Devil's Steps

Dead silence.

Inside the entire stone hall, one could hear a pin drop.

Everyone seemed to be choked by an invisible giant hand, staring blankly in the direction where the Third Elder had disappeared. Their gazes then numbly turned back, ultimately fixing on the young man in the center of the hall.

Lin Mo casually clapped his hands together, as if merely dusting off some insignificant dirt.

His gaze fell back to mid-air.

The giant hand made of spiritual energy was still choking the First Elder. The old man's eyes were already rolling back, his legs kicking unconsciously like a fish out of water.

Lin Mo shifted his gaze and looked at the First Elder again, a hint of amusement in his eyes.

"Dying just like this would be letting you off too easy."

He loosened his fingers.

Thud!

The First Elder smashed heavily onto the ground like a sack of garbage.

The hearts of everyone in the hall skipped a beat in unison.

The Second Elder's eyelids twitched violently, and his hands, hidden within his sleeves, were already slick with cold sweat.

Seeing this, he silently retreated behind the crowd.

The Third Elder's heart-wrenching scream seemed to still echo in his ears.

The moment the Third Elder was sent flying, he knew things had gone terribly wrong.

This young man wasn't human at all; he was a monster wearing human skin!

On the ground, the First Elder began to cough violently. His lungs felt as if they had been stuffed with fire, and every breath brought a burning pain.

The cold stone floor cleared his mind a bit, having just struggled back from death's door.

He had never been so close to death.

The dignity of a family elder, the pride of a powerful cultivator—in the face of survival, they were entirely worthless.

After all, he was over a hundred years old; knowing when to yield and be a wise man was simply instinct.

He struggled to get up from the ground, ignoring the dust on his body, and bowed deeply in Lin Mo's direction. His voice was hoarse and respectful:

"This junior failed to recognize Mount Tai and offended you, Senior. Please be magnanimous and spare my life!"

This "Senior" was called out from the bottom of his heart, with utter sincerity.

However, upon hearing this, Lin Mo let out a sneer, as if he had just heard the funniest joke in the world.

"Senior?"

He tilted his head, sizing up the First Elder from head to toe.

"You damn old fart with a white beard long enough to mop the floor, calling me Senior?"

"Are you insulting me, or insulting your own shamelessness?"

"I am in the prime of my youth, an invincible eighteen-year-old. By calling me that, you're dragging me down to your level. It's simply the greatest insult to me."

Before his voice had even faded.

A palm print condensed out of thin air in mid-air and slapped squarely across the First Elder's face.

Slap!

An incredibly crisp slapping sound echoed throughout the entire stone hall!

Lin Mo stood in place, not having moved an inch.

Pfft—

The First Elder spun through the air like a top, spitting out a mouthful of bloody froth mixed with several teeth.

Bang!

He crashed heavily into the distant stone wall, then slid limply to the ground, completely motionless, his fate unknown.

Hiss...

Gasps of cold air could be heard one after another.

The members of the Law Enforcement Hall acted as if they had seen a ghost, scattering outward with a rustle, forcefully leaving a large empty zone between the First Elder and Lin Mo.

You must be joking!

That was the First Elder! A prominent figure whose mere stomp could shake the entire family!

Anyone who could become an elder was a recognized powerhouse within the family.

Yet such a powerhouse was being beaten effortlessly by the young man before them.

This gap in strength was no longer something they could bridge.

Therefore, none of them dared to make a rash move.

In the shadows of the crowd, the Second Elder saw this scene, his heart practically leaping out of his throat.

Run!

I have to run!

If I don't run now, the next one being slapped around like a spinning top will be me!

He no longer cared about hiding. He spun around, pushing his lifelong cultivation to the absolute limit, turning into a blur as he dashed straight toward the spatial passage at the back of the hall!

That was the only way out to the outside world!

One step, two steps... it was the devil's pace! He was getting closer!

A wild joy of surviving a disaster even appeared on his face as he dove headfirst into it!

However, the expected dizzying sensation of spatial travel did not occur.

Thump!

With a muffled thud, the Second Elder crashed into a stone wall, then was forcefully bounced back by a tremendous force, sprawling flat on his back on the ground.

He looked up in bewilderment. The ripples of the spatial passage were still shimmering before his eyes, but he simply couldn't enter.

An unhurried voice, sounding as if it were right against the back of his neck, echoed leisurely, carrying a hint of cat-and-mouse mockery.

"Stop running. This passage has already been sealed by me. If I don't leave today, don't even think about leaving."

Lin Mo's sinister voice rang in the Second Elder's ears.

Right at that moment, a sharp piercing sound came from the distance.

A five-colored stream of light tore through the air, carrying an ear-piercing sonic boom, heading straight for the center of Lin Mo's back.

Yet, Lin Mo remained with his back to the crowd, not even batting an eyelid.

Within his powerful spiritual sense, the trajectory, speed, and even the energy contained within this attack were as clear as the lines on his own palm.

The next second.

Buzz!

A soft tremor.

The stream of light abruptly halted less than three feet from Lin Mo's back, as if it had crashed into an invisible wall of iron and copper, unable to advance even an inch further.

Only then did the crowd see clearly that it was a completely translucent arrow containing five-colored glowing light. It hung suspended in mid-air, the shaft buzzing and emitting a terrifying fluctuation of true qi.

A spiritual weapon? Lin Mo chuckled in his heart.

So these backwater hidden sect families actually had some hidden trump cards after all.

Although the quality felt quite poor, not even fit to shine the shoes of the French God of Gamblers.

But for the hidden sects, this was already a very formidable weapon.

On a distant mountain.

On the roof of the Situ family head's mansion.

Situ Hong knelt on one knee on the roof tiles, the ancient, crack-covered longbow in his hands letting out an overwhelmed wail.

The webbing between his thumb and index finger had long been torn open by the powerful recoil, blood dripping through his fingers onto the scorching tiles.

It was evident that the price of driving a spiritual weapon was not something he could bear without injury.

But he was completely oblivious to it, his bloodshot eyes staring fixedly in the direction of the stone hall at the bottom of the mountain.

Although he couldn't see the specific situation clearly, he could distinctly feel that his connection with that Sky-Rending Arrow had not been severed, yet it was forcefully blocked by a power.

"I refuse to believe I can't kill you, you little beast!"

A flash of crazy determination crossed Situ Hong's eyes, and he bit the tip of his tongue hard!

Searing pain followed, and a mouthful of boiling lifeblood essence was fiercely ignited into his true qi!

"If that's the case! Then pierce through!"

He used the last ounce of his strength to roar hoarsely.

His lifeblood essence was instantly consumed, and along with all the true qi in Situ Hong's body, it was infused across the distance into the Sky-Rending Arrow.

As the guardian divine artifact of the Situ family, the Sky-Rending Arrow was absolutely invincible!