92: Chapter 92 Assassination

Ever since boarding this small Flying Boat and detecting the subtle investigative Divine Thought from that man in black, Lin Qing had not stepped into the crowded cabin, staying instead on the deck of the vessel.

The space inside the cabin was cramped; if a real life-and-death struggle broke out, not only would he be unable to fully execute his Moves, but it would also be easy to accidentally injure the innocent.

The man in black thought he was hiding perfectly, his eyes occasionally sweeping over Lin Qing on the deck with subtle glances, but all of his small actions were clearly seen by Lin Qing.

Lin Qing stood with his hands behind his back at the edge of the deck, watching the mountains and rivers flash by below.

The Flying Boat sped through the clouds and mist, racing toward the direction of Qingzhou.

Seven or eight days passed, and the Flying Boat finally arrived over a small uninhabited area. It was called small relative to the Great Qi's territory of five hundred thousand miles, but in reality, it spanned thousands of miles.

Below were continuous stretches of primitive, desolate mountains; even if a massive commotion occurred here, no one would notice.

This was the most suitable place for action in the entire journey. The man in black, who had been lurking the whole way, finally stopped waiting.

He came onto the deck, pretending to be bored and wanting to get some fresh air and see the scenery, gradually approaching Lin Qing on the deck step by step.

One step, two steps, three steps...

The distance between the two continued to shorten.

After entering the optimal range for a surprise attack, the calm expression on the man in black's face vanished instantly, his eyes turning sinister and violent.

A dark light flashed from the ring on his hand, and a pitch-black short dagger appeared in his grip, which he then thrust directly toward the vital point of Lin Qing's back.

A layer of sharp golden Spiritual Qi swirled around the blade, shining with a piercing light.

True to his nature as an assassin, the man in black struck with a full-strength killing Move, his speed reaching the absolute limit.

Unfortunately, Lin Qing had long since seen through his intentions and had been monitoring his every Move throughout; how could he possibly give him a chance to succeed?

At the very instant the dagger was thrust out, Lin Qing moved.

His speed was several times faster than the man in black's surprise attack!

Lin Qing turned around rapidly and then raised his right hand, striking second but arriving first, accurately grabbing the wrist of the man in black that held the dagger.

Then Lin Qing tightened his fingers. The man in black felt his wrist go numb instantly; he tried with all his might to pull his arm back, but his wrist remained motionless in Lin Qing's grip.

The man in black's pupils shrank abruptly, the ruthlessness on his face instantly replaced by extreme shock as he cried out in alarm.

"You?!"

After the Heavenly Pride Competition, Lin Qing's basic information was no secret. Everyone knew Lin Qing's cultivation was at the Late Stage of the Fourth Rank. Even if he was invincible among those of the Fourth Rank, he was ultimately just a Fourth Rank.

Yet he himself was at the Late Stage of the Fifth Rank. No matter how strong Lin Qing was, he shouldn't be able to easily grab his wrist with one hand, leaving him without even the qualification to struggle!

What terrified him even more was that this assassination Move was not based on pure physical strength. To ensure the power of this strike, he had covered his arm and dagger with Spiritual Qi.

But Lin Qing had grabbed his wrist bare-handed like this, not only remaining unharmed but instead sending a scalding power through Lin Qing's palm into his arm. Wherever it passed, his Spiritual Qi melted instantly like snow meeting a scorching sun.

"How is this possible? You aren't at the Fourth Rank!" The man in black's face turned deathly pale as his composure crumbled.

Only at this moment did Yuan Kun, sitting in the cabin, finally notice the assassination attempt on the deck.

His expression changed drastically as he stood up abruptly, raising his hand to condense Spiritual Qi. A menacing Fireball Technique formed instantly and, with the sound of whistling wind, blasted toward the man in black.

He wanted to help Lin Qing subdue the assassin, but Yuan Kun's cultivation was only at the Early Stage of the Fifth Rank.

This fireball, which carried all his strength, hit the man in black but couldn't even break through the other's surface Spiritual Qi defense.

The gap was clear at a glance.

Just then, a loud, mocking laugh suddenly rang out from the cabin doorway:

"Hahaha! Lin Qing, guess who looked down on you so much that they only sent a Late Stage Fifth Rank trash to assassinate you?"

It was none other than the Inner Sect Disciple of the Xuanye Demon Court who had been traveling in disguise—Fang Chao.

The Outer Sect Disciple of the Xuanye Demon Court that Lin Qing had killed before was at the Peak of the Fifth Rank. In Fang Chao's eyes, putting other places aside, that Disciple should have had no problem being invincible among his peers at least here in the Great Qi Dynasty; such was the confidence of a great Sect.

