As the warm glow of the Crimson Gold Lightning lit up Lei Qian's neck, he could clearly feel the lethal blade sharply on his throat. With his life hanging perilously by the sword's edge, cold beads of sweat gathered on his forehead. A fearful gulp went down his throat as the possibility of death hung
The ability Lin Qian had shown far exceeded his expectations.
That casual swoop from the jet black sword quickly tore through his ultimate move, his most confident Rushing Thunder Slice. Upon impact, his most potent technique shattered to dust without any resistance.
Not to mention, Lin Qian Infused Vitality Equipment, the jet black sword was sharp beyond belief. Just two swings and his Vitality Equipment was broken beyond repair.
Now, the concept of death was closer than ever as he stood at the mercy of Lin Qian.
This battle was a deathmatch. Taking the lives of their opponent was the aim of the fight. Hence, Lei Qian was in no position to complain or beg. In his heart, he only cursed and swore at his imbecile brother, Lei Kun. What sort of monster did that idiot provoke?
All the while, the Inner disciples only knew Lin Qian as what the rumours had spread. His dominating physique coupled with the dense and surging Soul Energy allowed Lin Qian to face Nirvana Stage Practitioners head-on. Till now, all of the Inner Disciples were skeptical of the rumours, thinking that they were blown up for the drama's sake.
Now, having had a taste of Lin Qian skills first hand, Lei Qian was convinced. He finally understood what it meant to have a dominating physique. It was to achieve the inconceivable, to crush the Thunder Shield with bare hands and brute force.
Dense Soul Energy? Dense was a far understatement for Lin Qian's Soul Energy. Lei Qian had never heard of a Practitioner awakening attributes in the Materialised Vitality Stage.
Being unable to achieve Vitality Equipment Infusion? What a load of fake news! Now, the damn sword that Lin Qian held, the sharp metal that could rob him of his life at any moment was that very Infused Vitality Equipment that Lin Qian was said to be unable to accomplish.
Regret and shame gnawed Lei Qian from inside out. On what basis did he believe that it would be a comfortable victory for him?
At the same time, defeat came crushingly slowly. Just by their cultivation levels, Lei Qian was at 9th Tier Peak Nirvana. Yet, he suffered a crushing defeat, held at knifepoint by a mere Materialised Vitality Stage Lin Qian.
Sighing heavily, Lei Qian closed his eyes, resigning to his fate. Now, his life could quickly be taken by an afterthought of the victor.
"Lin Qian!'' At that moment, Lei Heng had leapt to his feet. There was no way he could sit and watch his grandson be killed. He rushed to the front of the arbitration platform bellowing aloud. "Do not kill him!"
"Huh?" Lin Qian turned over, looking scornfully at Lei Heng, "Grandelder Lei, why should I not kill him? When the Sect Leader came to you previously, requesting to scrape this deathmatch, weren't you bent on carrying it out? Now, you wish for me to stop?"
As he spoke, his arms pressed slightly closer to Lei Qian's neck. Within instants, the Tempestuous Night Blade drew multiple droplets of blood from the latter's throat with ease.
"NO!" Lei Heng frantically waved his arms, his eyes widened and turned misty. He had lost his cool and all of his composure as the Sect's Grandelder. "Lin Qian, let Lei Qian go. This old man will agree to any of your terms. I'm begging you!"
Lei Heng could not afford to lose his grandsons, especially Lei Qian. While both Lei Qian and Lei Kun were loved dearly by him, their talent in cultivation was worlds apart.
While Lei Qian seemed to have suffered a crushing defeat, it did not mean that he was untalented.
On the contrary, he easily placed in the top ten disciples within the Inner Sect. Within Linhai Province, Lei Qian had even made a name for himself. He was definitely not weak in comparison to his peers in the same stage.
It was his bad fortune to have faced Lin Qian in battle. No one had expected a mere Materialised Vitality Stage Practitioner to possess a Godly level skill, entirely off the charts and immeasurable by conventional means.
Unbeknownst to them, Lin Qian was indeed unconventional and Godly. After all, he carried an entire planet-empire within his Dantian all the time.
"Oh! So you're begging me…." Lin Qian smirked and nodded as he looked at the resigned Lei Qian. Then, his eyes fixated onto Lei Heng, scoffing, "What if I ask you to go and die?"
Lei Heng's face froze as he struggled emotionally. Moments later, he nodded firmly at Lin Qian, "Alright, this old man promises you!"
