Chapter 878: Coercion
Lu Yin smiled. So this was how Zhang Dingtian had risen to power; he had found an inheritance in a wasteland dojo. It was no wonder why he had been so powerful that he could even exchange blows with Ling Que. With the strength that Zhang Dingtian had displayed during their last meeting, the Earthling was capable of even fighting against Liu Shaoqiu, and his progression had been a bit exaggerated.
“How’s the Blacktop Dojo doing?” Lu Yin asked.
Little Ben shook his head. “They were occupied just a few days ago.”
Lu Yin’s heart sank. “Then how’s Zhang—no, Lan Dao?”
“I don"t know. He might be dead, but there’s been no news of his status,” Little Ben replied.
Lu Yin fell silent.
As the thunderous rumbling grew ever more intense, the group of cultivators finally arrived at the base of the ring-shaped mountain range. At that moment, Lu Yin suddenly stopped, pulled Hai Qiqi over, and then looked at Little Ben. “So you’ve sided with the Sixth Mainland.”
Little Ben’s eyes flashed. “What do you mean?”
Hai Qiqi’s expression changed, and she turned to look at Lu Yin. “Don’t spout nonsense! Little Ben is my friend, and he’s Baobao’s friend as well. Why would he side with the Sixth Mainland?”
Lu Yin sneered and surveyed the area. “These people have all sided with the Sixth Mainland, and their objective is to draw in Grayweed Continent’s cultivators.”
Hai Qiqi frowned and looked over at Little Ben, not quite believing Lu Yin’s claims.
Little Ben stared at Lu Yin, but then he suddenly smiled and revealed a relaxed expression. “How did you figure it out?”
Hai Qiqi’s pupils shrunk, and her face paled in her disbelief. “You- Little Ben, did you really join the Sixth Mainland? Why? You’re from the Thundercharge Dojo, and you’re also friends with Baobao and me. Why did you join the Sixth Mainland?”
Little Ben’s smile faded, and he coldly answered, “Why? If I didn’t side with the Sixth Mainland, then how would I ever get Lan Baobao? She looks down upon me! She’s ranked in the top thirty in the Top 100 Rankings and is so powerful, but me? I’m just a common heir to the Thundercharge Dojo. If it weren’t for the fact that she’s known me since childhood, I wouldn’t even be able to talk to her! If I don’t join the Sixth Mainland, then I’ll never be able to get her in my entire life.”
“If you side with the Sixth Mainland, then that’s just one more reason why you’ll never get together with Baobao!” Hai Qiqi bellowed angrily.
Little Ben sneered. “As long as all the rebels on Grayweed Continent surrender, those like me who surrendered earlier will receive even greater rewards. I’ve already taken the Tong family’s Elder Song as my master, and he’s one of the few people in the Tong family with a power level of more that 300,000! He’s promised to help me get Baobao, regardless of whether she’s willing or not! She’ll be mine when the time comes!”
Hai Qiqi was so angry that she started trembling from head to toe.
Lu Yin’s eyes turned frigid. “It looks like you’ve tricked quite a few of Grayweed Continent’s cultivators to try to breach the Thundercharge Dojo, right?”
Little Ben was puzzled. “How do you know that? You seem to know quite a bit.”
Lu Yin squinted. He could see that all of the regions around the ring-shaped mountain range were filled with rune lines, and there were also many rune lines within the mountain range itself. These two sides were clearly separated by the mountain range, which made the situation extremely apparent; the two sides were at odds with one another, and the rune lines of the people surrounding the ring-shaped mountain range’s outside naturally belonged to the Sixth Mainland’s people.
“Still, it’s useless even if you know. I’ve already sent your images to the mountain range. Do you know who’s guarding the Thundercharge Dojo? It’s the Sea King’s Dome’s Elder Tong. Think about it—as soon as Elder Tong sees that the Sea King’s Dome’s little princess has come, what kind of response will he have? Hahaha!” Little Ben laughed maniacally. When he saw Hai Qiqi, he had already known that he had managed to accomplish something great.
There was lightning that continued to isolate the Thundercharge Dojo, and between the defense of the dojo’s cultivators and the support of the lightning, the experts from the Sixth Mainland were finding it difficult to break through. Even if they did manage to overcome the dojo’s defenses, they would suffer horrible casualties in the process. This was the main reason why the Thundercharge Dojo had been able to hold out for so long. But on this day, Little Ben was certain that Elder Tong would leave the dojo to try to save Hai Qiqi, and with that, their progress towards conquering the Thundercharge Dojo would rapidly advance.
