On the Spirit Beast Scroll, the portraits of the Golden Leopard and the white-throated needletail swift also vanished. In their place, the portrait of a Wind Fox appeared in the second slot.

The original seven Essence Souls had now become six: a bear, a Wind Fox, a silver-winged bat, a Fragrant Mink, an Ice Silkworm, and a Thunder Catfish.

Among the six Essence Souls, three were high-level attribute Essence Souls.

Zhao Lin nodded slightly. ’Perhaps I can consider absorbing the five elements for the remaining three slots,’ he thought, ’but for now, I’m more concerned with how to use this Wind Attribute True Qi.’

Four auras now resided in his Qi Sea: the formless, colorless Qi Strength; the silver Cold Ice True Qi; the golden Thunder Attribute True Qi; and the cyan Wind Attribute True Qi.

Zhao Lin tried to channel the Wind Attribute True Qi. He found that while it wasn’t as volatile as the Thunder Attribute True Qi, he couldn’t control it as effortlessly as his Cold Ice True Qi. It always felt slippery, as if it could escape his grasp.

’The Sea Return Skill is ultimately a Water Attribute cultivation technique,’ he mused. ’It’s already impressive that I can command it at all. Let’s see how effective it is.’

With that thought, Zhao Lin walked to a large tree, circulated his Qi Strength, and threw a Celestial Frost Fist.

HUMMM...

The Wind Attribute True Qi flowed into the meridians of his arm, rushing out of his acupoints along with the Cold Ice True Qi. It formed an axe-shaped Qi Slash outside his fist, over a foot long.

The trunk of the tree looked as if it had been struck by a blade, a clean cut appearing on its surface.

With a gentle push, the great tree crashed to the ground.

Zhao Lin was startled. He hadn’t expected such a drastic change in his Qi Strength.

The Qi Strength from his Celestial Frost Fist used to be pillar-shaped, but now it was axe-shaped. Its range had also increased significantly, even surpassing most at the Third Layer of the Blood Realm, giving him a huge advantage in combat and duels.

’Is this the effect of attribute stacking?’

Zhao Lin looked down at his fist, his heart surging with emotion.

After testing his fist’s power, he moved on to testing his body’s agility.

This time, it wasn’t so easy.

Agility and legwork were far more complex than fist techniques. Zhao Lin was still unskilled in using the Wind Attribute True Qi, and his several attempts left him fumbling and clumsy, achieving the opposite of what he intended. However, the force of the Qi Strength blasting from his acupoints was much stronger than before.

’I’ll have to figure this out slowly when I get back.’

The sun rose, and the sounds of birdsong filled the mountain forest. Zhao Lin felt hunger pangs and a deep exhaustion in both body and mind, so he decided to stop for the time being.

He followed his path back to Ancient Rock Mountain, first stopping at the snow drift to retrieve his remaining flatbreads before hurrying back to his residence.

He lit the stove fire, warmed the flatbreads on the edge of the pot, and devoured three large ones in a row before the gnawing hunger finally subsided.

Tuzha and his men came down from the ridge. Seeing smoke rising from the house’s chimney, they all revealed mocking expressions, and the same thought crossed their minds: ’Let’s let him die on a full stomach.’

The five were experienced killers. Without needing any command, they dispersed on their own, closing in from five different directions to surround him.

CRUNCH... CRUNCH...

The sound of footsteps on the snow reached the house, and Zhao Lin was instantly on alert.

’Someone’s here!’

In the winter, most villagers holed up at home and rarely went into the mountains. Even if they did, they’d travel in groups. But these footsteps were coming from all directions.

’Fellow disciples?’

’Even less likely!’

If they had business with him, they would send one or two people at most. They would never send five people at once, and they certainly wouldn’t be sneaking up on him. This was no joke.

The positioning of the five men was deliberate: one headed for the main door, two blocked the front and back windows, and one stood on each side of the house. They were clearly trying to surround him!

Zhao Lin’s mind raced. He had no time to ponder who these people were or what they wanted. His only thought was how to escape.

