C15 Ants

Xu Lin's guarded secret sent shockwaves through the crowd!

"Is this youngster up to the task? He looks way too young!" murmurs rippled through the Mysterious Sect.

Truth be told, Xu Lin's youthful appearance was misleading. It was hard for anyone to believe that someone so young could possess such formidable strength.

"I have a feeling this young man is quite powerful!"

"How so?"

"Remember the junior who was killed as soon as he spoke? Yet this young man remains unharmed. What does that tell us?"

"What's it supposed to tell us? Just spell it out, old man!"

"It tells us that the elder doesn't have the power to take him down in one hit!"

...

As the crowd buzzed with speculation, the elder made his move. A fireball, radiating intense heat, formed in his hand and hurtled towards Xu Lin.

"Playing with fire?"

Xu Lin said with a smile.

From within him burst a plume of dark blue flame. It seemed a mere flicker against the fireball's blaze, like a firefly challenging the moon's glow.

But sometimes, even the tiniest spark can ignite a wildfire...

The instant the dark blue flame touched the fireball, it dissolved, becoming fuel for the flame's growth.

The flame surged toward the elder, who could feel its terrifying might—a fear that chilled the soul, a shudder that echoed in its depths.

By the time he realized what was happening, it was all too late.

The fire crept over the elder's body, the agony that shredded his soul etched onto his contorted face.

"Respected Deacon, save me!" he cried out, writhing in pain.

In that moment, a foreigner emerged from the void, swiftly severing the elder's flaming limb.

The elder thought he was safe, but his body burst into flames. He couldn't fathom why, having been separated from the flame, he was still burning.

His thoughts were fleeting; the elder vanished into thin air, and the flames returned to Xu Lin.

The foreigner watched Xu Lin, astonishment mingled with a hint of fear in his gaze.

In his homeland, an ancient myth had been passed down through the ages, telling of a being from Floania who enlightened all creatures.

Floania was revered as the cradle of the Ten Thousand Paths and a sanctuary off-limits to other masters.

This time, his curiosity was piqued; he wanted to see if Floania truly lived up to its formidable reputation as depicted in the legends.

The foreigner stood proudly, hands clasped behind his back, his golden hair and blue eyes suggesting he was in his sixties or seventies. Draped in a white cloak, he regarded Xu Lin with a frosty gaze, exuding the aura of a seasoned master.

Especially noteworthy was the subtle electric current dancing between his palms, a sight both awe-inspiring and fearsome.

"Floanian, you dare to slay my missionary? Do you have any idea who I am? God will not forgive this transgression!"

After speaking, the foreigner implored, "God! I beseech you to cast down your divine light and purge this sinner!"

"God? Ha! You think that title suits you?" Xu Lin retorted with a sneer.

To Xu Lin, the deities of Western Europe were merely mortals who had harnessed the power of faith to bolster their own strength.

This power bore a resemblance to the transformative energy of Buddhism. A deity's existence hinged on belief; revered as a god by followers, you become one. Deemed less than a dog, and that becomes your truth.

Belief was the wellspring of power, yet such power lacked substance.

When chaos reigned, the Taoist priests of the Mysterious Sect descended the mountain to save the common folk, while the Buddhists remained secluded, and God unleashed a deluge to obliterate all.

By comparison, this so-called God seemed more akin to a harbinger of apocalypse than a divine savior.

The Buddhists, for their part, were mere recluses.

Yet in times of peace, while the Taoists withdrew for quiet contemplation, other sects emerged, vying for the potent force of faith.

"You blaspheme against the divine!"

The foreigner's eyes widened in alarm.

He then proclaimed, "God declared, 'Let there be light,' and thus light was bestowed upon the world!"

Suddenly, the night sky was awash with a blinding white radiance, turning a ten-mile radius as bright as day. This luminous display was imbued with the power to transform.

He actually intended to convert everyone here into devout followers of God.

Those whose willpower faltered were already gazing vacantly at their surroundings, while even the resolute found themselves tormented.

To find peace, these individuals sat down, legs crossed, and recited the Mind-Cleansing Mantras.

"Scram!" Xu Lin scoffed.

He had nothing but contempt for these so-called deities, especially those who, under the guise of divinity, coercively indoctrinated believers.

Yet, it was precisely for this reason that followers of God and Buddha far outnumbered those of the Mysterious Sect.

A sonic boom shattered the silence, obliterating the light and ushering in the night once more!

The crowd snapped out of their trance, realizing that the darkness was their true light.

The foreigner's lips were tinged with blood, sensing his vitality had been severely depleted.

Still, he refrained from showing weakness; as a divine envoy, he couldn't let the mortals see him bleed, for it would only make his mission to convert them all the more challenging. Little did he know that by crossing Xu Lin, he had forfeited even the chance of damnation.

