Bang!
Gong Wei's body fell heavily to the ground.
He had never felt so aggrieved. Since he became Luo Yin's Disciple, everything had been smooth sailing, and fighting opponents above his level was commonplace.
Even battling across major Realms was a frequent occurrence.
But this was the first time he had been beaten without any ability to fight back.
"I'm going to... kill you!!"
Before he could get up, he roared madly, and at the same time, the tiger head and elephant head on his chest and back instantly appeared. His originally muscular body swelled up at a visible speed.
Thick fur grew wildly from his pores, and the same happened on his cheeks. The fur on his forehead surged, faintly forming the character for 'king'.
Meanwhile, the Aura emanating from him also began to climb rapidly.
It was as if he were a monstrous tiger about to break its Seal and unleash a massacre.
Bang—
However, just then, a strong gust of wind came from behind his head.
Before he could react, a powerful force had already smashed down fiercely from above.
With a muffled bang, half of his body was directly embedded in the ground.
Lin Sheng's face with distinct features appeared before him, the eerie light in his eyes growing stronger.
As soon as Gong Wei's eyes met his, the rapidly climbing Aura on his body immediately stopped, and the fur growing on his skin ceased its growth, as if suddenly interrupted at a crucial moment.
The thick fur began to rapidly retract back into his skin, and the fierce and violent Aura on his body quickly weakened until it returned to normal.
"Such a fragile spirit..."
Bang!
Looking at Gong Wei's vacant eyes, Lin Sheng shook his head slightly and threw another punch.
Although Gong Wei instinctively raised his hands to block upwards, the powerful force still caused his body to sink further, cracking the beautifully paved stone slabs.
At this point, Gong Wei's entire body, except for his head and two arms, was completely embedded in the ground.
"You lost."
The eerie light in Lin Sheng's eyes receded, and he spoke softly.
"I... I didn't lose, I'm going to kill you..."
Gong Wei's eyes regained clarity, and he roared out.
However, the only response was a rapidly enlarging fist.
This time, Gong Wei was completely driven into the ground.
"Did you lose?" Lin Sheng asked softly.
"I lose you..."
The next moment, a large hand grabbed his head and pulled him out.
Lin Sheng held his head with one hand and clenched the other into a fist, smashing down repeatedly.
"Did you lose?"
"I'll kill..."
Bang...
"Did you lose?"
"I'll slaughter..."
Bang...
After asking several times and not getting the answer he wanted, Lin Sheng was too lazy to say any more. He grabbed his head with one hand and continued to smash with the other.
For a time, the muffled thuds in the courtyard were incessant.
Gong Wei seemed to have gone mad. Every time he tried to raise his hand to attack, his mind would shake violently, wanting to fall into a deep sleep. But before he could fall asleep, he would be woken up by a punch, repeating endlessly.
Finally, after the time it takes to brew a cup of tea.
"Stop!!"
The muffled thudding still hadn't stopped, but a somewhat aged voice couldn't help but speak up to stop him.
Bang...
Lin Sheng's hands didn't stop. The eerie light flickered in his eyes, and he didn't even look at Yi Ye Qing who had appeared in the courtyard.
"Who are you?"
"I am the Blazing Star Envoy Yi Ye Qing, ordered by Lord Luo Yin to protect Furious Tiger."
Yi Ye Qing said in a deep voice, looking at the badly beaten Furious Tiger.
"Oh, so we're colleagues. Don't worry, I'm just sparring with Brother Furious Tiger. We just haven't decided a winner yet."
Lin Sheng said calmly, and at the same time, he threw another punch.
"Do you concede?"
Saying this, as if to prove it, he asked Gong Wei again.
However, receiving no response, he could only say helplessly.
"See? Brother Furious Tiger hasn't conceded yet."
Hearing Lin Sheng's words, the veins on Yi Ye Qing's forehead couldn't help but twitch a few times, and he shouted in a deep voice.
"The outcome is decided, stop quickly, did you hear?"
"Oh? You decide? Or can you represent Brother Furious Tiger?"
Lin Sheng asked in confusion, throwing two more punches as he spoke.
"You..."
Seeing this scene, Yi Ye Qing's mouth twitched, and his face turned gloomy.
"Like this, does he have a chance to speak? Stop quickly."
As he spoke, the Aura belonging to the Divine Form Realm was fully unleashed.
"Right."
Hearing this, Lin Sheng was startled, as if he had just realized, showing a look of sudden understanding. He finally stopped his hands.
At this moment, Gong Wei's face was covered in blood, swollen and unrecognizable, like a pig's head. Even his original features were completely obscured, and he was in a state of complete stupor.
"Brother Furious Tiger, do you concede?"
