26: Chapter 26 You Know Nothing About Power
Inside the banquet hall, thick with the smell of blood, the atmosphere was heavy to the extreme.
"Attack! Don't just stand there! Everyone together, kill him!!"
Zhao Wuji no longer cared about his dignity as a family head. His eyes were bloodshot as he roared hoarsely, "If he doesn't die tonight, my Zhao family is doomed!!"
Hearing the family head's death order, the three elderly men standing behind him exchanged looks, a flash of determination crossing their eyes.
They were the three Elders of the Zhao family, the strongest foundation of the family besides Zhao Wuji himself.
Each was a genuine Third-Rank Martial Artist who had been immersed in the martial path for decades, and their coordination was seamless.
"Arrogant brat! Give up your life!"
The Great Elder gave a thunderous shout as the alloy spear in his hand shot out like a venomous dragon leaving its cave, piercing toward Lin Yuan's throat with a piercing sonic boom.
Simultaneously, the Second Elder moved like lightning, wielding twin swords to lock down Lin Yuan's lower body;
The Third Elder held a heavy mountain-splitting saber, leaping high into the air to deliver a strike powerful enough to split Mount Hua!
With three Third-Rank experts joining forces, they sealed off the upper, middle, and lower paths from all directions. Even if a master of the same level were here, they would have to dodge their combined might.
However, Lin Yuan, standing at the center of the storm, didn't show even a flicker of emotion on his face.
"Third-Rank?"
Lin Yuan sneered, his voice cutting clearly through the flashes of blades and swords into everyone's ears:
"Too weak."
Fleeting Shadow Trail (Max Level: Return to Simplicity)
Swish!
On everyone's retinas, Lin Yuan's figure seemed to remain in place, but that certain-kill spear thrust hit nothing but air, piercing through an afterimage that was slowly dissipating.
"What?! An afterimage?!" The Great Elder's pupils contracted violently as an ominous premonition surged in his heart.
Before he could change his move, a slender yet powerful hand suddenly reached out from the side, clamping down on the high-speed spinning spear shaft.
It was Lin Yuan!
"Get off!" the Great Elder roared, his internal blood qi exploding frantically in an attempt to shake off Lin Yuan's hand.
But it didn't budge an inch.
[Golden Bone (Initial Stage)] + [99.0 Blood Qi Burst]
A faint golden glow flickered beneath the skin of Lin Yuan's palm as terrifying power erupted instantly.
"This kind of scrap metal is worthy of killing me?"
Crack—!
Under countless horrified gazes, that incredibly tough spear made of C-grade alloy was actually snapped into two pieces by Lin Yuan's bare hands!
"My spear..."
"Returning it to you."
Lin Yuan's voice was icy as he reversed his grip on the broken section with the sharp spearhead and delivered the simplest, most brutal—thrust!
Puchi!
The Great Elder had no time to dodge. The broken spear was like a silver lightning bolt, instantly piercing through his chest and pinning him dead against the Roman column behind him.
Blood gushed out as the Great Elder's eyes bulged, dying with his eyes wide open.
"Big Brother!!"
The remaining two Elders were filled with grief and rage, their eyes nearly splitting.
"Little beast, I will tear you into ten thousand pieces!"
The Second Elder brandished his twin swords, lunging forward like a mad tiger.
Lin Yuan didn't even spare him a glance. He shifted his body slightly to avoid the edge, and at the same time, his right leg whipped out like a steel lash.
Boom!
This whip-kick contained the ultimate power of a peak Second-Rank physical body. Its speed was extreme, slamming heavily into the Second Elder's head.
Bang!
It was like a sledgehammer smashing a watermelon.
The Second Elder's head exploded instantly. Driven by inertia, the headless corpse took a few more steps before collapsing limply to the ground.
"Devil... You are a devil!!"
The last remaining Third Elder had been scared out of his wits. Looking at Lin Yuan, who was covered in murderous aura, how could he have any will to fight left?
He gave a strange cry, threw down his mountain-splitting saber, and turned to flee.
"Since you've come, then all of you stay."
The black moon battle blade at Lin Yuan's waist finally left its sheath.
[Shadowless · Instant Kill Slash]
Swish—!
A crescent blade light, as black as ink, flashed through the banquet hall and vanished in an instant.
The Third Elder's running figure suddenly stiffened.
He looked down in disbelief at his waist, where a thin line of blood had appeared.
"So fast..."
In the next second, his upper body slid to the ground, while his lower body remained standing in a running posture for two seconds before crashing down.
From the moment the three Elders attacked to the moment they all lay dead on the spot, the entire process hadn't even taken ten breaths of time.
Now, in the center of the hall, only Zhao Wuji, whose face was as pale as paper, and the trembling Zhao Tianba slumped by his wheelchair remained.
"No... Impossible... This is impossible!"
Zhao Tianba looked at the corpses littering the floor and the youth standing like a demon god in the pool of blood; his mind completely collapsed.
Those were the three family Elders! They were invincible existences in his eyes!
And yet, they were slaughtered like vegetables?
Intense fear caused him to lose control of his bladder again, and a foul stench filled the air.
"Dad! Save me! Save me! I don't want to die!"
As he crawled, he pleaded incoherently with Lin Yuan: "Lin Yuan... Grandpa Lin! I was wrong! I was really wrong! Please don't kill me! I have money! I'll give you money! A hundred million! No, two hundred million! I'll give you all my money! And Su Yurou, I'll give you that bitch too! Please let me go..."
Lin Yuan carried his dripping battle blade and walked step by step toward Zhao Tianba.
At this moment, where was there even a hint of Zhao Tianba's arrogant appearance?
"Money? Women?"
There was no pity in Lin Yuan's eyes, only endless coldness:
"Zhao Tianba, do you still not understand?"
"From the moment you had twisted thoughts and wanted to lay a hand on my sister!"
Lin Yuan raised his foot and stepped onto Zhao Tianba's chest, applying slight pressure.
"Your end was already decided."
"No! Don't—!!"
"In your next life, be a good person. Oh, wait, a piece of trash like you shouldn't have a next life!"
Lin Yuan suddenly exerted force with his foot. Zhao Tianba's chest instantly collapsed into a large crater, his heart and ribs pulverized at once.
His scream cut off abruptly, and the light in his eyes faded rapidly.
The young master of the Zhao family, who had run rampant in Jianghai City for years, was crushed to death by Lin Yuan as easily as an ant.
"Tianba!!!!"
Witnessing his only son being stepped to death before his eyes, Zhao Wuji went completely insane.
His eyes instantly filled with blood, his hair stood on end, and a massive aura far exceeding anyone from before erupted from his body!
Rumble!
The surrounding tables and chairs exploded and flew apart under the impact of this aura. The women and children hiding in the corners were shaken until they spat blood and fainted.
A visible pale red current surfaced on Zhao Wuji's body, enveloping him like armor.
"Gangqi Body Protection... A Fourth-Rank Martial Artist?!"
It turned out this old fox was the Zhao family's deepest hidden trump card.
"Lin Yuan!! I will tear you into ten thousand pieces! I will peel off your skin to make a lantern! I will throw your sister into a pit of ten thousand snakes!!"
Zhao Wuji was like a vengeful ghost, roaring as he charged at Lin Yuan.
Facing this Fourth-Rank expert coming at him in a rage, Lin Yuan not only didn't retreat but instead flicked the blood off his blade, a hint of excitement appearing at the corner of his mouth.
"The turtle shell of a Fourth-Rank Martial Artist?"
Lin Yuan gripped the black moon battle blade tightly, battle intent burning fiercely in his eyes:
"Perfect, I'll use you to test my blade."