117: Chapter 117 Lord? That's just my power bank.

The thunderstorm gradually subsided, and the air was thick with the smell of char.

Lin Qi stood atop the mountain-like corpse. The muscle lines on his bare upper body were smooth, without any exaggerated bulging, yet they contained a heart-palpitating explosive power.

As the restless lightning energy within his body calmed down, the silver light flowing over his skin gradually faded, returning to a healthy wheat color.

"Whew..."

He exhaled a mouthful of turbid air, and the white mist condensed in the air without dissipating.

Lin Qi looked down at the headless corpse beneath his feet. Without any hesitation, he gripped the zhan ye heavy sword with a reverse hold and gestured toward the chest of the Thunder Tyrant.

Puchi.

The heavy sword cut into the rock-like muscle, letting out a muffled thud.

He flicked his wrist, his movements as skilled as an old master butcher killing fish at a vegetable market.

A few seconds later.

He pulled out a fist-sized, deep purple crystal core with fine electric arcs dancing on its surface.

[heart of thunder].

This thing was a hard currency on the market that was often in demand but out of stock. Whether it was for forging lightning-attribute divine weapons or as a certificate for a Lightning Mage's third job advancement, it could be sold for an astronomical price.

"Good quality."

Lin Qi weighed the crystal core in his hand, casually picked up the heat-resistant backpack from nearby, and tossed the item inside.

Next, he turned his gaze toward the monster's spinal column.

Having been tempered by lightning for thousands of years, its hardness was even higher than common alloys. It was perfect to use as repair Materials for karma cutter.

Crack.

Crack.

The tooth-aching sound of bone cracking echoed through the core area of the ruins.

In the distant shadows, several pairs of greedy eyes stared intently at Lin Qi's movements.

Those were several Advanced assassins who had been lurking for a long time, originally planning to strike and pick up the scraps when both sides were exhausted.

Now, the opportunity was right in front of them.

As long as they killed that seemingly defenseless kid, that heart of thunder would be theirs.

However, no one dared to move.

The grace of that sword strike just now was truly terrifying.

Lin Qi seemed not to care at all about the prying eyes around him. He went about his business, cutting out several pieces of the hardest bone and stuffing them into his backpack.

After finishing all this, he straightened his back and casually swept his gaze toward a patch of broken walls and ruins to his left.

"Have you seen enough?"

Lin Qi's voice was very light, yet it pierced through the sound of the wind.

"Want to steal it?"

He lifted the three-hundred-pound karma cutter with one hand, the tip of the sword pointing at the headless corpse on the ground.

"You've seen its end."

Several hurried breaths came from the shadows, followed by the sound of panicked retreating footsteps.

Those assassins ultimately didn't dare to gamble with their lives.

Lin Qi let out a sneer, pulled a spare set of black sportswear out of his backpack, and put it on, covering the body that had just completed its transformation.

He shouldered the heavy sword, turned around, and walked toward the exit of the ruins with large strides.

...

At the entrance of the ruins.

The atmosphere was so tense it was almost smoking.

Zhang Wei stared intently at the timer in his hand, his forehead covered in cold sweat.

"Only five minutes left!"

Beside him, a man wearing a mage robe shouted in a Yin and Yang tone: "Fatty, stop looking. No matter how much you look, you can't make a living person appear."

"Exactly. That's deep inside the Thunder Ruins. Even a Second-Advancement Warrior would lose a layer of skin going in there. He's a Blank Slate; he's long since dead and cold."

"What a pity. If those odds could be cashed out, I wouldn't have to worry for the rest of my life."

The surroundings were filled with sounds of schadenfreude.

Zhang Wei gritted his teeth, his fat face turning bright red: "Shut up! Brother Qi will definitely not lose!"

"Sure, sure, your Brother Qi is invincible under heaven."

The Mage Man shrugged with a playful look on his face: "Then where is he? Why hasn't he come out yet? Could it be that he was struck into ash by lightning and scattered by the wind?"

Laughter erupted everywhere.

Zhang Wei clenched his fists, his nails digging into his flesh.

Just then.

From within that layer of grey mist that never dissipated, a steady sound of footsteps could be heard.

Thud.

Thud.

Thud.

