"Nice catch, little brother," a young man's voice rang out casually.
Li Hao's gaze sharpened. In the dense woods, no cultivators had been visible before—now one emerged as if from thin air.
His hand instinctively tightened on the sword's hilt.
"Thanks. And who are you?"
The man smiled, unbothered by the tension.
"Little brother, I'm Wang Hyun-Seong, of the Wang family. A core disciple of the Void Dragon Hall."
[Name: Wang Hyun-Seong
Age: 230
Realm: Fourth Turn, Sixth Level
Affiliation: Wang Family Core Descendant, Void Dragon Hall Core Disciple]
"May I ask your name?" Hyun-Seong inquired, his tone friendly.
"Li Hao," he replied, not loosening his guard for even a second.
Hyun-Seong nodded. "Li Hao, huh? That's a leoner core you've got there. Water-element, very rare.
Would you consider selling it?" he asked with a light gesture.
Li Hao shook his head. "Not for sale."
Hyun-Seong's smile remained. "Everything has a price. How about double its value?"
"Triple," Li Hao replied coolly.
"Deal," Hyun-Seong agreed instantly, pulling out spirit stones from his pouch.
But before the transaction could go through, a voice rang out from the shadows.
"Enough. Let's just take it."
From the trees stepped Dong-Woo, spear spinning lazily in his hand.
Without warning, he struck.
A spear laced with lightning and killing intent screamed through the air, aimed straight at Li Hao's head.
Li Hao's instincts flared. His right hand gripped his sword, unsheathing it just in time.
The spear's intent came within inches of his face—cold sweat brushed his brow.
But Li Hao's will didn't falter. His gaze narrowed.
Absolute Flow Strike.
His sword cut cleanly through the spear intent, dispersing it like smoke.
In the same breath, he countered—
A precise thrust aimed straight for Dong-Woo's neck.
But Dong-Woo twisted his spear, swinging in a wide arc to deflect the attack. The sword intent shattered on contact, vanishing in the wind.
The two locked eyes, tension thick in the air.
Dong-Woo's eyes narrowed, his expression twisted with contempt. "You think you can stand against me, little human?" he sneered, voice soaked in arrogance.
Li Hao's grip tightened around his sword hilt. His jaw was clenched, but his gaze remained steady—calm, focused, unshaken.
With a sharp twirl of his spear, Dong-Woo gathered surging lightning-infused intent. The Thunder Domination Spear crackled with energy as he took a step forward. "Let's end this."
Spear lightning burst from him like a living serpent, fierce and precise.
Li Hao didn't flinch. His eyes held a serene clarity as he summoned his spiritual energy, invoking Silent Severance Edge. His sword pulsed with condensed intent—refined, deadly.
In one seamless motion, he swung.
The arc of sword energy tore through the oncoming spear lightning, cleaving it in two. Dong-Woo's barrier shattered upon contact, the impact sending him skidding backward across the ground.
Shock flickered across his face.
Watching from the sidelines, Wang Hyun-Seong's eyes widened ever so slightly. As a swordsman himself, he recognized the precision—no wasted energy, no unnecessary flourish. Just cold, unerring execution.
"Junior Brother Dong-Woo," he called, concern lacing his voice, "need a hand?"
Dong-Woo snarled, wounded pride burning in his chest. "Yeah... let's take him together."
Hyun-Seong stepped forward, drawing his sword with fluid grace. "This is the Storm Frost Sword," he announced. "A low-earth elite-grade blade. Cherish the moment—it'll be your last."
Li Hao met his gaze evenly. "You should be the one cherishing it."
Without delay, Hyun-Seong unleashed Winter Gale Slash, the blade sweeping through the air, trailing frost-laden sword intent.
Dong-Woo moved in tandem, summoning Tempest Fang Thrust, blending wind and lightning with spear intent in a blinding strike.
As the dual assault closed in, Li Hao vanished.
Adaptive Flow Evasion.
