The Blood Shadow Elder didn't have time to process the absurdity of the situation. One moment, he was the supreme hunter; the next, he was the prey.
Han Feng's movement wasn't a dash; it was a displacement of reality. To the onlookers, he simply ceased to exist in one spot and reappeared directly in front of the Elder.
"Spatial flicker?" the Elder shrieked, his withered hands flying up to form a defensive seal. "No, just pure speed!"
The Elder's dark Qi coalesced into a shield of screaming skulls—the Soul-Eater Aegis, a mid-grade Earth-rank technique that could withstand a strike from a mountain-sized boulder.
Han Feng didn't use a technique. He didn't have any. He simply pulled back a fist glowing with the concentrated purple radiance of Core Formation Layer 4 and punched.
CRAAAACK!
The "indestructible" shield shattered like a dropped mirror. The shockwave stripped the bark off every tree within fifty meters. The masked goons were blown away like autumn leaves, their eardrums bursting from the sonic boom.
The Elder's arm snapped at the elbow, the bone protruding through his skin. He skipped across the forest floor, tumbling for thirty meters before slamming into a rock face.
"Elder!" the leader of the masked men screamed, his bravado replaced by a primal terror.
Qing'er, the Heavenly Sword Sect's daughter, leaned against her broken sword, her jaw dropped. She had seen her father—a Core Formation master—train, but even he didn't possess this kind of raw, oppressive dominance. This youth wasn't just stronger; he was fundamentally superior.
The Blood Shadow Elder coughed up a mixture of blood and organ fragments. He struggled to his feet, his eyes wide with a manic light. "I don't know who you are... but the Blood Shadow Pavilion does not forget! I will burn my life essence to take you with me!"
The Elder's body began to swell. His skin turned a deep, bruised crimson as he prepared to self-detonate his Core. A Core Formation suicide blast could level a small mountain range.
"Run!" Qing'er screamed, reaching out for Han Feng's sleeve. "If he detonates, nothing survives!"
Han Feng didn't run. He looked at the swelling Elder with the same boredom a man might look at a glitchy computer screen.
[Ding!] [Threat Analysis: Life Essence Overload (Self-Destruction).] [Target Power Output: Peak of Core Formation Layer 5.] [Logic Re-calculating: Host Level = 5 + 1.] [Current Level: Core Formation Layer 6.]
The air around Han Feng turned into a vacuum. The purple light intensified until it became almost black. He raised a hand, pointing a single finger at the Elder.
"Silence," Han Feng commanded.
A beam of pure, condensed spiritual energy shot from his fingertip. It didn't explode. It pierced through the Elder's Dantian with surgical precision, severing the connection between his soul and his boiling Core.
The Elder's body deflated like a popped balloon. The red glow vanished. He fell forward, face-planting into the dirt, his cultivation completely crippled.
The forest fell into a heavy, oppressive silence.
Han Feng exhaled, the black-purple aura receding back into his body. He felt... okay. A bit hungry, perhaps, but otherwise fine. The n+1 logic was truly the ultimate "cheat." It didn't matter how hard someone tried or what forbidden techniques they burned—the System simply moved the goalposts.
He turned toward the masked leader, who was currently trying to crawl away into the bushes.
"Wait," Han Feng said.
The leader froze. He slowly turned around, his mask having fallen off to reveal a face pale with sweat. "Please... I was just following orders! I'll give you everything! Gold! Stones! Just let me live!"
"Where is the Blood Shadow Pavilion located?" Han Feng asked.
"In the... the Weeping Valleys! To the west!"
"Good to know," Han Feng nodded. "Now, scram. If I see a mask like that again, I won't use my finger. I'll use my foot."
The man didn't need to be told twice. He scrambled up and sprinted into the darkness, leaving his crippled Elder behind.
Han Feng turned his attention to the girl. She was still staring at him, her eyes reflecting the moonlight. She looked like a celestial being, even with the blood on her face, but Han Feng's modern soul was more interested in information than romance.
"You okay?" he asked, walking over.
Qing'er blinked, shaking herself out of her stupor. She immediately knelt, ignoring her wounds. "Mu Qing'er of the Heavenly Sword Sect thanks the Senior for his life-saving grace!"
"Senior?" Han Feng chuckled. "I'm probably around your age. My name is Han Feng."
"Han... Feng," she repeated the name as if trying to memorize it. She looked at him with a mix of awe and fear. "To possess such cultivation at our age... you must be a disciple of a Hidden Clan from the Central Continent."
"Sure, let's go with that," Han Feng said, not wanting to explain the concept of corporate heart attacks and digital systems. "You said you're from the Heavenly Sword Sect? I was heading that way."
Qing'er's eyes lit up. "You are? My father is the Sect Master! If you accompany me back, he will surely reward you with the highest honors. We have the 'Ancient Sword Pond'—it is said to help cultivators break through their bottlenecks."
Han Feng smiled. He didn't need a pond to break through bottlenecks, but a Sect was a perfect place to find "opponents" who were stronger than him. Every Elder would be a stepping stone. Every rival genius would be a ladder.
"Lead the way, Qing'er," Han Feng said. "I've always wanted to see how a real sect operates."
As they began to walk, the System chimed one last time for the night.
[Ding!] [New Objective Detected: Enter Heavenly Sword Sect.] [Potential Threats in Vicinity: High.] [Host Level locked at Core Formation Layer 6 until next encounter.]
Han Feng looked toward the horizon where the jagged peaks of the mountains pierced the clouds. Heavenly Sword Sect, huh? I wonder who the strongest person there is. Because whoever they are... I'm already one level better.