Chapter 71: Not bad, you've made progress

Aaa!

It was seen that the leading youth's fist hadn't yet landed on Li Mu.

Li Mu then moved like lightning, instantly grabbing his wrist, and then applied a slight pressure.

Only the sounds "Crunch, crunch, crunch…" of bone shattering, making one's teeth ache, crackled in the air.

The young man's entire arm was twisted by Li Mu as if winding a rope, a full one hundred eighty degrees.

The whole right arm, including the hand, was bent at an incredibly bizarre angle, and anyone seeing it would be horrified!

But that was only the beginning!

Li Mu himself is not a good-natured fellow!

Long before joining the Ziyang Sect, Li Mu lived in a brutal chaotic era comparable to the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, where if you didn't kill others, others would kill you.

If Li Mu had even a hint of a merciful heart, a saintly motherly nature!

Then he would never have made it to the Enlightenment Stele; he would have already become a rotting, foul‑smelling corpse in a gutter!

Thus, after crossing over to another world.

Li Mu's way of survival has always been.

Only the dead pose no threat to oneself forever!

If circumstances prevent killing, then cripple them!

Make it so they never have the ability to take revenge on him!

What the—!

How could that be possible?

Seeing this scene, the other person finally reacted!

Watching Li Mu, whose murderous aura surged skyward and who looked like an Asura, his eyes showed obvious terror, and he instinctively tried to flee backward.

But before he could take two steps back, Li Mu grabbed his hair from behind in one swift motion.

In his desperation.

He could only clutch his head with both hands, protecting his skull desperately to buy some time.

But Li Mu, still gripping the hair, ignored everything and thrust his knee upward sharply!

Bang!

Bang, bang!!

Bang, bang, bang!!!

Li Mu, holding the youth's hair, mercilessly struck his face with his knee.

He slammed him five or six times in succession, until the opponent's scalding fresh blood splattered all over him, and then there was no movement at all.

Only then did Li Mu lift his foot and kick the youth toward the man who had just been rolling on the ground, still clutching his severed hand and emitting pig‑slaying‑like wails.

Then Li Mu stepped before the two, slowly raising his foot!

Aiming at their hands, he stomped down hard with both feet!

Crunch, crunch!

The hair‑raising sound of bones cracking rang out, accompanied by the two youths' increasingly feeble wails.

The surrounding Inner Peak disciples, watching Li Mu's decisive and ruthless tactics,

all felt a chill surge straight up from the soles of their feet to the Celestial Crown!

Whoa...

Are all these newcomers just arrived from Outer Peak this ruthless?

At the slightest disagreement, they sever hands and feet!

That's so damn brutal!

Seeing both legs and feet completely caved inward, only a thin strip of flesh remaining.

This made everyone's Adam's apple quiver, forcing them to swallow saliva with difficulty and instinctively step back a few paces, as if to keep distance from Li Mu.

At the same time.

The greedy, covetous gaze that had been cast toward Li Mu from the dark corner vanished completely because of the youths' grim fate.

After efficiently disposing of the two, Li Mu crouched and deftly rummaged through their bodies.

In no time at all!

Li Mu extracted numerous spiritual pills, Heavenly Treasures, and the like from the two!

But what delighted Li Mu most was that he had just found two Ziyang Sect jade slips on their bodies!

They contained a full fifty thousand sect contribution points!

Originally, after Li Mu spent fifteen thousand contribution points to purchase the Purple Gold Dragon‑pattern Cauldron, he still felt a bit anxious.

Fearing that later at an auction he might find a coveted treasure but lack the funds to buy it!

Now!

He had just looted fifty thousand contribution points, which solved his immediate pressing need!

Li Mu happily pocketed the contribution points, his smile growing ever brighter!

Sure enough!

Compared to him laboriously doing tasks alone, selling materials to the sect like a workhorse for a paltry few contribution points,

this direct hands‑on approach, cash comes fast!

After returning fully loaded from the two well‑meaning men, Li Mu walked back to Qian Wenyi.

No wonder you're the big brother!

Truly awesome…

Qian Wenyi spoke, then, still with a lingering dread, looked at the long sword on the ground that Li Mu had literally rolled into an iron ball, feeling a shiver.

"Big brother!"

"Can you give me a heads‑up, brother? How did you just roll that Mid‑Grade Spiritual Artifact into a ball?"

"I have no other motive, just pure curiosity…"

Li Mu glanced at Qian Wenyi's wide, curious eyes, then turned back to the ball of the long sword and couldn't help falling into thought.

For Li Mu,

if we speak only of his physical strength, having entered the Refining Qi Realm's Forbidden Realm—the Eighth Forbidden—his bodily power has reached a terrifying nine hundred thousand kilograms!

This already equals an exaggerated level of a typical ninth‑rank Concentration Realm!

Not to mention, Li Mu carries the divine artifact Tian Dao Treasure Scroll, which lets him perfectly bypass Cangbaoge's formation restrictions on true Qi!

With such terrifying foundation and strength, it's no wonder Li Mu could roll even a mere Mid‑Grade Spiritual Artifact into a ball!

If he wishes, he could brandish the Revenge Blade and slash from Cangbaoge's East Street all the way to West Street!

But Li Mu, of course, wouldn't tell Qian Wenyi the truth; he simply waved his hand indifferently and brushed off with a casual remark.