“Despicable.” Hai Qiqi’s eyes turned bloodshot. This friend whom she had known for most of her life had betrayed her, his own Thundercharge Dojo, and the entire Grayweed Continent.
Lu Yin frowned, as this person had clearly gone insane from infatuation.
Off in the distance, inside the mountain range, a streak of lightning suddenly shot through the sky as two groups of rune lines—one from inside the mountain range and the other from outside—began to crisscross. An intense battle had started in the sky.
Little Ben suddenly rushed towards the mountains.
The surrounding cultivators all acted in unison, attempting to capture Hai Qiqi.
Lu Yin’s expression turned cold, and he casually waved his hand. This simple gesture released an intense force that manifested as a terrifying shockwave of air that instantly blew all of the attacking cultivators to the ground. Lu Yin did not hold back with his attack, and these people were undoubtedly done for since they were just Limiteers.
When Little Ben looked back, he felt his scalp go numb. He already knew that he was not Hai Qiqi’s opponent, which was why he had tried to hurriedly escape. His mission could have been considered complete the moment he led Hai Qiqi to this place. What happened next was none of his business.
However, Lu Yin would not allow the traitor to escape so easily, and his figure flashed as he appeared right in front of Little Ben.
Little Ben’s eyes went wide. “You- How did you-?”
Lu Yin grabbed the youth’s neck and easily lifted him.
No matter how much Little Ben struggled, the flickering of his lightning was completely useless. The disparity between him and Lu Yin was simply too vast.
Up till now, of those within the same realm, only Ku Wei had been able to make Lu Yin be slightly more serious. Even against Cruisers, only those who were comparable to Wendy Yushan or Hong Ying were able to make Lu Yin be a little more serious. His typical opponents were either Hunters or Enlighters, and someone like Little Ben was just too weak.
Little Ben looked at Hai Qiqi in a pleading manner, and his face flushed red. “Sis- Sister Qi, save me! I wasn’t intentionally- Sister Qi, it’s Little Ben! Sister Qi!”
Hai Qiqi closed her eyes, her heart already overflowing with grief. She had been betrayed by a childhood friend, and he was even the first friend she had encountered after returning to the Innerverse. The blow his betrayal had given her heart was too great, and this affected her no less than when she had first seen Elder Ren’s corpse at the Sea King"s Dome.
Little Ben formed a blade from lightning in his right hand and slashed it at Lu Yin’s shoulder, but it was futile.
An elder shot towards the trio at a shocking speed from a distant part of the sky.
Little Ben was delighted, and he raised a hand to call for help. “Ma- Master! Save me!”
Lu Yin casually squeezed his hand, snapping Little Ben’s neck before tossing him aside like a piece of garbage. He then slowly turned around to face the approaching elder with a solemn expression.
The elder was unconcerned about Little Ben’s life and death, but he looked at Hai Qiqi with a heated expression. “You’re the Sea King’s Dome’s little princess! The Sea King"s daughter, Hai Qiqi, right? Interesting. Who knew that a random disciple I took in would actually be able to lure you here, hahaha.”
Hai Qiqi glared at the elder with rampant hatred in her eyes. “You must be Little Ben’s master, Elder Song.”
The old man nodded. “That’s right, I am. Alright, there’s no need for you to force me to act, so just follow me. With you here, the Thundercharge Dojo can already be considered as conquered.”
“Old man, it seems that you’ve forgotten about me.” Lu Yin moved in front of Hai Qiqi and loosened his wrists.
Elder Song’s eyes turned cold. “That piece of trash was still my disciple, but you killed him right in front of me, so I naturally have not forgotten about you. Rest a.s.sured, I will not let you die peacefully. I will make an example of you and warn all of Grayweed Continent’s people of what outcome awaits them if they kill my disciples. I will show them how wise it is to side with me instead.”
He then raised a hand and flicked a finger. A flattened orb shot forth from his fingertip and flew towards Lu Yin.
Lu Yin was surprised, and at that moment, he felt his scalp turn numb. It felt as though a guillotine was hanging over his head. He reflexively activated the Yu Secret Art, causing the flattened orb to vanish before shooting back towards Elder Song.
Elder Song was astonished. “A secret technique?”