"Thank you, Mr. Xu, for your timely rescue!"

"Many thanks, Mr. Xu, for your intervention!"

"Mr. Xu, I'm grateful for your help!"

A wave of relief swept through the crowd. Without Xu Lin, they might have been lost to the blinding conversion. But would they have remained themselves?

No one could say for sure, as no one had ever been through it...

Xu Lin watched the foreigner with a hint of amusement and a wry smile. "Where is your god now? Why isn't he punishing me?

Where is your god? Why doesn't he come to your aid?"

Fear gripped the foreigner as he faced Xu Lin, his faith shaken for the first time. His god? Why hadn't he come to the rescue? Was it a lack of devotion?

With this thought, the man with golden hair and blue eyes slowly knelt, raising his hands skyward in fervent prayer. "Oh God! I offer my flesh as a sacrifice. Please descend to vanquish the evil. Let your sacred light shine upon the barren lands of Floania! In the name of the Lord."

Having spoken, he conjured a radiant holy light in his hands that illuminated the entire night sky, as if it were daytime, and the transformative power within that light grew even more potent.

This divine light, triggered by the devout believers of the celestial deity, was meant to convert all living beings on earth and possessed tremendous might. Bathed in its glow, everyone's eyes shone with newfound devotion.

Yet, the body of the blond, blue-eyed foreigner began to wither at a visible rate, his skin shriveling as though he were a mummified corpse of many years, instilling a sense of dread, despite the sacred aura that still emanated from him.

"Child's play!" Xu Lin observed the holy light and the earnest looks of the onlookers with a cool detachment.

But it was Xu Lin's icy stare that caused the airborne corpse to burst apart, its flesh scattering and turning to ash before even reaching the ground.

The previously devout members of the Mysterious Sect found their gazes returning to normal, their expressions now showing a hint of vitality.

Yet, in mere moments, they stood agape, utterly astonished by the ash drifting down from the sky.

Who was this young man with such formidable power?

The foreigner had seemed so imposing, his holy light nearly converting them all.

To them, he must have been at least at the eighth level of Qi Refinement, and yet, despite his sacrifice, he failed to kill or even convert Xu Lin.

Could Xu Lin's dismissal of his efforts as "insignificant tricks" truly be justified when such power was at play?

Merely those four words had caused his adversary to burst and disintegrate, perfectly capturing the essence of crushing bones to dust.

And the once pure and sacred light had now dissipated like mist, as if it had never existed.

The members of the Mysterious Sect felt a shiver run down their spines, fear welling up within them.

Yue Yuqing, meanwhile, was filled with even greater fear and reverence. Her growing strength had bred jealousy towards Xu Lin.

Why should he receive such affirmation from so many, when they were all peers?

But now, Yue Yuqing's sole thought of confronting Xu Lin had dissipated just as the foreign man had, into nothingness.

Is this truly the extent of Xu Lin's power? It's absolutely terrifying.

Consider that even Yue Yuqing nearly succumbed to the conversion force just moments ago.

"Grandfather, Mr. Xu... he's truly remarkable!" Yue Yuqing's face was a mask of shock, overwhelmed by Xu Lin's fearsome display of strength.

Could this really be the power of someone at the Qi Cultivating Stage?

"Yuqing, have you ever heard of a peerless individual?" Yue Chen asked with a hint of nonchalance.

A peerless individual is one with extraordinary talent, destined to never face defeat from the moment their journey begins. Fortified by immense fortune, they can turn even the most dire circumstances to their favor.

Yet, Yue Chen was mistaken. Each era brings forth its own peerless individual, but Xu Lin was not the one for this age.

From Xu Lin's perspective, what would this era's peerless individual amount to? Were they truly strong?

All eyes were inevitably drawn to one figure: Xu Lin, standing with hands clasped behind his back in the center of the courtyard, his formidable presence emanating with unchallenged authority.

"Senior's mastery of the magic arts is truly profound. I, Liao Lin, am thoroughly impressed!"

The Mysterious Sect's medical expert, who had just tended to Elder Yue's wounds, addressed Xu Lin with a tone of deep respect.

Without Xu Lin's intervention, they might have all been overwhelmed by the conversion.

"Senior's strength reaches to the heavens!"

"What level of mastery is this!"

"Such terror..."

...

Amidst a chorus of reverent voices, Xu Lin remained indifferent as he bent to pick up a small, blood-red crystal from the ground. Despite its size, it radiated an energy so fearsome it could only be described as otherworldly.

This crystal, a product of the white-robed deacon's vital essence refined by Xu Lin, was nothing short of a panacea for zombies.

Naturally, the crystal was intended for Yim Jiuge. Xu Lin's plan was for Yim Jiuge to return home and ensure the safety of his parents. Boosting his strength was not just necessary—it was imperative.