He reappeared fifteen steps to their left—calm, composed. Dong-Woo erected a barrier, reacting fast—but not fast enough.
Li Hao was already moving.
With a cold gleam in his eyes, he slashed—Eclipse Severance. The horizontal arc cut through Dong-Woo's barrier like paper, striking his chest and carving a spiraling wound deep into his flesh.
Dong-Woo staggered, blood spilling freely. His breath trembled.
"You still think you can take me?" Li Hao asked coolly.
Dong-Woo's lips curled in defiance, but the bitterness in his eyes betrayed him. "You think your technique is that strong?" he muttered.
Then he leapt into the sky.
Thunderclouds gathered overhead as he twirled his spear, lightning surging along its shaft. "Sovereign's Wrath—Heaven's Judgment!"
The sky cracked open. A spear of divine lightning shot down, its brilliance blinding.
But Li Hao's instincts had already screamed the truth.
He moved—Adaptive Flow Evasion—dodging just before the spear would have pierced his heart.
Dong-Woo landed, stunned. "How…?" he whispered. That was my master's killing blow.
But before he could recover, Li Hao closed the gap.
One clean thrust—Absolute Flow Strike. The blade pierced Dong-Woo's heart, boring a spiraling hole through his chest.
Dong-Woo coughed blood, his legs collapsing beneath him. As life ebbed from him, a single memory flickered in his fading mind—his little sister's innocent smile.
Then darkness.
Li Hao stood over him, expression unreadable. Had I not been faster, this would've been my grave.
He turned to Hyun-Seong, whose face twisted in rage as his junior brother fell lifeless before him.
The Storm Frost Sword trembled in his grip, the air around him chilling. "Glacial Shatter!" he roared.
Frozen sword intent erupted from his blade, sweeping across the field, freezing everything in its path.
But Li Hao had already moved.
Void Step Blade Dance.
He vanished, the glacial attack freezing trees in his place. Hyun-Seong scanned the frostbitten clearing in frustration.
From above, Li Hao's voice drifted down—mocking, calm. "Is that it? I expected more after I killed your little brother."
Hyun-Seong's gaze snapped upward. Li Hao crouched on a tree branch, eyes gleaming with unshaken confidence.
"You were lucky to dodge," Hyun-Seong growled. "Can you dodge this?"
Permafrost Divide.
Twin slashes crossed the air in an X-shaped burst of sword intent, screaming toward the treetops.
Li Hao's voice rang out like thunder. "That depends—can you stop me from dodging?"
He appeared at Hyun-Seong's side before the slashes even landed. A blur.
"You still don't get it," Li Hao said coldly. "When you attacked me before, I was distracted—thinking about the core. Now? I'm thinking about finishing you."
Hyun-Seong turned in panic, slashing wildly, his blade carving through trees.
"Now you're angry at the forest?" Li Hao mocked, effortlessly flitting between branches.
"Why don't you face me like a man?" Hyun-Seong roared.
Li Hao appeared before him. "Alright. Let's end it like men."
A sudden thrust.
Hyun-Seong twisted, but the blade sank into his shoulder. He gritted his teeth, pain flaring in his vision.
Li Hao pulled the sword free—then moved again, aiming for the neck.
Hyun-Seong activated Frostbound Flicker, his form shattering into ice shards and reappearing on another tree.
"Running already? Weren't you the one demanding a fair fight?" Li Hao jeered.
Hyun-Seong's voice was low and bitter. "A real man values life over pride."
"Wise words," Li Hao said. "But even the wise can't escape death."
Astral Step Severance.
He vanished, reappearing midair, his sword already mid-swing. A sweeping arc of sword intent tore through the space between them.
Hyun-Seong barely managed to react. He raised his sword—too late.
The two intents clashed. Hyun-Seong's sword shattered. The next instant, his head was cleaved from his body.
It hit the ground and rolled—stopping beneath Li Hao's foot.
He looked down at it, silent, victorious.
Without another word, he began looting their corpses, his expression as calm as if he were picking herbs from a field.