Realizing the shift in the man's tone, Zhao Qi immediately stepped back, while Yang Lingrui stood up in high alert.

"What does Senior mean by this?"

"That Yang-Returning Grass of yours-it catches my eye. Hand it over to me, and we shall part ways right here. How does that sound?"

As Zheng Huaming spoke, his aura surged outward, the threat in his words unmistakable.

"I see. I had been wondering why a Senior of such profound cultivation would choose to travel alongside the two of us. Now it all makes sense."

Yang Lingrui sneered. "Senior certainly has great patience, waiting until we were well out of Fengling to finally tear off your mask."

Zheng Huaming shrugged indifferently. In his eyes, both Yang Lingrui and Zhao Qi were nothing more than soft clay he could knead at will.

He had only waited until now to prevent anyone from the Li family from noticing his intentions.

"I advise the two of you to be sensible, lest you fail to protect your Fated Chance and end up leaving your lives here as well."

"Sensible?"

Yang Lingrui showed a disdainful expression. "Since it has already come to this, Senior has no need to put on such a hypocritical act. I imagine you never intended to let us leave alive from the moment we set out!"

At those words, Zheng Huaming's face slowly darkened.

Since Yang Lingrui had seen right through his thoughts, he abandoned all pretense.

"Fine, then go to your deaths!"

Zheng Huaming threw a heavy punch, smashing directly toward Yang Lingrui.

In his mind, a single punch would be enough to guarantee Yang Lingrui's death.

Bang!

But in the very next moment, his fist was abruptly halted by a wall of astral wind swirling around the young man.

Zheng Huaming's expression instantly warped in shock.

"How is this possible! How could he block my attack!"

"Wait, this aura... this brat isn't at the third level, he's at the fourth!"

The moment the two clashed, Zhao Qi had already darted into the woods, running frantically for his life.

He kept Elder Yu's instructions firmly in mind-since he could offer no help in a fight, his first priority when encountering danger was to flee.

"Curse it all!"

Zheng Huaming tried to rush over and intercept him, only to find his path blocked by two fierce streams of astral wind.

"Senior, do not be so hasty. Why not stay and talk with me a little longer!"

Since all pretenses were gone, Yang Lingrui had no intention of holding back. Every strike was ruthlessly aimed at Zheng Huaming's vital points.

After shattering several blasts of astral wind in succession, Zheng Huaming's arms were already throbbing with pain.

Yang Lingrui's strength made him realize the situation was taking a bad turn, so he immediately pulled that small bell from his robes.

He had thoroughly studied this item; when activated, it bypassed flesh and bone to strike directly at the mind.

For Qi Gathering cultivators who lacked True Essence to protect their bodies, it was incredibly difficult to guard against.

Catching sight of the object, Yang Lingrui frowned and controlled a wind blade to knock it from the man's grasp.

Unfortunately, Zheng Huaming was a step faster.

Ding-a-ling—

The bell rang out, sending an invisible wave of sound directly through Yang Lingrui's body and straight into his Sea of Consciousness.

A violent, piercing pain instantly wracked Yang Lingrui's mind, causing his facial muscles to twitch.

For a brief moment, the flow of his spiritual power grew chaotic, and he nearly lost control of his protective astral wind.

Seeing his opponent fall for the attack, Zheng Huaming burst into arrogant laughter.

"Hahaha! Yang Lingrui, I must admit your aptitude is extraordinary! But what a pity, today I am the one who holds the upper hand!"

With that said, he surged forward to launch a counterattack.

Yet as he closed the distance, he was stunned to see that Yang Lingrui's expression had already returned to normal.

The three wind blades that had just begun to sluggishly drift instantly swept away their previous weakness and fiercely slashed toward him.

Zheng Huaming was completely dumbfounded, scrambling in a panic to fend off Yang Lingrui's assault.

No matter how hard he thought, he simply could not understand how Yang Lingrui had deflected the bell's mental attack.

"This is a mid-stage Qi Gathering Spiritual Treasure! Even a sixth-level cultivator couldn't shake off its effects so quickly! Does he have some sort of protective treasure as well?!"

Zheng Huaming's guess was not entirely wrong. Although Yang Lingrui had no protective treasure, his Sea of Consciousness was guarded by a strand of consciousness left behind by Chen Yang.

