"Who are you?"
On the arena, Lin Huang stared fixedly at Jiang Huaiyin, asking in a low, heavy tone.
The aura the latter gave off was nothing like that of a simple Outer Disciple. The level of danger this person posed to Lin Huang felt even greater than when he had encountered Moyu Spear Hann Ming in the Great Xia Dynasty. In fact, it was far more dangerous.
"Outer Disciple, Jiang Huaiyin!" Jiang Huaiyin grinned, bearing his teeth, and unscrupulously scanned Lin Huang back and forth.
"Do you know of the Jiang Family? The Jiang Family of Jiang Licheng, ranked second on the Martial Marquis List," Jiang Huaiyin continued. "I am a member of the Jiang Family. Unfortunately, I am just a distant offshoot, separated by eighteen generations.
"But even with such a status, it’s not something you can shake!
"Do you know why Elder Hong Jiu accepted me as a Direct Disciple instead of a Registered Disciple? It’s simply because I come from the Jiang Family," Jiang Huaiyin chuckled darkly.
Lin Huang stared into Jiang Huaiyin’s narrow eyes, then shook his head and said, "I’m afraid it’s not that simple. With such strength, you could have easily entered the Inner Sect long ago. Why bother staying in the Outer Sect?"
"Can’t I do it just because I want to?" Jiang Huaiyin smiled, exuding Evil Qi. "Seeing as you are about to die, I will tell you a little secret." He looked at Lin Huang, his expression suddenly becoming somewhat excited, like the thrill of revealing a long-hidden secret from the depths of his heart to another person.
"Three years ago, the seventh of the sixth month, the twenty-eighth of the sixth month, 7:45 AM on the twenty-ninth of the sixth month, and the third of Jiuyue!"
Jiang Huaiyin suddenly blurted out several dates. This left the keen-sensed Nan Yunlie on the sidelines somewhat confused. The disciples below the stage couldn’t hear clearly because they were further away, only able to see Lin Huang’s expression changing rapidly. Infinite fury filled his face.
"...You deserve to die!" Lin Huang’s eyes blazed with fury, intense killing intent brewing madly. His voice, squeezed through gritted teeth, sounded like a roar from Hell, startling all the disciples present.
"I deserve to die? Tsk, tsk..." Jiang Huaiyin wagged a finger, looking at Lin Huang with mockery. "I’m telling you this secret because *you* deserve to die. Knowing this secret but being completely helpless to do anything about it, feeling that you’re about to die right now—doesn’t it feel great?"
Jiang Huaiyin gazed at Lin Huang, a twisted smile flashing through his gloomy eyes.
Lin Huang stared at Jiang Huaiyin like a vicious wolf, the killing intent in his heart having already swelled to its absolute limit.
Three years ago. The seventh of the sixth month. The twenty-eighth of the sixth month. The twenty-ninth of the sixth month. The third of Jiuyue. These time points instantly made Lin Huang understand so many things.
Three years ago was the exact year his sister Lin Cangxue fell from being a genius. The twenty-eighth of the sixth month was the day Lin Cangxue returned to the Great Xia Dynasty. 7:45 AM on the twenty-ninth of the sixth month was the exact time Lin Cangxue fought her way into the Crown Prince’s Eastern Palace. The seventh of the sixth month should have been the day Lin Cangxue left Piaoxue Palace to hurry back to the Great Xia Dynasty. The third of Jiuyue should have been the time Lin Cangxue returned to Piaoxue Palace again.
Ordinary people couldn’t possibly pay attention to this timeline. Even if they did, they wouldn’t know the exact time Lin Cangxue fought her way into Taidong Palace. For Jiang Huaiyin to state it in such detail meant that the shattering of Lin Cangxue’s Martial Soul was inextricably linked to him.
In other words, behind the shattering of Lin Cangxue’s Martial Soul, there was an organization and a meticulous plan. And Jiang Huaiyin was undoubtedly a member of this organization, having participated in the scheme.