"Oh…"

"So that's what you're talking about!"

"Put yourself in their shoes."

"The two rascals came here to pull a scam; how could they even bring a Mid‑Grade Spiritual Artifact with them?"

"The long sword just now was merely packaged to look like a Mid‑Grade Spiritual Artifact."

"In fact, it was just a crafted long sword!"

"Oh…"

Qian Wenyi nodded; though a vague sense told him something was off, he couldn't quite put it into words.

He had originally intended to go up and ask two more questions.

But when he saw Li Mu holding the freshly acquired Sect Contribution Points in his hand, his expression instantly changed.

Qian Wenyi hurried forward, nervously glancing around; seeing no one watching, he lowered his voice and said.

"Brother, I suggest you throw that Sect Contribution Points Jade Slip back."

"This thing is a hot‑potato."

Li Mu halted his steps, said nothing, and simply lifted his chin to signal Qian Wenyi to continue.

"Every cat has its own way, every mouse its own way!"

"Since those two dared to pull a scam in Cangbaoge, it's obvious someone was backing them!"

"Otherwise, they would never act so recklessly!"

As he spoke, Qian Wenyi glanced again at the Jade Slip of fifty‑thousand Sect Contribution Points in Li Mu's hand, then said sternly.

"The two young men who just tried to scam us are merely Outer Disciple of the Inner Peak."

"Given their status, they could never possibly possess such a huge sum."

"So I infer that the fifty‑thousand points are most likely not theirs, but belong to the one shielding them…"

Yet after he finished that long speech in one breath, Li Mu remained calm, as if he hadn't let the matter bother him at all.

"Brother, I…"

In his haste, Qian Wenyi was about to say something else when

Li Mu reached out, patted his shoulder, and, still smiling, said.

"Not bad, not bad!"

"Much better than back in the Yunshan Secret Realm; you've made great progress!"

After speaking, Li Mu left the bewildered Qian Wenyi and strode toward the auction hall.

When Li Mu and Qian Wenyi pushed open the heavy wooden door,

in an instant the view opened up, with dim blue lights flickering.

Though not bright, it cast a very particular atmosphere over the auction hall.

As they continued forward, the first thing that met their eyes was a massive stepped arena spanning thousands of meters, its rows of seats arranged like scales.

Li Mu glanced over; there were over a thousand seats, now more than half filled.

The venue buzzed with bustling crowds and clamor.

Directly ahead of the stepped arena stood a crimson auction platform.

However, the auction hadn't officially started yet, so the platform was empty.

When Li Mu and Qian Wenyi entered, many people instinctively turned to look this way.

But upon seeing that they were merely wearing Inner Peak Named Disciple robes, they turned away, paying no heed.

As in past Four Peaks Grand Competitions, many Outer Disciple who had just passed the exam into Inner Peak would come to the auction hall to soak up the atmosphere.

So Li Mu and Qian Wenyi's appearance didn't attract anyone's attention.

Seeing no one overly focused on them, Li Mu felt at ease.

He and Qian Wenyi took seats near the entrance, planning to leave as soon as the auction ended.

But just as they sat down, a sudden uproar erupted.

"Shhh!"

"Did I see that right?"

"Someone, it's Pan Wenbo from Inner Peak!"

"I've heard Pan Wenbo was favored by the Eastern Master, taken as a disciple, and rose to greatness instantly!"

Someone nearby shouted.

"Eastern Master?"

"That's one of the notable Alchemists of our Ziyang Sect!"

"Exactly!"

"Crucially, after Pan Wenbo was taken as a disciple by the Eastern Master, he also displayed a terrifying talent in alchemy that far surpasses ordinary people!"

"According to rumors, after just two and a half years of hard cultivation, Pan Wenbo can now independently forge a First-Grade Body-Tempering Pill!"

"Sss!"

"I didn't expect that, at his young age, Pan Wenbo can even brew the high‑difficulty First‑Grade Dan Pill, a Body‑Tempering Pill!"

"No wonder so many Inner Peak disciples are following him!"

Everyone whispered back and forth, murmuring in low voices.

Their gazes toward Pan Wenbo were filled with awe!

That awe is purely because Pan Wenbo can independently forge a First-Grade Body-Tempering Pill!

This also indirectly shows that Pan Wenbo already possesses the qualification to take the First-level Alchemist assessment!

If he truly passes the assessment, it would be a carp leaping over the dragon gate for Pan Wenbo!

Even if it's only the first level!

Let me ask!

In the Qian Kun Realm, who wouldn't want to befriend an Alchemist?

If it weren't for forcing cultivators into a dead end, there'd be no other way!

As long as there's any choice, no one would dare offend an Alchemist.

After all…

A single pill from an Alchemist can even change a cultivator's destiny!

Hearing the surrounding murmurs, Li Mu, curious because of the other's Alchemist status, glanced over.

He saw a young man in a moon‑white robe, unlike any of the Inner Peak disciples present.

Behind him trailed more than ten Inner Peak disciples, moving like a host of stars surrounding the moon.

Li Mu gave a brief glance, then withdrew his gaze.

Compared to the crowd's envious, worshipful, fanatical stares at him, Pan Wenbo was clearly unfazed.

After scanning the crowd at the auction hall, his gaze finally settled on Li Mu, and he led his group forward, speaking calmly.

"Just now, those two subordinates of mine were the ones you dismissed, right?"