Lin Chen froze. The incident happened so suddenly that his entire body stiffened, unable to react.
Without realizing it, he turned toward the source of the noise—only to witness chaos.
Amid the commotion, his gaze caught sight of a young man whose face had been torn open. Beneath the peeling flesh, wrinkled skin showed through.
Clearly, the terrifying man had been using some kind of disguise to conceal his true face.
The cultivator—believed to be a demonic one—was surrounded by a group of Qi Refinement cultivators, cornered and desperate.
Just when Lin Chen thought the man's end was near, a flag suddenly shot out from the demon cultivator's sleeve.
At the same time, a swarm of translucent human shadows appeared, shrieking hysterically in all directions.
The ghosts' wails pierced Lin Chen's ears. Unable to bear it, he bit his lip as his head throbbed violently, as if his brain were being crushed from within.
Panicking, he gathered his mana in his dantian, forming a protective barrier around his mind.
Seizing the opportunity, the demonic cultivator broke through the encirclement and fled the scene.
Lin Chen could only stare blankly, his breathing ragged.
Moments later, the chaos subsided. A group of uniformed men bearing red tokens arrived to inspect the aftermath.
Terrified, Lin Chen hurriedly packed up his stall.
He had no intention of continuing his business—his only thought was to get home.
As he was nearly finished, with only one sparrow left to pack, a black hand suddenly darted out from the crowd and snatched the last bird off his table.
Lin Chen's eyes widened before realization struck.
"Damn it! Stop right there!" he shouted furiously.
He dashed after the thief with all his might, but the dense crowd in front of him blocked his way, making pursuit difficult.
"Move! Get out of the way! There's a thief!" he yelled in frustration.
The people ahead quickly stepped aside—though not everyone was considerate.
The chase devolved into chaos; every step Lin Chen took was hindered by feet, shoulders, and mocking gazes from bystanders who seemed to relish his struggle.
Fortunately, Lin Chen was cautious enough not to trip or fall. He was delayed, but not stopped.
Slowly but surely, he began closing the distance on the thief.
Just as he was about to grab the man, a heavy shove struck his back.
Already irritated, Lin Chen spun around, ready to strike back.
Bang!
He threw a punch, but it was easily blocked.
"Silence—or die!" a deep, commanding voice growled, making Lin Chen's heart pound.
He looked up and saw the man who stopped him—a city guard, identifiable by the red token hanging from his belt.
"Why are you stopping me?! Aren't city guards supposed to uphold justice? Why are you helping the thief escape?!" Lin Chen snapped angrily.
The guard sneered coldly. "Quiet," he said, pressing Lin Chen's shoulder harder into the ground as if trying to bury him there.
"Heh, save your nonsense. Stay silent—or die."
At that moment, a powerful spiritual pressure crashed down on Lin Chen.
Faintly, it felt similar to the killing intent Senior Brother Hu had once directed at him.
Swoosh!
Yet instead of collapsing like before, Lin Chen managed to break free of the suppression—barely, but enough.
The guard's eyes widened slightly in surprise. He eyed Lin Chen warily but didn't loosen his grip.
He motioned for his subordinates to check the area.
Lin Chen could only remain silent, fuming. He understood why they stopped him—in such chaos, anyone running was suspicious.
Still, what angered him most was that the real thief had gotten away.
...
Moments Later
On another street, Xing Que froze as a group of uniformed cultivators stopped him.
He hadn't expected the place he'd just left to explode under a demonic cultivator's attack.
Luckily, he had escaped unscathed.
During inspection, one of the guards found a sparrow hidden inside his sleeve.
"What's this?" the guard asked.
"Uh, a bronze sparrow, sir… Is there a problem with it?"
"If there is, I can hand it over to the city guards," Xing Que replied nervously—but with a sly undertone.
Clearly, he was attempting to bribe them.
The guard glanced at the bird briefly before returning it with a look of disgust.
"Fine. You can go."
Xing Que exhaled in relief and hurried home.
When he arrived, the familiar stench of poultry and chicken droppings that once disgusted him now felt oddly comforting.
"Ahhh, that was close," he muttered, finally relaxing.
He locked every door and window before pulling the sparrow from his sleeve.
With a thin smile, he began plucking its feathers one by one. The bird's faint cries filled the room, but Xing Que didn't care.
Soon, the sparrow was bald, its rough skin pocked with tiny holes.
He chanted an incantation, and an eerie glow enveloped the bird. A familiar green mark surfaced on its skin.
