After maxing out my affinity, my signature weapon kept evolving.

Xie Wenyuan's roar startled the horses that were grazing peacefully, causing them to tremble. The noise inside the lumberyard also suddenly stopped.

An eerie silence fell over the lumberyard.

A moment later, as the horses began to neigh, a long spear shot out from the lumberyard, aimed directly at Xie Wenyuan's head.

The gun was incredibly fast; if Xie Wenyuan hadn't improved his cultivation level, he probably wouldn't have been able to detect it, let alone dodge it.

Clap clap clap.

A round of applause rang out, and a large group of people emerged from the lumberyard, led by a wealthy young man dressed in fine clothes.

Old Deng and his wife were being held by the neck by a burly middle-aged man, looking miserable.

"Not bad, not bad. You actually managed to dodge Master Ye's flying spear technique. Interesting."

Xie Wenyuan remained calm, ignoring the praise, and simply said:

"If you have any problems, come at me. I'm the one who hit them. It has nothing to do with the other two. Let them go."

"Let them go? Are you kidding me? They took the Ren family's money and refused to leave, so naturally I had to come and help them out."

Behind this wealthy young man, each of his men held a sharp weapon. Judging from the chaotic state of the lumberyard, it was clear that the damage to the lumberyard this time was even more severe than yesterday.

Xie Wenyuan looked at Old Deng, whose face was bruised and swollen, and then at the arrogant expression of the rich young master. He silently summoned his spirit weapon.

"Whether they accepted money or not is irrelevant, but you can't just trample on other people's dignity and let them go."

Ren Xingyuan looked at Xie Wenyuan, who remained unmoved by reason and still had a cynical attitude.

"A broken iron sword can be considered a spiritual weapon? Who's going to laugh at that? Master Ye, go and have a go at him."

"Yes, young master."

The burly man threw Lao Deng and his companion to the ground. His right hand was in a loose grip, and the spear stuck in the ground seemed to come alive, flying back into the man's hand.

This spear was much more refined than Xie Wenyuan's rusted iron sword, and it had two cloud patterns encircling it.

"Telekinesis, two spiritual runes... so he's a Spirit Master? That's troublesome."

Xie Wenyuan was a whole realm below Master Ye. A Spiritual Warrior could only draw spiritual energy into his body and use it for his own purposes; while a Spiritual Master could release his own spiritual energy to remotely control his spiritual weapon.

Despite his injuries, Old Deng, who had fallen to the ground, shouted with all his might:

"Xiao Xie, let's go, don't worry about us."

"Now that I'm here, how can I just sit idly by? State your name, and I, Xie Wenyuan, will not kill nameless nobodies."

"How dare a mere spirit cultivator speak so arrogantly? Then listen carefully, I am Ye Hongshan, the spirit master and retainer of the Ren family!"

After introducing himself, the burly man chose to strike first, a flash of cold light appearing before his spear shot out like a dragon.

[This is the host's first time facing a formidable enemy. The mission is as follows: Inflict damage on Spirit Master Ye Hongshan. Reward for successful completion: Marrow Cleansing Pill. Penalty for failure: Spirit Weapon confiscated. A host who cannot defeat a stronger opponent is unworthy of possessing a Spirit Weapon.]

"Damn system, can't you even time the task releases right?"

Distracted by the system, Xie Wenyuan almost failed to dodge the attack. Fortunately, the system wasn't entirely inhuman; it activated time stop for Xie Wenyuan when issuing the mission, almost making him shout "Zawarudo!"

Time began to flow again, and Ye Hongshan keenly noticed that Xie Wenyuan's speed was not what one would expect from a spiritual cultivator.

Could his spiritual weapon possess special abilities? If so, this sword is definitely not as simple as it looks.

Xie Wenyuan barely dodged the shot that was almost as fast as the sound thanks to the system's cheating, and felt a wave of fear.

Cross-border fights are indeed not easy, but I still have ways to interfere with him.

He flicked the blade with his finger, producing a piercing sound that made everyone cover their ears. Even Ye Hongshan felt dizzy from the sound.

"You brat, how dare you resort to such despicable means!"

Xie Wenyuan didn't care about any of that; any trick that could be used was a good one.

This can be considered a special use of the "Phoenix Cry Technique". As a former genius, he has a far greater understanding of the application of the technique than ordinary people.

But as the saying goes, "an inch longer, an inch stronger," even using this method, it was difficult to get close to Ye Hongshan.

"Since you've been bullying the weak, don't blame me for resorting to underhanded tactics!"

With a single slash, the target was the rope tethering the horse. Freed from its restraints, the horse began to run wildly, trying to escape its fear.

Ye Hongshan happened to be on the wild horse's escape route, so he had no choice but to dodge. But this dodge played right into Xie Wenyuan's hands.

Xie Wenyuan lunged forward, bringing his opponent into his attack range, and then delivered a horizontal slash with the effect of the "Showing Initial Talent" attribute, leaving Ye Hongshan with a scratch.

Ren Xingyuan's eyes widened. Who was this kid? How could he have injured his capable general?

Ye Hongshan was furious; he felt powerless in front of this kid.

He roared and swung his spear, sweeping Xie Wenyuan away.

Xie Wenyuan drew his knife to block the attack, then used the momentum to get to Old Deng and his wife's side. With lightning speed, he lifted the two of them up and then withdrew from their territory.

This series of actions involved a gamble, but Xie Wenyuan's gamble paid off. The people behind Ren Xingyuan were all useless fools, and Ren Xingyuan himself had never seriously fought anyone and was very slow to react.

"Damn, where did this kid learn that? I've never even seen him before."

Ren Xingyuan, as expected of a spoiled rich young master, actually praised him at this moment.

Ye Hongshan knew that if Xie Wenyuan hadn't tried to save the two burdens, Ren Xingyuan would probably have been killed with a single blow.

Therefore, he sighed deeply and said to Xie Wenyuan:

"Kid, I have to admit, you're quite extraordinary. If we were at the same level, I'm afraid I wouldn't stand a chance. You're a talent, and it's a waste to leave you in this small Renqiu City. How about joining our Canal Gang?"

Before Xie Wenyuan could even react, Ren Xingyuan was already getting impatient:

"Master Ye, what do you mean? He's our enemy!"

"On the path of cultivation, there are no eternal enemies. Young Master Ren, I am merely a retainer of the Ren family, doing things for money. You have no right to restrict my freedom."

Xie Wenyuan wiped the sweat from his forehead. He had just done his best. If Ye Hongshan had chased after him, he probably wouldn't have had any chance of escaping.

However, Ye Hongshan felt a sense of appreciation for talent and wanted to make peace.

"I'm sorry, although I don't want to live in this small town forever, I have my own path to follow."

Ye Hongshan retrieved the spiritual weapon, stepped aside, and said to Ren Xingyuan:

"Young Master Ren, you'll have to handle the rest yourself."

Ren Xingyuan grinned, but he clearly couldn't control Ye Hongshan and could only give orders to the people behind him.

"Take him down!"

The Ren family members rushed forward with their weapons, but then a commotion made them all stop in their tracks.

Right behind Xie Wenyuan, another group of people rushed over with various weapons, and together they protected Xie Wenyuan and the other two behind them.

"Trying to take over the lumber mill? We're here for you!"