He hurried to the side of the bedroom. There was a hollow section in the wall—something a senior brother who had been stationed here before had told him about. He never thought he’d have to use it today.

’What do I do after I get out?’

’As long as I can get enough time to take flight, it won’t matter how many Blood Realm martial artists there are. They won’t be able to do anything to me.’

In just an instant, Zhao Lin had settled on a general strategy.

The footsteps grew faster, seemingly no longer concerned with hiding their approach. The quickest one had already reached the front door.

BANG!

The door was kicked off its hinges, and a long, fan-shaped arc of fire unfurled as a figure charged inside.

’Fiery Flame Saber!’

Zhao Lin’s heart trembled as the name of the cultivation technique surfaced in his mind.

Yang Lin had once told the disciples about the martial arts of nations outside the Great Yue. The Fiery Flame Saber of Weizi in the Western Regions looked exactly like this.

’These people are absolutely determined to kill me, even at the cost of revealing their own sect’s techniques.’

Zhao Lin kicked out with all his might. The wall collapsed with a CRASH, and he shot out like a bolt of lightning.

"Di Bu, watch out!"

Tuzha, who had just burst through the door, saw the bedroom wall collapse and shouted a warning.

As Zhao Lin burst out of the house, he came face-to-face with a man. Before the man could make a move, Zhao Lin viciously kicked at the snow beneath his feet, raising a cloud of powder. He then closed the distance and threw a Celestial Frost Fist.

The martial artist named Di Bu reacted extremely quickly. After only a moment’s stun, he threw a punch of his own.

Several streams of flame erupted from his fist, forming a spiraling Qi Strength at his knuckles that let out a fierce, air-rending whistle as ripples spread out like waves.

’Burning Wood Fist!’

Seeing this fist technique, Zhao Lin no longer had any doubt. These people were definitely martial artists from Weizi in the Western Regions.

BANG!

The two fists collided, ice and fire meeting.

Zhao Lin felt a scorching heat travel up his arm and into his body. His Cold Ice True Qi instantly dissipated, and his body froze in place for a moment.

Di Bu was also shocked. The flames on his Burning Wood Fist were extinguished in an instant, and a chilling cold spread throughout his body.

Not only that, but the force behind his opponent’s fist was comparable to that of a bear or tiger. Unable to withstand it, he stumbled back several steps.

As he punched, Zhao Lin had also released an ultrasonic wave, sensing the other four men rapidly closing in. He knew he had to get rid of this obstacle, or he would surely die once they entangled him!

He kicked out again, sending a flurry of snow into the air. Without pausing, he pressed forward and closed the distance.

Determined not to let Zhao Lin escape past him, Di Bu refused to give way.

However, his vision was obscured by the snow mist, and for a moment he couldn’t see Zhao Lin’s figure. He could only circulate his Qi Strength to protect his body and remain on high alert.

Zhao Lin had no such problem. His echolocation painted a crystal-clear picture of his opponent’s every move as he silently swiped a Three Yin Claw at the man’s chest.

In the freezing weather and with his vision obscured, Di Bu didn’t notice it at first. By the time he sensed the Qi Strength, it was already a little too late. He hurriedly crossed his arms to protect the vital point over his heart.

Zhao Lin took a step and lunged forward. His claw struck Di Bu’s arms, and his Qi Strength surged forth. With a RIP, Di Bu’s sleeve was shredded, and five bloody gashes appeared on his arm.

A sweet taste rose in Di Bu’s throat, and he nearly spat out a mouthful of blood. But he knew that if he could just hold on for another moment, they would have Zhao Lin. Refusing to retreat, he let out a tiger’s roar and struck out with both palms.

At that moment, Zhao Lin sensed two more people pouncing from behind, attacking from his left and right like two iron pincers.

The other two sprinted forward from the sides, dead set on trapping him.

’Better to break one finger than to injure all ten!’

Zhao Lin sneered inwardly. With a shift of his feet, Qi Strength blasted from his acupoints. He spun his body, evading the incoming palms, and landed a heavy punch right under Di Bu’s armpit.