Even such a figure had fallen at Lin Qing's hands. To deal with Lin Qing, one should at least send a Sixth Rank expert.

Now, to actually send only an ordinary Late Stage Fifth Rank assassin to kill him, in Fang Chao's view, was simply delivering a head on a platter—utterly ridiculous.

Lin Qing hadn't noticed Fang Chao at all before. Hearing this voice, he realized that the threats on this Flying Boat were not limited to the black-clad assassin whose wrist he was holding!

Since things had come to this, Lin Qing no longer cared about hiding his strength. His powerful Divine Thought instantly spread out, sweeping through several miles of airspace.

Ever since stepping forward, Fang Chao had not deliberately hidden his Aura, and Lin Qing clearly felt the majestic Spiritual Qi within his body.

The Sixth Rank Spirit Sea Realm, and definitely at least at the Late Stage of the Sixth Rank.

The opponent's strength far exceeded any adversary Lin Qing had encountered before. Yet, there was no fear in Lin Qing's heart; instead, a trace of long-suppressed Battle Intent quietly rose.

As his strength grew stronger and stronger, he also began to look forward to meeting an opponent who could make him go all out and have a hearty battle.

At this moment, Lin Qing had no interest in trying to find out who had sent the man in black before him.

A spiritual light flashed from his storage ring, and the Spiritual Artifact longsword rewarded from the competition appeared in his hand. Then, fiery red Spiritual Qi was poured into the longsword. Instantly, the blade hummed, its sharpness fully revealed.

Lin Qing raised the longsword and slashed toward the man in black's neck.

The man in black's face was pale; his right hand was held firmly by Lin Qing, making it impossible to dodge. He could only raise his left hand while pouring all the Spiritual Qi in his body into his arm, hoping to block this sword strike.

Unfortunately, the longsword in Lin Qing's hand cut through the defensive barrier formed by all his Spiritual Qi without any hindrance, and the sharp blade gently swept across his neck.

Puchi—

Blood sprayed out.

A fine head soared into the sky.

This Late Stage Fifth Rank assassin sent by the Third Prince had not even lasted a single encounter in Lin Qing's hands and died on the spot.

Lin Qing casually tossed the headless corpse aside, pointed his longsword diagonally toward the ground, and looked directly at Fang Chao, who was slowly walking forward.

The battle had only just begun.

The other passengers on the Flying Boat were all pale-faced, not even daring to breathe as they huddled in the deepest corner of the cabin. They were just ordinary Loose Cultivators, terrified of being caught in the aftershocks of the battle and ending up dead.

Fang Chao stopped three zhang away from Lin Qing, surrounded by Devilish Qi. His eyes stared greedily at Lin Qing as if looking at a rare treasure.

"Lin Qing, there's no need to resist."

"I know you are strong, but you must understand that I am an Inner Sect Disciple of the Xuanye Demon Court, with a Late Stage Sixth Rank cultivation. The gap in Realm is like a heavenly chasm; you have no chance of winning."

"I will give you a way to live. Put down your weapon and follow me obediently to join my Xuanye Demon Court."

"As for the grudge from you killing our Demon Court Disciple before, my Xuanye Demon Court will let bygones be bygones."

The Battle Intent in Lin Qing's eyes grew even more fiery.

"I can submit to you."

"But the prerequisite is that you can defeat me."

Fang Chao took out a pitch-black long saber, a trace of contempt flashing in his eyes:

"As you wish!"

He stomped his foot suddenly, his figure shooting out like a projectile as he lunged toward Lin Qing. As he swung the pitch-black saber, the space itself seemed to tremble slightly.

Before his words had even completely dissipated in the air...

The Spiritual Qi saber in Fang Chao's hand, carrying majestic Sixth Rank Spiritual Qi, hacked down fiercely toward Lin Qing.

Lin Qing did not dodge or avoid it; he likewise swung his Spiritual Artifact longsword to meet the incoming saber.

Clang—!!!

The sound of clashing metal was deafening.

A terrifying shockwave of Spiritual Qi exploded outward from the center of their collision.

In the next instant, a figure was violently blown back!

It wasn't Lin Qing, but Fang Chao, who had been the first to strike!

Bang!

With a loud crash, Fang Chao slammed heavily into the deck's railing, smashing the sturdy railing until it was twisted and deformed.

Fang Chao was a Sixth Rank after all; although this collision caused his blood and Qi to churn, he didn't suffer any overly serious injuries.

However, the mockery on his face completely vanished, replaced by an even more frenzied greed.

He stared fixedly at Lin Qing, his voice even trembling slightly.

"Good! Good! Good!"

"Truly a peerless Treasure Body! Your power has actually reached such a formidable level!"

"Lin Qing, this Physical Body of yours, I am definitely taking it today!"