"Wo... wo... cough..."
After a long pause, Gong Wei seemed to have regained some consciousness. He opened his swollen mouth, but first spat out a few blood-stained teeth.
"Still not conceding? Alright then."
However, receiving no reply, Lin Sheng gave Yi Ye Qing a helpless look that said, 'See? There's nothing I can do either.' Then he raised his hand again, just as he was about to strike down again.
"Concede... I concede..."
Finally, a few slurred, unclear words came out of Gong Wei's mouth.
The fist that was about to land immediately stopped.
Lin Sheng smiled, tidied his messy sleeves, and brushed the dust off his shoulders.
"Should have said so earlier, Brother Furious Tiger."
With that, he lifted his hand and pulled the entire person out of the ground, tossing him to Yi Ye Qing, while revealing a mouth full of white teeth and smiling.
"This house is mine now, and remember to send the Ling Guomang King over."
"As expected of Shen Jun's Disciple, his methods are indeed extraordinary. I have witnessed it today."
Yi Ye Qing caught Gong Wei, who was completely limp as if boneless, his brows furrowed, and said with a grim face.
"You're welcome."
Lin Sheng responded calmly.
Yi Ye Qing said no more, grabbing the disheveled Gong Wei and quickly disappearing from the courtyard.
Although he could see that Gong Wei was not in life-threatening danger, his injuries were not light. He still needed to be dealt with quickly to avoid damaging his vitality and causing further trouble.
Moreover, he had to inform Luo Yin about today's events as soon as possible.
Watching the two leave, Lin Sheng withdrew his gaze, looked at his blood-stained fist, and shook his head slightly.
"As expected of a Transforming Void Grandmaster's Disciple, a future Grandmaster seed of the Dark Star, he's quite durable."
The blood was naturally Gong Wei's, although he hadn't used any special talents.
However, he still had high-strength exotic beasts like Scarlet Eye Flame Dragon, Giant Spirit Bear, and Di Sha Pig Dragon integrated into his body.
Although he had restrained himself, each punch still carried hundreds of thousands of catties of force.
To withstand dozens of his punches and still be able to speak was truly the first time he had encountered such a person.
He could feel the powerful force contained within his physique. Every time his fist landed, the force was instinctively dispersed throughout his body by his muscles and tissues, greatly reducing the damage sustained.
Therefore, although Gong Wei looked extremely battered, he was indeed not in any life-threatening danger.
Furthermore, the opponent's physique and strength were quite impressive, far exceeding the scope of the Bone Transformation Realm.
And his strength was only slightly lower than Lin Sheng's in his normal state; the difference wasn't significant.
Thinking back to how the opponent's body grew fur and his Aura climbed, even he felt a slight threat at the time. It was clear that if the transformation was completed, his combat power would greatly increase.
"Ancestral Bloodline manifestation?"
A few words flashed through Lin Sheng's mind.
He couldn't help but be secretly amazed; this was the first time he had seen someone with an ancestral Bloodline manifestation.
"A leap in combat power. If his ancestral manifestation is completed, his combat power might not be inferior to that of a general Divine Form Realm Early Stage Martial Artist. He is indeed a Prodigy."
After a sigh of emotion, his attention quickly fell on the courtyard in front of him. Looking at the cracks and pits on the ground, the originally beautiful courtyard was clearly marred by these marks.
He couldn't help but feel a sense of pity.
"What a shame. I clearly held back, yet I still caused some damage. Oh well, I'll find some craftsmen to repair it tomorrow."
Just then, two figures appeared in the courtyard, one after the other.
"Lin Sheng, are you alright!!?"
The people who rushed over were Qi Ning and Huang Quan.
Seeing Lin Sheng alone in the courtyard, both of them were startled.
"Where's Xiao Wei? Hasn't he arrived yet?"
However, when they noticed the deep pits and cracks in the courtyard, their expressions immediately changed.
"Ning-jie, Brother Huang, you arrived quite quickly."
Seeing the two familiar faces, Lin Sheng smiled.
"The Furious Tiger you're talking about has already been taken away. Don't worry, he's fine, just suffered some superficial injuries."
As if guessing what they were worried about, he said directly.
"That's good."
Hearing this, Qi Ning and Huang Quan were visibly relieved.
They were really worried that if they came late, things would escalate.
Just some superficial injuries were nothing to worry about.
"Xiao Sheng, why didn't you tell me before you came? This wouldn't have happened."
Qi Ning looked at Lin Sheng and said somewhat helplessly.
"I was originally going to Guiyuan Hall to contact you first, but I was quickly brought here."
Lin Sheng spread his hands, equally helpless.
"That child Xiao Wei is too impulsive and reckless."
