Cultivating the Childlike Spirit

They were at a stalemate.

The two junior apprentices by Daoist Hegui's side had already clenched their magical weapons under their sleeves. Their knuckles were trembling from excessive force, and their eyes darted back and forth constantly, as restless as ants on a hot pan.

They wanted to move, but they dared not.

The phrase "Awakening of Yan Huang" pressed down on them like an invisible mountain, suffocating them.

Facing the Awakening of Yan Huang directly would bring too many problems.

Finally, Daoist Hegui could no longer hold back. He clasped his hands in Lin Mo's direction, forcing a smile onto his face that he thought looked amicable.

"Sir, could you allow me a few words with Wang Chen? He seems to have some misunderstandings about us."

His voice sounded earnest, carrying the patient coaxing tone of an elder.

Lin Mo, however, didn't even bother to lift his eyelids. He still leaned against the car door, his voice devoid of any emotion.

"You'll get your chance to talk. For now, stay right where you are."

This was outright humiliation!

Daoist Hegui's face darkened instantly.

The mask of friendliness was torn off, revealing nothing but gloom and menace.

He exchanged one final glance with his two junior apprentices.

This time, there was no hesitation—only resolute killing intent.

Now!

The three figures sprang into action almost simultaneously, without a single word wasted, their movements perfectly coordinated.

The one on the left whipped out a horsetail whisk, its three thousand silver strands lengthening like steel needles aimed at Lin Mo's temple.

The one on the right drew a soft sword, its blade inscribed with glowing runes, striking straight for Lin Mo's heart.

The one in the middle, Daosit Hegui, was the most treacherous. He opened his mouth and spat out an almost invisible black light, silently shooting toward Lin Mo's groin.

Three paths of attack, all lethal strikes, leaving no room for mercy.

They intended to take down this most troublesome figure with lightning speed.

Yet, facing this assured kill, Lin Mo didn't even change his posture.

He simply stood with his arms crossed, watching the three Daoists charging at him as though they were three monkeys putting on a show.

"Honestly, I'm curious," Lin Mo said, his voice soft but clear enough for everyone to hear.

"Which legitimate cultivator walks around with black qi so thick it can't even be washed off? Like they fell into an ink vat—what a stench."

Before his words faded, three giant hands made of pure spiritual power materialized out of thin air, striking without warning, faster than the attacks themselves!

The hands were as solid as the real thing, carrying an irresistible pressure as they grabbed violently.

"Pfft!"

The silken strands of the whisk, the sword light of the soft blade, and the treacherous black qi all vanished instantly upon contact with the spiritual hands, like snowflakes meeting a hot iron.

In the next moment, the three giant hands clenched the three Daoists like they were grabbing struggling chicks.

"No!"

Daoist Hegui let out a terrified scream.

His proud poison technique, before this absolute power, was as fragile as paper.

Then, Lin Mo's eyes turned cold.

The three giant hands squeezed the men and slammed them hard into the ground!

Boom!

The asphalt road cracked and sank as if hit by a meteor, debris flying everywhere!

"Ah!"

Screams of agony pierced the night, the sound of bones shattering clearly audible.

This commotion immediately caught the attention of Wang Chen and Dongfang Shuye on the other side.

Seeing this, Dongfang Shuye curled his lip in disdain, raised his hand, and slapped the air, pressing down a fighter who was trying to sneak away.

"I said don't run. A death or two won't matter much."

Lin Mo strolled over to the three men embedded in the ground, looking down at them from above.

Daoist Hegui was covered in blood, struggling to say something but only managing to spit out a few bloody froths.

"Tch, questioning you is too much trouble."

Lin Mo stared contemptuously at the human bloodbag at his feet.

"Forget it, soul search it is. Efficient and eco-friendly—one step to the finish."

As he spoke, the spiritual hand pinning down Daoist Hegui pressed down harder.

Crack! Crack!

The sound of the asphalt and bones breaking together rang out.

Crimson blood gushed through the gaps of the giant hand, spreading a stark dark red stain across the shattered ground.

"Senior brother!" The other two Daoists glared with brimming fury, howling like wild beasts.

But Lin Mo acted as if he hadn't heard, not even bothering to look at them.

He spread five fingers over Daoist Hegui's head and then yanked violently!

A hazy, twisted, struggling semi-transparent human figure was forcibly pulled out from atop Hegui's skull!

Soul search!

The story's gaps were being filled in.

Cultivation boys. Boys used to help others cultivate. Director Han was in charge of selecting candidates.

Daoist Hegui was responsible for training them, and finally sending them abroad to serve as cultivation aides for some big shot.

After absorbing the cultivation boy’s power, one could gain magical strength and even extend their lifespan.

That was why they had engraved something in Wang Chen's mind—once Hegui got close, he could activate the engraving to take control of him.

This way, everything would be done without a trace. Eventually, Wang Chen would even be branded a renegade disciple, accused of abandoning the Daoist order.

Lin Mo had seen many dirty tricks, but never anything this foul.

As for the girl, she was like Wang Chen—a reserve candidate.

The girl had been provided to Director Han by those people.

Director Han, acting as the middleman, had taken the money and was ready to do the job.

But then something happened that even Daoist Hegui didn't know about.

Director Han died. His disciple, Wang Chen, disappeared. And the girl ended up being hunted by those people.

So the story still had one missing piece.

Keeping the two men pinned to the ground, Lin Mo walked over toward Dongfang Shuye.

Wang Chen looked warily at this young man who seemed about his age.

But Lin Mo's mind was already that of an old timer.

"Now I know enough. The last piece of the puzzle just needs to be filled in."

Lin Mo glanced at Dongfang Shuye.

Having dealt with Lin Mo for so long, Dongfang Shuye knew exactly what he wanted.

So he lifted his foot.

Soul search!

The puzzle was complete.

It was an absurd and senseless story.

These people were all from a special operations team within a security company. Their job was simply to get their hands dirty.

And the girl was actually the boss of the security company's illegitimate daughter.

When the boss’s wife discovered this, she had the girl's mother killed and then arranged for the girl to be sent to Director Han as a cultivation aide.

But the boss learned of this and planned to bring the girl back and send her away.

The wife, upon finding this out, changed her plan and ordered her people to catch the girl and kill her instead.

That way, the security company boss could say nothing and do nothing.

So Director Han hiked up his price—hence he was killed outright.

That was the true reason for Director Han's death.

And Daosit Hegui initially thought Wang Chen had been the one to do it.

Who would have known the truth was like this?

Lin Mo just thought the whole story was too absurd.