Chapter 120: Gao Benli

After entering the small house at the deepest part of the courtyard, Lin Qian approached the bed covered with two layers of bedding. With a swift motion, he lifted the bedding and leaped onto the bed.

The moment Lin Qian's feet touched the bedboard, the formation's energy rippled, and what seemed like a solid surface suddenly liquefied, transforming into a watery substance.

As Lin Qian's body sank into the watery bedboard, stone walls appeared around him, and he began to slide down a vertical tunnel.

It was unclear how long he descended, but eventually, a force from below slowed his rapid descent, creating a buffer that gently brought him to a stop.

Once the opposing force dissipated, Lin Qian extended his feet and landed softly on solid ground.

What greeted Lin Qian's eyes was a hidden cave, spacious yet simply adorned. At the center of the cave sat his master, Wei Wushuang, still in deep meditation with his eyes closed, seemingly lost in cultivation.

But what caught Lin Qian's attention was the figure of a young man standing beside his master, scrutinizing the meditating Wei Wushuang.

"Hmph, I didn't expect to see you here, Gao Benli!" Lin Qian sneered as he glared at the young man.

Gao Benli, who had somehow mysteriously appeared in the cave, slowly turned around to face Lin Qian. With a smirk of disdain, he said, "Well, if it isn't the famous Young Emperor, Lin Qian, of Wanxiang Sect. I'm curious to see if you're as formidable as the rumors say!"

As his words fell, Gao Benli, exuding an air of arrogance, unleashed his soul force, revealing the power of the Void Breaking Realm. His soul aura surged, layer by layer, reaching a total of nine layers.

Clearly, Gao Benli had been a prodigy who achieved nine-wheel nirvana before breaking into the Void Breaking Realm.

With his soul force gathered, Gao Benli's figure flashed, and he charged directly at Lin Qian. Flames of scorching soul energy enveloped his right fist as he hurtled toward Lin Qian like a fiery god of war, ready to incinerate everything in his path.

Despite Gao Benli's imposing display, Lin Qian's lips curled into a smirk. The crimson-gold lightning of his soul force erupted from within, crackling through the cave with a deafening roar.

Lin Qian unleashed the full extent of his power, and twelve layers of soul aura gleamed brightly around him.

"Twelve-wheel nirvana?" Gao Benli's confident charge faltered momentarily at the sight of Lin Qian's astonishing aura. But being a seasoned Void Breaking Realm expert and a genius who had ventured beyond Linhai Prefecture, Gao Benli quickly regained his composure.

The flaming fist and the thundering lightning fist clashed violently in the center of the cave.

As fire and lightning intertwined, the soul energy exploded with terrifying force, twisting and distorting the cave's atmosphere.

Boom!

A resounding impact echoed through the cave as the two combatants were thrown backward.

Lin Qian retreated three steps before stomping his foot down, stabilizing himself and halting his backward momentum.

In contrast, Gao Benli staggered back over ten steps before managing to steady himself.

Once he regained his balance, Gao Benli's eyes were filled with shock and disbelief. He had never expected Lin Qian, a mere Nirvana Realm cultivator at the sixth level, to possess such immense power.

But what shook him even more wasn't just the exchange of blows—it was the sight of Lin Qian's twelve-layer soul aura. The number of soul layers directly reflected a cultivator's foundational strength.

"It seems I've underestimated you, Young Emperor Lin Qian!" Gao Benli admitted, taking a deep breath. With a wave of his hand, nine pieces of floating equipment appeared before him, centered around a long rod-like core.

"Equipment Armament!"

With a shout, Gao Benli grasped the fiery red staff that materialized in his hand, its searing heat radiating in waves that Lin Qian could feel from a distance.

Lin Qian took a deep breath as well and summoned the specialized equipment crafted by the Engineering Department.

"Equipment Armament!"

As Lin Qian's crimson-gold lightning soul energy flowed over the equipment pieces, they melted into liquid metal, forming a solid bond with the core. At the same time, the phantom image of the Thunder Night Sword from his dantian projected itself onto the equipment.

In an instant, the dark blade of the Thunder Night Sword, etched with crimson-gold patterns, was firmly in Lin Qian's grip.

With the sword in hand, Lin Qian launched himself at Gao Benli, showing no mercy as he slashed at his opponent's face.

The surging lightning on the sword crackled violently, hurtling toward Gao Benli at incredible speed.

Startled by Lin Qian's rapid strike, Gao Benli hastily raised his staff to block the incoming blow.

Clang!

The black Thunder Night Sword collided heavily with the fiery red staff, sparks flying and lightning crackling.

Although Gao Benli managed to block the attack, his expression changed as he felt the terrifying force transmitted through his weapon, causing his arms to tremble slightly.

"What immense strength! Your physical body is just as terrifying as before!" Gao Benli exclaimed bitterly, his arms trembling as he struggled to hold his ground.

Lin Qian grinned and swung his sword again. "This is just the appetizer!"

With that, Lin Qian unleashed a relentless barrage of sword strikes, each one more ferocious than the last.

Faced with Lin Qian's relentless assault, Gao Benli found himself forced into a defensive stance, though he still sought opportunities to counterattack.

However, Gao Benli soon realized that every time he attempted to exploit a perceived opening in Lin Qian's defense, it was actually a trap designed to lure him into a more vulnerable position.

As the battle dragged on, Gao Benli gradually fell into a disadvantageous position. Cracks began to appear on his fiery red staff.

Crack!

With a sharp sound, Gao Benli's staff shattered into pieces, disintegrating into fragments of molten metal.

At that moment, Lin Qian's Thunder Night Sword sliced through Gao Benli's soul force, its blade descending toward his face.

Just as the sword's edge was about to graze Gao Benli's cheek, Lin Qian stopped it cold.

"What a disgrace!" Gao Benli groaned as he slapped the Thunder Night Sword away and turned to his master, Wei Wushuang, who had silently opened his eyes at some point during the fight. With a pitiful expression, Gao Benli whined, "Master, Junior Brother is bullying me! Please, stop him!"