"NO! GRANDFATHER, NO!" Hearing the voluntary sacrifice, Lei Qian's eyes flew wide open, screaming maniacally as his eyes reddened.
"Haha! Looks like you have pampered your grandchildren quite a lot. Precisely because of this, the renowned Universal Phenomenon Sect's Thunder King Lei Heng brought up scum like Lei Kun." Snorting, Lin Qian stared at Lei Qian disdainfully, "I don't need you to die, I just need you to promise me three things, Lei Qian, you should do one thing for me!"
The sudden merciful change shocked Lei Heng. His mouth gaped momentarily, finally nodding in agreement. "Fine, speak your terms!"
"First, deal with the arrogant and willful behaviour of your grandchildren. If I find him acting outrageously again, he will die!"
"Second, you will find a way to heal the injuries of the girl and take responsibility for her for the rest of her life!"
"Third, Lei Qian's name slot to enter the Ancient Ruins. I'm taking it!"
Hearing all of the demands, Lei Heng was perplexed. He had believed that Lin Qian would seize the opportunity, ripping him off greatly, asking for the treasures and large amounts of precious Soul Crystals. Who would have thought, he only wanted such simple requests. However, that name slot to enter the Ancient Ruins, that's a huge loss.
That position was a chance to attend a festival specially catered for the Nirvana Practitioners from the 8 Powerhouse Sects. After the training within the Ancient Ruins, there was no doubt that Lei Qian would be able to breakthrough. Of course, the chance to enter the Ruins was a small cost in comparison to his grandson's life.
"Alright, this old man agrees to all of it." Lei Heng nodded and looked at Qin Wushuang, "Just nice, the Sect Leader is here. Every trip to the Ancient Ruins is led by the Sect Leader himself."
"As for the condition you promised me," Lin Qian nodded and turned to Lei Qian, "You shall kneel down to you grandfather, all the way until the two hours for our death battle ends."
Stating his demands, Lin Qian stowed away the Tempestuous Night Blade, and his Soul Energy vanished from his body. Within moments, the Infused Vitality Equipment had separated into the Core and Pieces, disappearing into Heaven's Slit.
Lei Qian was stunned beyond words. Deep down, he had mentally prepped himself to be humiliated publicly, tossing his pride into the trash. Yet, all Lin Qian wanted was him to kneel before his grandfather?
"Universal Phenomenon Sect's Thunder King Lei Heng, while he may be a bigot and bossy, self-conceited due to his seniority, he is still a respectable man within the Sect. According to the Sect's records, he has accomplished much within his years. Yet, all you and your brother did was to take him as a backing. You shamed his name with your willful acts, constantly stirring unnecessary trouble for him ."
"For you, your successful grandfather had to drop his pride and status, and beg with a junior like me. Don't you think he deserves an apology from you?"
Having said his share, Lin Qian crossed his legs and sat in the arena. He looked into Lei Qian's eyes, sighing, "What a shame, you have the ability, yet to me, you are such a failure of a human."
Hearing the lecture, guilt pierced straight into his heart like a bolt of lightning. His knees buckled and fell to the ground, knees with a loud thud.
"Frankly, I never understood. Be it Inner, Outer or Named, aren't we all disciples of the same Universal Phenomenon Sect?"
"Everyone lives here together. We have the good fortune to meet, so why can't we be brothers and sisters to each other, supporting one another. What a shame that the ones with just a few more accomplishments use it to terrorise others."
"In all seriousness, where is the fun in bullying your own sect mates? Let us terrorise outsiders, like the Victorious Heaven Sect, the Tyrannical Blade Sect. That's more entertaining, isn't it?"
While Lin Qian was just muttering to himself, his every word was filled with Soul Energy, resounding clearing throughout the spectating seats.
"Right, why can't we all be like siblings, helping each other? Why are we even fighting amongst ourselves?"
These words resonated deeply within the Named and Outer Disciples. For when the class system that Lin Qian introduced first started, the trials had begun with them.
On the contrary, the Inner Sect had not adopted the new regulation.
The Inner Disciples that followed Lei Qian and those who came to inspect Lei Qian's ability were dumbstruck, frozen in their step. Within their dazed eyes, deep thoughts swirled.
At that point in that, the seed of camaraderie and brotherhood sprouted within the disciples.
"Reformation… What a god-like Power-up Skill." Looking at the reflective and dazed appearances, euphoria lept within Lin Qian's heart.