"I knew it!" he exclaimed, eyes wide.
Even though he had suspected it, seeing the truth still shocked him.
"So it's true… that brat was hiding something that can enhance a sparrow's rank," he whispered, eyes gleaming with greed.
A few days ago, Xing Que had grown suspicious of Lin Chen. He'd secretly marked one of his sparrows to confirm his theory.
Now, with proof in hand, he began plotting.
"Hehehe… With that secret, I'll be rich—and my cultivation will soar!"
...
Nightfall
Lin Chen's home was usually peaceful, but tonight, he couldn't shake a restless feeling.
He checked around but found nothing unusual.
"Was it just my imagination?" he murmured.
After a while, he convinced himself everything was fine and drifted off to sleep.
Meanwhile, outside, a man dressed in black moved silently through the shadows near Lin Chen's house.
He pulled out a pair of miniature bird cages from his sleeve and whistled softly, as if communicating with something.
Moments later, his eyes gleamed—something had answered his call.
"It doesn't matter… As long as that enhancement secret falls into my hands, every risk is worth it," he rasped, voice thick with obsession.
He activated a talisman, firing it toward Lin Chen's defensive array.
There was no explosion, no sound—only silence. But he knew the barrier had been breached. He slipped inside effortlessly.
The figure—Xing Que—moved quickly, holding his breath with each creak of the floor.
He took out the cages again and whistled softly. A sparrow flew toward him, chirping eagerly.
A satisfied grin spread across Xing Que's face. There was no doubt—this was Lin Chen's home.
As he explored the chicken pens, several spiritual chickens suddenly stirred, ready to crow loudly.
"cock-a-do—!"
Xing Que panicked and quickly silenced them with a talisman.
Once calm returned, he searched the area and spotted a cracked porcelain bowl.
"Is this… a magic artifact?" he muttered skeptically. But after checking it, he found nothing.
"Hah, am I getting paranoid? I'm mistaking a broken chicken bowl for a treasure!"
He threw the bowl aside.
Thud!
A muffled sound echoed—but the bowl didn't shatter.
"Phew… that was close," he whispered in relief.
But then, the nearby spiritual chickens turned their heads in unison, their eyes glowing red as they stared into the darkness.
Xing Que swallowed hard. "Almost caused a commotion…" he murmured, hurriedly calming them down again.
Finding nothing, he decided to head straight for Lin Chen's room.
There, Lin Chen slept soundly, breathing evenly. Xing Que smirked.
"What a peaceful sleep… I wonder how you'll react when you see me," he whispered mockingly.
He crept closer—but suddenly—
Swoosh!
A flash of silver light cut through the darkness—a battle axe slicing the air like lightning.
Xing Que reflexively raised his cages to block. The blow was partly deflected, but the remaining force tore through his defenses and ripped into his flesh.
"Arghhh!" he screamed in agony.
Lin Chen, already prepared, launched another attack. Xing Que dodged but still took another hit.
"Damn it!" he snarled, realizing the tables had turned. What he thought would be an easy kill had become a fight for his life.
Seeing no other choice, he turned to flee. Lin Chen chased after him, axe in hand.
Because Xing Que was gravely wounded, Lin Chen quickly closed the distance and swung again.
Swoosh!
Xing Que spun around, his eyes bloodshot, filled with despair.
"If I'm dying here, then I'll drag you down with me!"
He pulled out a Sword Talisman and activated it.
Swoosh!
A surge of sword energy burst forth, colliding with Lin Chen's axe strike and shattering it instantly. The sword qi didn't stop—it shot straight toward Lin Chen.
"Damn! This isn't good!" Lin Chen shouted, trying to dodge—but it was too late.
The sword qi slashed across his back.
"Arghhh!"
Pain exploded through his body as a vicious, foreign qi invaded his meridians, corrupting his flow of energy from within.
Xing Que managed a faint grin, satisfied with Lin Chen's suffering—before his eyes dimmed and his body collapsed lifelessly.
Meanwhile, Lin Chen staggered to the ground.
He tried using the Turtle Breath Technique, but the healing qi was immediately devoured by the sword qi's corrosive energy.
His body weakened rapidly, his consciousness fading.
The world spun. His breathing grew shallow.
In his haste, Lin Chen reached for anything within his reach.
At that very moment, a chill ran across his palm — he realized he had unknowingly grabbed the spirit stone he had ignored earlier.
Cold crept from his fingertips toward his heart. And in the midst of pain and darkness, only one thought remained in his mind.
"I… must live."