"Spare us, Young Hero Merciless! Spare us!!!"
After watching with their own eyes as Sha Bi and his wife were slain, every last member of the Ma Family who had previously been prepared to fight Chu Feng to the death was thoroughly paralyzed with terror. Not a shred of their fighting resolve remained. In that moment, men, women, old and young alike, all dropped to their knees and kowtowed to Chu Feng in a desperate bid for mercy.
Because they had finally realized just how naïve their thinking had been. They had finally realized they had gravely underestimated the man standing before them. Even outside of that terrifying grand formation, Chu Feng possessed the power to annihilate them with ease. This man called Merciless had grown so strong that he far exceeded anything they could have imagined.
*Swish, swish.*
Chu Feng paid little mind to their reaction. Instead, he gave his sleeve two gentle waves, and a powerful surge of Heaven Force, along with a sharp gust of wind, swept through the crowd in a wide arc.
This scene terrified everyone. They thought Chu Feng was about to strike them down for real, but when the gust passed over them, they found themselves completely unharmed. Only then did they tentatively breathe a sigh of relief.
*Swish, swish.*
Immediately after, Chu Feng waved his sleeve twice in the opposite direction. The fierce gust of wind reversed course and blew back toward his sleeve — but by the time it returned, several Universe Bags had materialized in his palm.
These were, naturally, the Universe Bags he had stripped from the Ma Family members. After pocketing them, Chu Feng didn't so much as glance at the crowd. He simply said, "Get lost. Go back to wherever you came from."
"Thank you, Young Hero, for sparing our lives! Thank you, Young Hero, for sparing our lives!" The Ma Family members didn't dare hesitate. They scrambled to their feet and fled, tumbling over one another as they went.
"Young Hero Merciless, thank you for saving us! If it weren't for you, the Li Family would truly have been doomed this time!" When Chu Feng reached the entrance of the Ice Crystal Hall, every surviving member of the Li Family was beaming with gratitude as they offered their thanks.
However, Chu Feng was utterly dismissive of these opportunists' fawning. With a casual wave of his sleeve, a gust of wind swept out and, just as he had done to the Ma Family moments earlier, collected every Universe Bag from every Li Family member present into his hands.
"Young Hero Merciless, you…"
Chu Feng's actions left the Li Family members dumbfounded. Especially the experts they had hired from outside — their mouths twitched uncontrollably, and their hearts ached with distress.
They weren't Li Family members. They had no obligation to live or die alongside the Li Family. They had only come to serve the Li Family for money. But the Universe Bags Chu Feng had just taken weren't filled with only the payment the Li Family had provided — they also contained personal savings these individuals had accumulated over many years. This time, they had truly suffered a devastating loss.
As for the Li Family members' stunned reactions, Chu Feng merely let out a cold laugh. "Don't assume that saving you was my obligation. Just moments ago, your Li Family head tried to kill me. If I hadn't dodged quickly enough, I would already be dead beneath his palm."
"So let me make the situation perfectly clear. I, Merciless, am no longer your ally. I am your enemy — no different from the Ma Family." As Chu Feng spoke these words, his icy gaze swept across the crowd.
"Young Hero, spare us! Spare us! Take all the money — just please don't kill us!"
Every Li Family member trembled involuntarily, then quickly dropped to their knees and began begging for mercy, just as the Ma Family had moments before. Because in that instant, they had sensed killing intent in Chu Feng's gaze.
They had absolutely no doubt that if they showed even the slightest defiance, Chu Feng would truly kill them. That gaze was terrifying — it was as though Chu Feng were not a human being at all, but a cold-blooded demon.
After that, Chu Feng walked directly up to the Li Family head. The Li Family head seemed to have already anticipated this, and he appeared rather composed as he said to Chu Feng:
"Merciless, I was foolish. I couldn't tell right from wrong, and that's why I trusted that animal Ma Yukun. I betrayed your goodwill and even tried to kill you. Go ahead and kill me. Even death would put my mind at ease."
"Merciless, no — don't kill my father! Please, give him a chance!" At that moment, Li Chan rushed over without a second word, positioning herself in front of her father. She dropped to her knees before Chu Feng and pleaded on his behalf.
"Miss Li, please, get up." Chu Feng personally helped Li Chan to her feet, then turned to the Li Family head and said, "By all rights, I should kill you. Attempting to put a hit on me constitutes a capital offense."
"But I won't kill you today. Not because I find you pitiful, but because you have a good daughter."
After saying this, Chu Feng turned his gaze back to Li Chan. "Miss Li, the treasure discovered here is useful to me, and I intend to take it."
"However, this place has been guarded by the Li Family for many years. Consider this something I am borrowing from you. I will repay you with something of equal value in the future." With those words, Chu Feng launched himself into the air, stepping upon the Azure Dragon, and departed without looking back.
After Chu Feng left, the Li Family members felt an immense weight lift from their shoulders. They rushed into the Ice Crystal Hall to tend to the Li Family head's injuries. Only Li Chan remained, gazing in the direction Chu Feng had disappeared, unable to tear herself away for a long while.
Chu Feng departed the Spirit Cave but had not left Wolftooth Mountain. Holding the ice crystal egg, he could genuinely feel how powerful this object was.
Its cultivation was comparable to a first-rank Martial Lord, yet the energy contained within it was far beyond what a first-rank Martial Lord's martial power could match. It was a true creature of heaven and earth — a supreme treasure for cultivation.
Chu Feng was eager to refine it. He found a secluded spot and immediately set out on his journey of refining the ice crystal egg.
Although the ice crystal egg was a creature of heaven and earth that had been accumulating power for over five hundred years, it no longer posed any threat whatsoever. Furthermore, after becoming a purple-robed Spirit World Master, Chu Feng had become far more adept at using the Devouring Technique. In a mere two hours, he had completely refined the creature.
After refining the ice crystal egg, the Heaven Force throughout Chu Feng's entire body had undergone a transformation, successfully propelling him into the sixth level. If he were to employ his Triple Thunder, Chu Feng would effectively be at the ninth level of Heaven Martial — merely one step away from the Martial Lord realm.
And it had been less than a year since Zi Ling was taken away. In under a year, Chu Feng's cultivation had leaped from Xuan Martial level eight to Heaven Martial level six. His rate of progress was truly staggering, enough to leave anyone in shock.
"Ah, as expected — the cultivation resources I need to break through now are terrifyingly vast. Even a creature of heaven and earth that accumulated over five hundred years only allowed me to advance a single level. If I were to refine Heavenly Pearls, how many would I even need to break through?"
Despite his successful breakthrough, Chu Feng felt rather downcast. After relying on three extraordinary treasures — the Barrier Essence, the Magma Child, and the ice crystal egg — to break through, he had come to realize that the cultivation resources he required had grown horrifyingly demanding.
If he couldn't use these extraordinary treasures and had to rely on something as commonplace as Heavenly Pearls, he didn't even know how many he would need.
"Breaking through to Heaven Martial level six is already pretty good, kid — you should be satisfied!" But just then, Eggy chimed in with a cheerful laugh.