Chapter 143: Ending Evil Through Slaughter!

Fine, using the invisibility pill for now is the best option.

Yan Shu felt a little uneasy and asked through a telepathic transmission, "If we use the invisibility pills, those four will surely notice, won't they? What if they leak the news?"

"They won't." A cold glint flashed across Xiao Jihan's phoenix eyes. "They won't have the chance."

Yan Shu understood immediately. She was not a squeamish person, and besides, these men deserved to die. They hadn't just harmed one person; they were involved in more than just fraud and kidnapping.

As the City Lord of Xuantian City, one's position was akin to a feudal prince, passed down through generations. A City Lord was always accompanied by protectors. Under normal circumstances, these protectors were not easily replaced, let alone all at once, as it concerned the lives and safety of everyone involved. Yet, from what these four had said, it was clear they had not been in Fantian City for long and were clearly not the original protectors.

So, where were the original protectors? If they could impersonate the City Lord, could they not also impersonate the protectors? Some things were terrifying once you thought them through.

Inside the secret chamber, the four men had finished their discussion and gradually quieted down, evidently settling in to rest. As time passed, the silence was eventually broken: "Alright, dawn is near. Let's head out."

Hearing this, Xiao Jihan and Yan Shu exchanged a look. They immediately took their invisibility pills, pressed themselves against the wall, and cleared the passageway. Sounds of movement came from the chamber; the four were still discussing the need to prepare more Bigu pills for the Xuantian City Lord to ensure he stayed alive, lest they offend the Imperial family and bring down a hunt upon themselves.

The door creaked open, and the four men stepped out. The man in the lead, wearing a human-skin mask, was clearly the boss of the group. Once they had closed the chamber door, Xiao Jihan reached out and cast a barrier.

The moment the barrier went up, the leader stopped in his tracks. A sword instantly appeared in his hand. He looked back and shouted coldly, "Who's there!"

The other three also noticed the barrier, quickly drawing their weapons and looking around with wary eyes. The leader immediately released his divine sense, but as he was only at the mid-stage of the Nascent Soul realm, he could not detect Xiao Jihan and Yan Shu. His expression turned icy. He cupped his hands and said loudly, "You are using an invisibility talisman or pill, aren't you? May I ask which path you hail from? We are all rogue cultivators; why not show yourself? Whether you want money or treasures, everything is negotiable."

One of his men added, "We are all rogue cultivators, there's no need for such tricks!"

"Exactly! What kind of skill is it to hide like a ghost?"

Clearly, the four assumed Xiao Jihan and Yan Shu were merely rogue cultivators using restricted items. Xiao Jihan and Yan Shu exchanged a look and stepped forward, swords in hand. The four could not see them, nor could they detect them with their senses, but as they drew closer, the men sensed something unusual. However, it was already too late.

*Splat!*

A long sword, imbued with spiritual energy, pierced straight into the dantian of the man at the rear, shattering it instantly.

"Ah!" A miserable scream erupted, echoing chillingly through the secret passage. The sword was withdrawn; the blade remained invisible, but blood could be seen hanging in mid-air.

The other three were stunned, crying out in unison, "Fourth Brother!"

Because the secret passage was barely wide enough for two people to walk side-by-side, they had no room to maneuver. Even seeing the blood suspended in the air, only the man closest to the fallen "Fourth" lunged forward, attacking toward where he sensed the movement.

Xiao Jihan dodged to the side and cast a cleaning spell, causing the blood on his blade to vanish, leaving the attacker striking at empty air. The Fourth, his Golden Core shattered, clutched his dantian in a futile struggle, his mouth opening as if to speak, but he collapsed before he could utter a word.

At the Golden Core stage, the physical body is quite resilient, but to shatter a Golden Core and dantian in a single strike to take a life meant the attacker’s cultivation was far above that of the victim. With the Fourth dead and their target lost, the remaining three panicked. The one who had attacked Xiao Jihan began swinging his sword wildly in every direction.

Sword energy flew everywhere, but Xiao Jihan and Yan Shu paid no mind to the erratic strikes of a Golden Core cultivator. With a few movements, they evaded them easily. The leader, wearing the City Lord's mask, grew desperate and slashed at the barrier, hoping to break it and escape. However, a barrier cast by someone at the Spirit Severing stage could not be broken by a mere Nascent Soul cultivator. With a loud *clang*, the leader was repelled, his hand numbed, and he stumbled back two steps.

Only then did they realize something was wrong. This was no ordinary rogue cultivator seeking profit—what kind of rogue cultivator possessed such terrifying power? Any rogue cultivator with such cultivation would have long since established their own sect and been revered by others!

While they were stunned, Xiao Jihan and Yan Shu acted in unison. Xiao Jihan’s sword pierced the dantian of the man who had attacked him, while Yan Shu did the same to another.

"Ah!"

"Ah!"

Two screams sounded simultaneously. The leader roared in agony, "Second Brother! Third Brother!"

But the only reply was the fading gasps of the two men and the light vanishing from their eyes. Two invisible swords were withdrawn, dripping with blood.

This was Yan Shu's first time killing, yet she found it less difficult to accept than she had imagined. If one cannot change their environment, they must adapt to it. Since she had arrived in the world of cultivation, she had to adapt to its laws. There were no laws, no courts, and no police here—only one's own cultivation, the weapon in one's hand, and one's own moral compass. Even Buddhist cultivators in this world did not refrain from killing, because in this world, one must often use violence to stop evil and killing to prevent more slaughter.

Of the four, only the leader who had been impersonating the City Lord remained. He looked at the three corpses on the ground and realized clearly that there were two people here, and at least one of them possessed cultivation far beyond his own. He couldn't even break the barrier; there was no way to escape.

The leader looked at the two invisible, blood-dripping swords and dropped to his knees with a thud. He kowtowed three times in the direction of Xiao Jihan and Yan Shu. "I beg you, fellow Daoists, spare my life!"

*Hmph.*

Yan Shu sneered and, deepening her voice, asked gruffly, "Where are the original protectors of the City Lord?"

The leader stiffened at the question. "They... we drove them away!"

As soon as he finished, Xiao Jihan kicked him, sending him crashing into the barrier before he slumped back down. Xiao Jihan looked at him coldly. "Tell the truth!"

The leader clutched his bruised chest, stammering, "We... we killed them."