Has the Token Disappeared

No way, no way! The mighty Wolf Fang elite is only ranked ninety-ninth? Almost didn’t even make it onto the Hidden Dragon Rankings!

An Yi grinned smugly, basking in the moment.

This poker-faced guy’s ranking was actually below his!

Damn, that felt good!

Lin Chen’s expression darkened.

He had known all along how insufferably smug this guy would act once he found out about the rankings.

Lin Chen said coolly, "Bamboo Blade Old Mo, ranked seventy-fourth. Pink Gentleman Xiao Han, ranked sixty-third. Wild Goose Spear Bai Ye, ranked forty-sixth. All of them are above you."

"Scared?" An Yi raised an eyebrow.

Lin Chen replied indifferently, "Hah. Just a bunch of fame-chasing trash."

The Hidden Dragon Rankings might have some standards, but in Lin Chen’s eyes, they were nothing more than a meaningless list cooked up by martial arts sects and aristocratic families.

Take An Yi, for example—he single-handedly took on the Gourd Immortal and defeated a Transcendent Realm expert with one sword strike!

How many of these so-called prodigies on the Hidden Dragon Rankings could pull off something like that?

Yet all of them were ranked above An Yi.

"Why are you here?" Lin Chen asked, puzzled.

He distinctly remembered this guy strolling through the night market with that girl, Lan Ruoxi. He’d even taken a photo as a memento.

So why had this guy wandered into this pitch-black place?

Was he also after the token?

An Yi shrugged, lying through his teeth. "Just thought tonight seemed lively, so I came to check it out."

"Hey, you two! Quit yapping. Do you have the token or not?"

A One-Eyed Warrior wielding twin blades glared at Lin Chen and An Yi, his voice laced with menace.

"No," Lin Chen replied flatly.

The One-Eyed Warrior snarled, "Don’t play dumb! You two are the only ones around here—it’s gotta be on you!"

Swoosh!

A blade of air slashed through the darkness—striking the One-Eyed Warrior!

A deep gash split his body, crippling him instantly as blood sprayed everywhere.

Thud!

The One-Eyed Warrior collapsed, lifeless.

That single move sent shockwaves through the crowd.

The One-Eyed Warrior had been a Peak Mortal Realm expert, yet this guy had obliterated him with a casual strike!

Lin Chen’s voice was icy. "The token isn’t on me. If you don’t believe me, then let’s settle this with force!"

An Yi nodded earnestly beside him. "Same here!"

Only now did he realize—these people were all after the token!

What the hell was so special about that blackened piece of metal?

Lin Chen’s ruthless display had clearly intimidated the surrounding martial artists.

They hadn’t expected this aloof young man to be so terrifyingly strong.

One of the warriors recognized Lin Chen and called out, "He’s Lin Chen of Wolf Fang, ranked ninety-ninth on the Hidden Dragon Rankings!"

At that, the crowd’s expressions shifted.

Another Hidden Dragon prodigy!

Pink Gentleman Xiao Han and Wild Goose Spear Bai Ye exchanged glances, blank-faced. Neither had heard of Lin Chen before.

After all, the only ones who caught their attention were the top fifty freaks of nature.

A ninety-ninth-ranked nobody wasn’t worth their notice.

Bamboo Blade Old Mo, his face as dark as charcoal, wore a solemn expression.

He knew Lin Chen’s low ranking wasn’t due to weakness—it was because he rarely fought.

His only recorded battle was a three-strike annihilation of Dark Crow Wusu, a Hidden Realm expert.

That feat alone proved Lin Chen deserved his spot on the rankings.

But the guy was too low-key, spending most of his time as a bodyguard for wealthy socialites and barely ever taking action.

With just one battle to his name, a higher ranking was unrealistic.

Bamboo Blade Old Mo’s gaze shifted to An Yi, who stood beside Lin Chen, looking like some carefree side character. His eyes narrowed.

This guy… he couldn’t be underestimated.

"The token vanished near you! It has to be in your possession!" another warrior accused.

Lin Chen unsheathed his Cloud-Splitting Hook, his aura domineering. "I don’t have it. Lin Chen doesn’t lie. If you insist on picking a fight, don’t blame me for being ruthless!"

Swish!

The Cloud-Splitting Hook slashed downward—

Crack!

The ground split open in a terrifying fissure!

The crowd gasped in shock.

Qi energy?

No…

Bamboo Blade Old Mo muttered gravely, "The Art of Qi Manipulation… I thought that school had been wiped out."

Wild Goose Spear Bai Ye mused, "Never thought I’d see the Qi Manipulation Arts resurface. Interesting."

The martial artists murmured among themselves, their eyes filled with wariness as they stared at Lin Chen.

Even if they suspected he had the token, none dared to challenge him now.

Meanwhile, An Yi—standing next to the awe-inspiring Lin Chen—was completely ignored, reduced to a mere background prop.

He didn’t mind.

After all… the token was actually in his possession.

An Yi poked Lin Chen curiously. "What’s the deal with this token, anyway?"

Lin Chen replied grimly, "It’s the key to the Vast Heaven Secret Realm. Without it, you can’t enter."

Time was running out before the secret realm’s opening.

Without the Black Crystal Token, entry was impossible.

An Yi pondered for a moment.

Hadn’t cared before, but now it seemed like a real treasure!

The other warriors kept checking their instruments, desperate for any trace of the token.

But strangely, there was no signal—no fluctuation whatsoever.

An Yi smirked.

Of course they wouldn’t find it. The token was tucked away in his storage space, completely severed from this world. No way these losers could detect it.

Should he slip away?

Nah, that’d be too obvious.

With everyone frantically searching, sneaking off would just make him look guilty.

An Yi suddenly boomed, "All Vast Heaven Secret Realm tokens belong to the Asura Gate! Hand them over now, or face the consequences!"

His thunderous voice stunned the crowd—before they burst into scornful laughter.

"What an idiot! Who in their right mind would admit to having a token?"

"Who is this guy? Someone needs to punch him."

"Wait, isn’t that the Night Emperor? The Master of the Asura Gate? Lin Chen’s boss? Just noticed him."

An Yi’s outburst finally drew attention to the guy who’d been blending into the background beside Lin Chen.

Bai Ye raised an eyebrow skeptically. "That’s the Master of the Asura Gate? The one who killed the Gourd Immortal?"

Bamboo Blade Old Mo rumbled, "Truly, appearances can be deceiving."

The Gourd Immortal was one of the Eight Immortals of the Hundred Ghost Sect—a high-ranking elder who had lived for three hundred years. While not the strongest, his infamy was unmatched.

An Yi’s solo slaying of the Gourd Immortal had catapulted him to fame, earning him the seventy-eighth spot on the Hidden Dragon Rankings.

In truth, his defeat of the Hundred Ghost Sect’s Transcendent Realm Envoy was even more impressive.

Too bad that so-called Envoy was a nobody, and few knew he was a Transcendent Realm expert.

Otherwise, An Yi’s ranking would’ve been much higher.

Pink Gentleman Xiao Han sighed. "Our priority is finding the tokens. There aren’t many left."

They already had tokens for the Vast Heaven Secret Realm—but not enough.

The secret realm wasn’t just perilous—it was a battleground against rival factions.

In all of Great Xia, there were only one hundred and eight tokens.

Every extra token meant one more person could enter.

For any faction, that extra manpower could mean everything.