At the same time, Lu Yin fiercely charged forward and lashed out with a punch. The person before him was a powerhouse whose power level was in excess of 300,000. This was different from the Enlighter elder who had been stationed in the Sea King’s Dome, as this old man was actually an entire level higher. Although it would be troublesome even with the old man’s power level suppressed to under 200,000, Lu Yin was confident that he could contest this powerhouse.
Elder Song revealed a feverish expression. “I actually managed to b.u.mp into a secret technique! Kid, I’ll give you the chance to worship me as your master, and I’ll allow you to join the Tong family. In the future, you’ll receive a high position and will be able to follow Young Master Tong Zhan.”
Lu Yin punched out without hesitation, and his violent fist struck Elder Song head on.
Elder Song angrily barked, “You don’t know what’s good for you!”
His figure then flashed before he flicked his finger again. This time, it was not just one flattened orb that appeared, but rather three.
Lu Yin could use the Yu Secret Art to divert one orb and then do his best to avoid the other two. However, one of the flat orbs briefly paused in the void before swerving to hit Lu Yin. When it made contact with Lu Yin, the orb exploded into layers of branches that wrapped around him, suddenly trapping Lu Yin before he could even react.
“Junior, hand over that secret technique, and I can still spare your life!” Elder Song ordered.
At this moment, Hai Qiqi dashed towards Elder Song, the phantom image of the Sea King"s Trident already in her hands.
Back when the Innerverse and Outerverse had still been connected, Huo Houye had once tried to intimidate Zenyu Star, and at that time, Hai Qiqi had relied on the image of the Sea King"s Trident to borrow the Sea King’s power and scare the Enlighter away. Then, after the Outerverse was isolated from the Innerverse, the Sea King’s strength had gradually dissipated.
However, right now, Hai Qiqi had returned to the Innerverse and was able to once again sense the Sea King’s strength. That small shield from before, and also the Sea King"s Trident, had all been restored.
When the phantom image of the Sea King"s Trident appeared in Hai Qiqi’s hands, within that scorching hot region of Grayweed Continent, the Sea King opened his eyes and happily exclaimed, “The Sea King"s Trident!”
In the sky above the mountain range and the Thundercharge Dojo, Hai Qiqi stabbed the trident at Elder Song.
The Sea King"s Trident was very powerful. However, with the suppression caused by the cosmic phenomenon, Hai Qiqi only dared to use a power level less than 200,000. She was not the Sea King, and even if the trident could borrow the Sea King’s strength, there was still a considerable disparity between her and Elder Song. Elder Song was thus able to easily dodge this attack, and the indistinct image of the Sea King"s Trident was even dispersed.
When Hai Qiqi made her move, Lu Yin took the opportunity to break free of the branches trapping him and converge his star energy over his right palm. “One sun.”
Elder Song snorted and flicked a finger at Lu Yin.
This time, Lu Yin did not dodge the attack, and instead, the sun crashed towards the flattened orb. When they collided, the intense explosion sent Lu Yin flying back a thousand meters. These old farts who had power levels in the several hundred thousands had their own ways of suppressing their power levels while still displaying terrifying combat power. This was the difference due to experience and a higher cultivation realm.
Fortunately, Lu Yin’s star energy was not suppressed by such experts. Otherwise, he would have found it impossible to even move against powerhouses of that strength.
The flat orbs all exploded, and each one turned into branches that tried to twine themselves around Lu Yin. However, this time, the branches were instantly incinerated by the sun.
The strength of this sun had reached the cusp of a power level of 200,000, and it was powerful enough to overcome Elder Song’s attack.
“There aren’t many in the younger generation who can exchange blows with me. Junior, you should be proud.” Elder Song then raised a hand. This time, there were five flat orbs on his palm, and seeing them made Lu Yin’s scalp go numb.
“It’s over.” Elder Song casually waved his hand, causing the five orbs to shoot at Lu Yin while also sealing off all escape routes as they tore through the void from their sheer speed.
Lu Yin became serious, and he used the Yu Secret Art to divert one orb such that it struck another before shouting, “Now, Qiqi!”
Hai Qiqi had been blown back by Elder Song earlier, but she had once again condensed the Sea King"s Trident, and she stabbed forward with it.
Elder Song smirked in contempt of her attack, and he confidently reached out towards the Sea King"s Trident. “You still haven’t learned your lesson.”
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