The sudden appearance of an enemy made the fury deep within Lin Huang’s heart soar. Blood-red veins crawled up his sharp eyes, causing his entire body to overflow with terrifying killing intent.
"Even if I die today, don’t even think about walking off this arena alive!" Lin Huang glared at Jiang Huaiyin ahead of him and enunciated word by word. Each syllable was as low as the whimper of a furious tiger, filled with fierce hatred.
"Three Thousand Miles!"
"Slaying Kunlun!"
"Shooting the Celestial Wolf!"
In an instant, Lin Huang disappeared from where he stood. His body turned into an afterimage as he madly slashed toward Jiang Huaiyin.
"You want to kill me, Jiang Huaiyin, with just this little bit of skill? That’s simply a fool’s dream!" Jiang Huaiyin snorted heavily, his eyes carrying intense disdain. As his arm shook, three iron ropes radiating the aura of a Yin Soul Array immediately appeared around his body.
The iron ropes were as thick as arms and covered in sharp barbs. Their ends were connected to sharp spearheads, and on every single rope, there clung gloomy, roaring ghost heads.
Martial Soul—Hundred Ghosts Yin Soul Rope!
In the void, as the three Yin Soul Ropes shook, they resembled three venomous snakes baring their fangs and brandishing their claws. With casual movements, they wrapped around Jiang Huaiyin’s body, forming a thick, defensive cage.
CLANG CLANG CLANG!
The Demon-Suppressing Blade hacked against the iron ropes, sparking a continuous shower of sparks, but it failed to break through Jiang Huaiyin’s defense in the slightest. This made Lin Huang’s heart sink even further. Unleashing three moves simultaneously, perfectly synchronized with the might of Asura’s Fury, he surprisingly couldn’t sever even a single Yin Soul Rope.
This Jiang Huaiyin could not be considered weak.
"Earth Element Sixth Heaven?!" Lin Huang said with an uncertain, gloomy expression as he looked at Jiang Huaiyin, who was entirely protected by the Yin Soul Ropes.
Jiang Huaiyin gave a leisurely smile. "You really are somewhat clever, but why are you so stupid as to choose to challenge me? Tsk, tsk, tsk... What a pity that a fresh, living life is about to become another ghost head on my Yin Soul Rope!"
"We’ll see whose methods are better!" Lin Huang looked at him calmly, but the sense of danger in his heart grew increasingly heavy. The ghost heads on those Yin Soul Ropes were clearly formed by refining the souls of people after their deaths using some evil method. By borrowing these ghost heads, Jiang Huaiyin could enhance his strength, while those dead Martial Artists would never be able to reincarnate for all eternity.
Jiang Huaiyin sneered coldly, a sinister light shining through his narrow eyes. He said hoarsely, "You seem to look down on me a bit. That won’t bring about a good result for you."
Having spoken, Jiang Huaiyin clenched his hand, and two more Yin Soul Ropes appeared in the void, coiling in front of him with bared fangs and brandished claws, overflowing with a sinister aura.
Lin Huang was secretly shocked. He hadn’t expected Jiang Huaiyin to actually possess five Yin Soul Ropes. Taking a deep breath, he forcefully suppressed the unease in his heart. The Demon-Suppressing Blade in his hand swung again, and a sharp, murderous aura rose along with it.
"Asura’s Fury!"
Lin Huang struck once more. Asura Power flowed within his body, and under a twofold increase in combat power, he dashed out like lightning, carrying the blood-red light drawn out by the Demon-Suppressing Blade as he charged at Jiang Huaiyin.
"Kill!" Lin Huang roared fiercely. As he neared Jiang Huaiyin, the terrifying power suddenly poured out like a mad dragon breaking out of prison, slashing mercilessly toward the latter’s throat.
"Ignorant!" Jiang Huaiyin sneered as he rapidly retreated. At the same time, he waved both palms, instantly gathering the five Yin Soul Ropes around him to once again form an iron rope cage that enveloped his body.
On the cage, dozens of ghost heads roared in fury. The piercing sounds suddenly exploded by Lin Huang’s ears, and the force formed by the soundwaves abruptly pierced into Lin Huang’s sea of consciousness. This caused Lin Huang’s blade edge to veer sharply, scraping past the edge of the cage.
