didn't know much about Lin Yang because when Lin Yang arrived at Xiwu City, he had been in seclusion trying to break through to the Yuan He Realm.

He had only heard that his family had gained a capable Guest Elder.

Even when Zhao Xiongshan arranged for him and Lin Yang to be together, he had only roughly asked about Lin Yang's strength.

Although he learned that Lin Yang had the ability to fight across levels, he didn't take it too seriously.

He just treated Lin Yang as a support and supplementary force for this operation.

But the scene just now made Zhao Huoshan's heart shake immensely.

Such strength...

Was actually their Zhao family's Guest Elder?

Zhao Huoshan had a lot to say for a moment.

But at the same time, he didn't know what to say.

The only thought turning over and over in his mind was that if he had known Lin Yang's strength was so powerful, they could have completely acted separately, and in this way, they could have killed a few more of the Bai family's elders.

He was now full of regret and pity.

Lin Yang, on the other hand, was calm.

He could naturally see that Zhao Huoshan's thoughts were unsettled.

However, he didn't intend to explain, only saying: “Great Elder, if you still want to kill a few more Bai family elders, you can go and support the others.”

Zhao Huoshan's expression changed, and he subconsciously said: “Guest Elder Lin, what do you mean?”

“I plan to go and help the Supreme Elder,” Lin Yang said calmly.

Zhao Huoshan was stunned.

Lin Yang smiled slightly at him: “I think Xiwu City is quite good, and I don't plan to leave for the time being.”

Hearing this, Zhao Huoshan seemed to understand something and said in disbelief: “Guest Elder Lin, could it be that you really can deal with the Yuan He Realm?”

—

Xiao Hu wishes everyone a Happy New Year, may everything go smoothly in 2026, and may you make a fortune! (End of chapter)