Mortal: Starting by looting Han Laomo's entire herb garden

Xie Changyuan's heart skipped a beat. He had personally witnessed Lu Yan kill the old man of Qingyang Sect with a single hammer blow, kill Yun Tianxiao with a single needle, and burn Mu Hanyan to the ground.

In just over ten breaths, all five Core Formation cultivators were gone.

He cursed Yun Tianxiao's ancestors for eighteen generations in his mind.

What kind of capable henchman is Young Master Wen? He brought two late-stage Core Formation cultivators, two mid-stage Core Formation cultivators, and dozens of Foundation Establishment cultivators, yet he couldn't even defeat one mid-stage Core Formation cultivator.

Waste, utterly worthless.

His hand had already slipped into his sleeve and touched the array plate.

Driven by spiritual power, the restrictive patterns on the ship suddenly lit up, and a cyan light shield rose from the deck, enveloping Lu Yan.

The light shield had only closed halfway when Lu Yan's figure suddenly disappeared from the spot.

Lightning Release Technique.

The next instant, Lu Yan appeared inside the light barrier, standing three feet in front of Xie Changyuan. Xie Changyuan's face was deathly pale; the spiritual light on the array plate had not yet dissipated, but his hands were already trembling so much that he could no longer hold it.

Tie Mohe reacted the fastest, slamming his banner onto the deck and booming, "Excellent! Brother Nie, what a skillful move! I've long disliked these two traitors!"

He strode forward carrying the Xuanlong Banner. As soon as the banner was unfurled, golden light shone from its surface, heading straight for Xie Changyuan's face.

"Thank you, you old scoundrel! I, Tie Mohe, am ashamed to be associated with you!"

Xie Changyuan's expression changed, and he quickly activated the array plate, creating a light barrier in front of him.

The golden light struck the light screen with a loud bang, and the light screen cracked open with several gaps.

Xie Changyuan retreated several steps, and several more cracks appeared on the array plate.

He cursed Tie Mohe in his heart. This man had been hesitant just now, but now he was speaking righteously. Clearly, he was eager to show his loyalty because he saw that Nie Feng was powerful.

Liu Xiyue drew her short sword, and with a flash of icy blue light, several ice spikes shot towards Tie Mohe.

With a flick of his banner, Tie Mohe swept away the ice spikes, then turned to Lu Yan and shouted, "Brother Nie, hand these two spies over to me! You can rest!"

Lu Yan stood aside, watching Tie Mohe display his divine power, speechless.

This person was just hiding in the back, but now he's rushing forward faster than anyone else.

"Fellow Railway comrade," he said slowly, "go easy on them. My storage bag is still on them."

Tie Mohe was taken aback for a moment, then burst into laughter: "Brother Nie, don't worry! I understand!"

He abandoned his previous timidity and wielded the Xuanlong Banner with great force, forcing Xie Changyuan and Liu Xiyue to retreat repeatedly.

Lu Yan watched for a while, then got tired of waiting any longer.

Silver needles flew out from his sleeve, and the Taixu God-Slaying Needle transformed into a rain of needles that passed by Tie Mohe and headed straight for Xie Changyuan and Liu Xiyue.

Before the two could even scream, needles pierced their chests, leaving more than a dozen streaks of blood, and they collapsed onto the deck with a thud.

The banner of Temokha stopped in mid-air, paused for a moment, and then sheepishly withdrew.

He turned to look at Lu Yan, grinned, and showed no embarrassment whatsoever: "Brother Nie, what a skillful move! I originally intended to personally capture these two traitors and present them to you, but I didn't expect you to act even faster. I admire you!"

Lu Yan glanced at him but didn't say anything. Tie Mohe didn't seem embarrassed at all; he stood aside, carrying the banner, his face beaming with smiles.

Jiang Xingzhou was trapped inside the light shield and watched helplessly as all of this happened.

From the moment Lu Yan made his move to the moment Xie Changyuan fell, it was only the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.

Five Core Formation cultivators, three demonic beasts, and dozens of Foundation Establishment cultivators were wiped out.

He was trembling all over, whether from fear or excitement, it was hard to tell.

With Xie Changyuan dead, the protective barrier that had been holding him was no longer supported by spiritual energy and dissipated instantly.

Jiang Xingzhou staggered two steps, almost falling, but steadied himself by holding onto the gunwale. He took a deep breath, turned to look at Lu Yan, and bowed deeply with his fists clasped.

"Brother Nie's great kindness is something I will never forget."

He then turned to Tie Mohe and bowed in the same manner: "Brother Tie, I will always remember your righteous help."