The sound wasn't loud, but it was very rhythmic.

Everyone's laughter came to an abrupt halt, and they all turned their heads to look toward the exit.

The mist churned.

A slender figure slowly walked out.

The black sportswear was a bit loose, and he carried that signature long black bundle on his back.

His hair was a bit messy, and his body still carried a faint smell of gunpowder smoke, but those eyes were frighteningly bright.

The entire field went silent.

Hundreds of eyes stared straight at that figure as if they had seen a ghost.

"How is it possible..."

The Mage Man's mouth hung open, and the staff in his hand almost dropped to the ground: "He... he really came out alive?"

Not only was he alive, but he looked like he hadn't even scratched his skin.

This wasn't scientific!

Zhang Wei froze for two seconds, then let out a scream like a pig being slaughtered.

"Brother Qi!!!"

The two-hundred-pound fatty displayed amazing agility, rushing over like a human cannonball and grabbing Lin Qi's leg.

"I knew it! I knew you wouldn't die! Waaa... my money... no, my Brother Qi!"

Lin Qi was almost knocked off balance by this lunge and pulled his leg out with disgust.

"Get off, you're getting snot on my pants."

Zhang Wei wasn't annoyed either. He scrambled up from the ground, the fat on his face smiling into a flower: "Brother Qi, you're too amazing! Do you know what the odds are right now? We're going to be rich!"

Lin Qi ignored the fatty's frenzy and scanned the surrounding professional practitioners who were as still as wooden chickens.

"So many people?"

He raised an eyebrow, seemingly a bit surprised.

"They were all waiting for you to die." Zhang Wei lowered his voice and glared back fiercely, "These grandsons were just mocking me a moment ago."

Lin Qi nodded to show he understood.

He straightened his collar and suddenly pointed toward the depths of the ruins behind him.

"By the way, here's some news for you for free."

Lin Qi's voice wasn't loud, but it clearly spread across the entire field.

"The big guy inside is dead."

The crowd was stunned.

Big guy?

What big guy?

Lin Qi brushed the dust off his clothes, his tone as flat as if he were talking about what he had for dinner: "That Lord Monster called the Thunder Tyrant. I accidentally killed it just now."

"The lightning field inside is currently fading. If you want to pick up scraps and farm Materials, hurry up."

After saying that, he ignored everyone's reaction and pulled the still-dazed Zhang Wei toward that old pickup truck by the roadside.

The scene was silent for a full ten seconds.

It wasn't until the engine of the pickup truck roared to life that someone finally reacted.

"Holy crap? What did he say? The Thunder Tyrant is dead?"

"Impossible! That's a Lv.30 Lord! Even a guild's main raid team might not be able to take it down!"

"But... haven't you noticed? The thunderclouds over the ruins really seem to have thinned out!"

Someone pointed at the sky and shouted.

The originally violent purple thunderclouds had indeed become much thinner at this moment, and even that oppressive pressure had dissipated quite a bit.

"It's really dead?!"

"Quick! Get in there and look! If the Lord is dead, it must have dropped a floor full of good stuff!"

"Charge! If we're late, even the soup will be gone!"

The crowd that had been watching the spectacle just now instantly exploded. One by one, they rushed into the ruins with bloodshot eyes, fearing they would be a step slow.

A few minutes later.

The exclamations of the first batch of scouts came from deep within the ruins.

"Dead! It's really dead!"

"Its head was cut off! The corpse is still warm!"

"My god... this cut... was it a one-hit kill?!"

As the news traveled back, everyone who hadn't gone in yet was dumbfounded.

They turned their heads and looked at the pickup truck that had already driven far away, their gazes completely changed.

It was no longer mockery, no longer contempt.

Instead, it was a deep sense of awe and a fear of the unknown.

That Blank Slate...

What kind of monster was he exactly?

...

In the pickup truck.

Zhang Wei drove while stealing glances at Lin Qi through the rearview mirror.

"Brother Qi, you really killed that thing?"

Lin Qi leaned back in the passenger seat, resting with his eyes closed: "Mhm."

"That was a Lord! How did you do it?"

"With my hands, with my sword."

Lin Qi couldn't be bothered to explain the principles behind it and changed to a comfortable position: "Drive. Back to school. I need a shower."