CLANG CLANG CLANG!
The Demon-Suppressing Blade hacked against the cage, dragging out a string of sparks but achieving absolutely nothing. Instead, it completely deflected the force of Lin Huang’s attack. And the moment his attack failed, Lin Huang’s expression changed drastically in horror.
From behind the cage, yet another Yin Soul Rope appeared and viciously thrust toward Lin Huang. The sharp spearhead was like the flicking tongue of a giant python, sending a chilling coldness through his entire body. In this critical moment, Lin Huang twisted his body mid-air, thrillingly dodging the assassinating Yin Soul Rope.
However, before Lin Huang could breathe a sigh of relief, a sudden sharp pain struck his back. Another Yin Soul Rope had somehow slashed onto him, its sharp barbs piercing straight into his back. Subsequently, the Yin Soul Rope he had just dodged attacked once more. The sharp, cold gleam aimed directly at Lin Huang’s throat, and the ghost head at the end of the Yin Soul Rope seemed capable of biting off his neck in an instant.
At this moment, Lin Huang’s mood plummeted to rock bottom. Without hesitation, he waved his left hand, and dozens of Array Seals shot out, forming a Sword Array in the blink of an eye.
Surging Sword Qi condensed into an immense power, ultimately shifting the landing point of the Yin Soul Rope so that it scraped past Lin Huang’s neck, taking away a streak of crimson blood. By a mere hair’s breadth, Lin Huang’s artery was almost severed completely.
But just as Lin Huang felt a surge of relief, his expression changed drastically once again...
While Lin Huang had been evading Jiang Huaiyin’s various attacks, the cage that originally enveloped Jiang Huaiyin had long since disassembled and transformed, shifting to imprison Lin Huang within it instead. When the Yin Soul Ropes enveloped Jiang Huaiyin, it was a defense. But when they shrouded Lin Huang, it was imprisonment.
Looking at Lin Huang trapped by his five Yin Soul Ropes, Jiang Huaiyin let out a long sigh of relief, a wicked smile lifting the corners of his mouth. "I truly never expected that you would also be an Array Master. But do you think you can reverse the outcome relying on this subpar Array?"
"Do you really think these Yin Soul Ropes of yours can imprison me?" Lin Huang gripped the Demon-Suppressing Blade, speaking calmly. In his heart, however, he had little confidence. He hadn’t expected Jiang Huaiyin to actually possess seven Yin Soul Ropes. The ghost heads on them numbered over a hundred.
Jiang Huaiyin tucked a strand of hair behind his ear and smiled faintly. "Your strongest strike just now couldn’t even breach the cage in the slightest. What’s the point of acting so calm now?"
As he spoke, Jiang Huaiyin clenched his slender fingers in the air, and the cage shrouding Lin Huang began to shrink step by step.
"Want to guess whether I’ll pierce you into a sieve?" Jiang Huaiyin chuckled sinisterly, controlling two Yin Soul Ropes to thrust at Lin Huang once more through the gaps in the cage.
Lin Huang’s pupils shrank slightly. He swung the Demon-Suppressing Blade fiercely, continuously hacking at the thrusting Yin Soul Ropes. However, the cage was growing smaller and smaller, and Lin Huang’s room to maneuver was shrinking with it. As time passed, let alone swinging the Demon-Suppressing Blade, even without the attacking Yin Soul Ropes, Lin Huang would be squeezed to death by the shrinking cage.
"Tsk, tsk... This is what they call a cornered beast’s last struggle. It looks rather amusing, you wild dog!" Jiang Huaiyin laughed sinisterly. "I forgot to tell you, the Yin Soul Ropes I control aren’t limited to just seven!"
Having said that, Jiang Huaiyin’s expression abruptly turned freezing cold. Another Yin Soul Rope suddenly materialized in the air. While Lin Huang was busy dealing with the predicament before him, it violently pierced into his back and drove straight out through his chest...