Qi Ning quickly understood and couldn't help but sigh.
"Fortunately, nothing major happened, but we still need to go see Luo Yin Dark Star Envoy."
"I'll go see this Transforming Void Grandmaster tomorrow. If he really wants to pursue something, I'll deal with it." Lin Sheng replied.
"No need for tomorrow. I'll take you now. Let's just settle it. You're not in the wrong, nothing will happen."
"No need, Brother Lin. I'll handle it myself. A dignified Transforming Void Grandmaster wouldn't make things difficult for me."
Lin Sheng spoke slowly. Naturally, he didn't want to trouble Qi Ning any further.
"It's alright, Brother Lin. Let the Thousand-Faced Star Envoy accompany you. She is Lord Luo Yin's..."
Huang Quan on the side couldn't help but say.
Hearing this, Lin Sheng was startled and looked at Qi Ning.
"Luo Yin is my brother-in-law."
Seeing his reaction, Qi Ning had no intention of hiding it and spoke leisurely.
*
Fulong City.
Guiyuan Pavilion.
Lin Sheng followed Qi Ning inside.
Guided by a steward in the pavilion, they entered the inner courtyard and arrived at a side hall.
Looking at Qi Ning beside him, Lin Sheng's expression was still a bit strange.
He really hadn't expected that Qi Ning had such a connection.
She had a brother-in-law who was a Dark Star Envoy and a Transforming Void Grandmaster.
"Lord Thousand Faces, Lord Luo Yin should be cultivating. We have already sent someone to inform him. Please wait a moment."
The guiding steward respectfully offered them tea and said with a smile.
"Alright, go busy yourself." Qi Ning nodded, watching the steward leave.
Lin Sheng, meanwhile, surveyed the surroundings. He had to admit that Guiyuan Pavilion was very large.
Especially since the west district was Fulong City's commercial area, every inch of land was extremely valuable.
Walking this way, they had passed through more than three courtyards, each larger than Gong Wei's courtyard, showing the immense wealth.
And most of them were planted with many medicinal herbs. He had some knowledge of various medicinal herbs, and the ones he recognized were mostly quite valuable, each probably worth no less than ten thousand taels of silver.
He couldn't help but sigh inwardly, 'What a grand gesture.'
Seeing the surprise on Lin Sheng's face, Qi Ning picked up her teacup, took a light sip, and said with a smile.
"Are you surprised? A hidden stronghold yet they built such a large Guiyuan Pavilion?"
"I really didn't expect it to be like this." Lin Sheng nodded.
Originally, in his mind, he thought that Guiyuan Pavilion was just a facade, like the various strongholds in Tainnan and Lin'an Prefecture. Now it was clear that wasn't the case.
To be able to establish such a large Guiyuan Pavilion while being wanted by the Imperial Court, he had to admit the strength of Luo Yin Dark Star Envoy's methods.
"This Guiyuan Pavilion accounts for nearly twenty percent of the city's pill and medicinal herb business. The reason he could achieve this is because, in addition to being a Transforming Void Grandmaster, my brother-in-law is also an Alchemist, and his Alchemy skills are extremely high, making him one of the few top Alchemists in the entire Great Yan."
Qi Ning explained with a smile.
"Top Alchemist!?"
Lin Sheng's heart trembled, and his evaluation of this Dark Star Envoy instantly rose several levels.
Although he didn't deeply delve into the path of Alchemy, he had some understanding of it.
However, it required a large amount of resources and demanded extremely high talent.
To be able to become a top Alchemist, this achievement was probably no less significant than his identity as a Transforming Void Grandmaster.
"A great hermit hides in the city, a small hermit hides in the wilderness. In a giant city like Fulong City, a force like Guiyuan Pavilion is easier to hide. Of course, apart from the high-level personnel like Blazing Star Envoys and the Dark Star members stationed in Fulong City, other Dark Star members are unaware of the existence of this Guiyuan Pavilion stronghold, so Guiyuan Pavilion has developed better over the years."
Qi Ning said with some emotion, then changed the subject.
"My brother-in-law is a reasonable person. Don't worry, there won't be any trouble regarding your matter with Wei'er. Besides this, I brought you here because my brother-in-law wants to meet you."
"Meet me?"
"That's right, do you think just anyone can become Shen Jun's Disciple?" Qi Ning rolled her eyes.
"Several Dark Star Envoys in the organization are probably very curious about you and want to see you, and my brother-in-law has a rather good relationship with Shen Jun."
"So that's how it is."
Hearing this, Lin Sheng felt much more relaxed.
Although he didn't think this Transforming Void Grandmaster would do anything to him after he attacked Gong Wei, he was still somewhat uncertain.
Now he no longer had to worry about these things.