And that strand of consciousness possessed the strength of late-stage Qi Gathering.

In truth, Yang Lingrui himself was entirely baffled.

He had merely felt a strange power diffuse through his Sea of Consciousness, driving out the bell's sound waves, and he instantly returned to normal.

"Hah!"

The two clashed once more, battling back and forth for nearly half an hour.

Under the relentless bombardment of Yang Lingrui's wind blades, Zheng Huaming finally failed to maintain his defense and took a solid hit.

His body staggered, his eyes wide with utter disbelief.

He had cultivated at the fourth level for years-how could he possibly be losing to a mere junior?

What was more, even after fighting for so long, Yang Lingrui's offensive momentum showed absolutely no signs of slowing down.

"Is his spiritual power truly boundless?"

Zheng Huaming could not figure it out, nor did he have time to ponder the matter, for the lethal strike his opponent had been brewing was finally unleashed.

From the moment their fight began, Yang Lingrui had been quietly condensing a spiraling cone of wind, waiting patiently for an opening.

And now, as Zheng Huaming's stamina wavered, that flaw had presented itself.

"Break!"

The wind cone howled through the air, shooting straight toward Zheng Huaming's head.

He threw up both hands in a desperate bid to block it, but the wind cone's sheer power instantly drilled bloody holes straight through his palms.

Slash!

The wind cone swept past, tearing away half the skin on Zheng Huaming's face.

"Pfft... ah..."

Zheng Huaming coughed up a mouthful of blood and slumped lifelessly to the ground.

"Wait, I beg-"

Thwack!

Yang Lingrui was always decisive when taking a life. Giving Zheng Huaming absolutely no chance to finish speaking, he stepped forward and severed the man's head.

He then swiftly searched the corpse and retrieved Zheng Huaming's Storage Bag.

Next, he carved Zheng Huaming's body into several pieces and scattered the remains throughout different parts of the forest. By the time the night passed, the wild beasts would undoubtedly leave nothing behind.

At the break of dawn, he located Zhao Qi, who had been hiding in an abandoned bear cave.

The two wasted no further time, traveling day and night to return home.

Five days later, as Chen Yang sat in breathing meditation, he sensed the distant auras of Yang Lingrui and Zhao Qi.

He realized that the protective consciousness he had left in Yang Lingrui's Sea of Consciousness had been triggered, a clear sign that they had encountered trouble on their journey.

Seeing the two youths return safely, Elder Yu and Yang Lingqing both breathed sighs of relief.

After resting for a short while, the pair recounted everything that had happened during their travels down to the finest detail.

Yang Lingrui did most of the speaking, while Zhao Qi provided supplementary details from the side.

When the tale reached the part concerning Li Cheng's younger sister, both Elder Yu and Yang Lingqing could not help but chuckle.

Upon hearing that the two had miraculously gathered a complete Talisman inheritance, they immediately clapped their hands in sheer delight.

Later, when they were told how Zheng Huaming, driven mad by greed, had tried Killing to seize treasures, a wave of tension and worry washed over them.

"The two of you have endured much hardship on this trip. Zhao Qi, your contribution in locating the complete Talisman inheritance cannot be overlooked. This inheritance is fundamentally crucial to the Yang family's future development."

Finishing her words, Yang Lingqing handed the mid-stage Qi Gathering bell, along with Zheng Huaming's Storage Bag, directly to him.

"Elder Yu has already erased the original marks upon these two items. From now on, they belong to you."

Zhao Qi knew full well the immense value of that bell and hurriedly rose to his feet. "Senior Sister Lingqing, such a weighty reward... I am truly unworthy of it."

Yang Lingqing waved her hand dismissively, firmly pressing both items into his grasp.

"The Yang family has always been absolute in its distributions of rewards and punishments. This was the rule when the Ancestor was alive, and it remains the rule today."

Elder Yu also offered a warm, encouraging smile. "Zhao Qi, simply accept it with peace of mind."

Seeing this, Zhao Qi pushed back no further. He tucked the two items away, voiced his solemn gratitude, and retired to his quarters.

Neither the bell nor the Storage Bag was physically heavy, yet resting in his palms, they carried a profound weight.

To him, this was far more than a mere reward. It was a gesture of deep trust, and more importantly, it was an acknowledgment of his true worth.

His heart swelled with profound emotion.