Tie Mohe quickly waved his hand: "Brother Jiang, you're too kind. I haven't been of much help." As he said this, a rare look of shame appeared on his face.

Jiang Xingzhou didn't reply, but turned to Lu Yan and said solemnly, "Brother Nie, if it weren't for your help today, I would have already lost my life. I can't thank you enough for this great kindness. If you ever need my help in the future, I will do my best to help you even at the cost of my life."

Lu Yan waved his hand: "Just give me the Jiao Yuan Pearl."

Jiang Xingzhou was taken aback for a moment, then laughed and said, "Of course! Of course! The Jiao Yuan Pearl originally belonged to Brother Nie."

He paused, then added, "And that ancient fire coral, once this matter is settled, I, Jiang, will definitely take Brother Nie to retrieve it."

Lu Yan glanced at him but didn't expose him. They'd deal with the ten-thousand-year-old fire coral once they got the Flood Dragon Pearl.

He turned to look at the sea. The black dragon had already flown back. With a flash of silver light, it landed beside him, proudly raising its head.

After finishing its meal, the Phoenix Sparrow was dozing on his shoulder, its feathers glowing even brighter with the firelight.

Lu Yan tallied up his gains: he had seized over 80,000 spirit stones alone, along with a considerable amount of various magical artifacts and pills. It seemed he wouldn't have to worry about cultivation resources anymore.

"Let's go to Bitao Island."

Tie Mohe quickly shouldered the flag, stood at the bow of the boat, and volunteered: "Brother Jiang, please guide the way; I, Tie, will take the helm!"

Jiang Xingzhou didn't refuse. He walked to the bow of the boat, looked at the direction, and pointed: "North, half a day's journey."

Temokhe responded, waved his banner, and the spirit boat changed direction, heading north.

The sea returned to calm, with only a few corpses and broken planks floating on the waves.

Jiang Xingzhou stood at the bow of the boat, gazing northwards, his face grave, and remained silent.

Lu Yan leaned against the ship's railing, closing his eyes to rest. Tie Mohe, at the helm, would steal glances at Lu Yan every now and then, then at Jiang Xingzhou, wanting to say something but daring not to.

Half a day later, Bitao Island appeared on the horizon.

From a distance, thick smoke billowed from the island, flames shot into the sky, and broken planks and corpses floated on the sea.

Jiang Xingzhou's face was deathly pale, his lips trembled, and he couldn't utter a single word.

The spirit boat slowly approached, and the stench of blood filled the air.

Lu Yan stood beside him, his gaze sweeping across the island. He could vaguely see figures moving about, dressed in Qingyang Sect uniforms, bustling about in various parts of the island.

In the center of the island, a beam of blood-red light shot straight into the sky, dyeing half the sky dark red.

Beneath the blood-red light, something was moving, its form small.

He activated his Ghostly Eyes and peered out, only to see a black monkey-like creature lying there, wailing.

"Blood sacrifice?" Lu Yan uttered two words.

Jiang Xingzhou's face was ashen: "How could this be... how could this happen?"

Lu Yan glanced at him: "It seems that your family has been targeted by Qingyang Sect and Holy Demon Island for a long time."

Tie Mohe, carrying the large flag, peeked cautiously at the island, then shrank back, saying, "Brother Nie, there are probably quite a few people on this island..."

Lu Yan ignored him. When the spirit boat docked, he was the first to jump off.

The moment their feet touched the sand, several Foundation Establishment disciples of the Qingyang Sect spotted them.

"Who is it?"

Lu Yan did not answer. He spun the Nine Heavens Hammer in his palm, and lightning exploded.

Those Foundation Establishment disciples didn't even have time to scream before they were engulfed by lightning and turned into clumps of charred ashes.

Hearing the commotion, the other Qingyang Sect disciples on the island turned around and saw three more people on the beach.

"Enemy attack!" someone shouted.

Lu Yan walked forward with the hammer in his hand, unhurriedly, as if he were strolling through his own backyard.

People from Qingyang Sect flocked in from all directions, a large number of Foundation Establishment cultivators and a few Core Formation cultivators.

Leading the group was an old man in a gray robe, in the late stage of Core Formation. He carried a blood banner in his hand, the banner's surface churning with blood energy, and faintly emitting the sound of ghostly wails.

"Where did this rogue cultivator come from? How dare he interfere with the affairs of my Qingyang Sect?" the gray-robed elder shouted sternly.

Lu Yan glanced at him, then at the blood-red light and the weeping soul in the center of the island, and suddenly smiled.

"My weeping soul, how did it end up here?"