I'm quitting!

Chapter 28 You beast! I could tell you weren't human at first glance.

"What?!"

Dan Xuanzi's expression changed drastically. He loosened his grip, and the cup fell to the ground, shattering into pieces. Amber-colored milk tea splashed everywhere, soaking his robe, but he was completely unaware.

"The dungeon is heavily guarded, how could it be...?"

Before the words were even finished, the person had already shot towards the door like an arrow released from a bow.

Lin Xiaofan remained calm and composed, gently setting down his cup and glancing over the head of the messenger disciple—who had beads of sweat on his forehead and whose eyes darted around nervously.

Most importantly... there's a problem with this person's settings.

"Elder Dan, please wait."

Lin Xiaofan moved sideways, blocking Dan Xuanzi's path: "I'll go check on the dungeon... You stay here and reinforce the mountain-protecting formation in case of a trap."

Dan Xuanzi was taken aback and instinctively tried to decline, saying, "Senior, how could I trouble you with such a trivial matter..."

He was halfway through his sentence when Lin Xiaofan winked at him meaningfully.

Dan Xuanzi's heart skipped a beat, and he instantly understood. He immediately changed his words: "Yes! This junior will go and reinforce the formation to prevent any troublemakers!"

The disciple's expression changed slightly, and he hurriedly stepped forward: "Elder! This matter is of utmost importance; you must attend to it personally—"

Before he could finish speaking, Lin Xiaofan leaned closer, looking down at him, his voice suddenly deep:

"What? Am I, Elder Lin, not worthy to travel with you?"

Dan Xuanzi also shouted sternly at the opportune moment, "Elder Lin's personal intervention is your good fortune! Lead the way now!"

Cold sweat trickled down the disciple's temples. His lips moved a few times, but he finally lowered his head and said, "Yes...yes, I misspoke."

Along the way, Lin Xiaofan deliberately slowed down, looking around like a wandering Taoist priest.

"By the way, what's your name? You've done a great service by delivering this message; I'll remember it and reward you later."

"Disciple... Zhao Si."

"Zhao Si? Nice name." Lin Xiaofan raised an eyebrow, his tone playful. "I also know a Zhao Si, but he has the courage of a dragon, while you... have the courage of a rat."

Zhao Si paused slightly.

Lin Xiaofan chuckled and replied, "His strength lies in his smoothness and quick wit."

"I am deeply grateful for the elder's appreciation."

"Oh, don't be so polite. Just give me a hundred or two hundred thousand spirit stones as a token of your respect in the future."

Lin Xiaofan waved his hand casually, and Zhao Si didn't reply, but just clenched his fist silently.

As the sun set, the mountain path still shone with the lingering heat of the day, and the sand and gravel beneath our feet felt scalding hot.

Sweat rolled down Zhao Si's forehead, his clothes were already soaked, and his breathing gradually became heavy.

Lin Xiaofan suddenly stopped and lightly tapped his shoulder with her fingertips: "It must be unbearably hot in this weather, right?"

Zhao Si was taken aback, then nodded subconsciously: "Yes...it is a bit stuffy."

"Oh?"

Lin Xiaofan's eyes were filled with mockery, and his body temperature suddenly dropped—a cold mist spread, instantly crushing the heat in the air, and even the sand and gravel under his feet condensed into a layer of frost.

"Luckily I'm not hot~"

Before he could finish speaking, the chill stopped abruptly three inches from Zhao Si's nose.

Ice and fire are only three inches apart.

Zhao Si froze, his Adam's apple bobbing: "Elder... this..."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Lin Xiaofan smiled, but there was no trace of apology in her expression. "I released too much cold air; did it prevent you from absorbing heat?"

Having said that, he calmed down a bit, and the gentle coolness completely left Zhao Si.

As they approached the dungeon, the road became increasingly winding.

Lin Xiaofan would sometimes stop to admire the flowers, and sometimes walk quickly.

As Zhao Si walked ahead, he felt the chill behind him coming and going – just as he was about to immerse himself in that moment of coolness, the chill would instantly recede, leaving only scalding air and even denser beads of sweat on his forehead.

Like a cat playing with a mouse, it's a torturous experience that doesn't bring any satisfaction.

"We're almost there."

Lin Xiaofan suddenly chuckled, all the chill around him receding, and his tone abruptly changed, no longer tinged with a hint of jest:

"Zhao Xiao... how does it feel?"

Zhao Si suddenly turned around.

Where was the last trace of submissiveness on that face? Its features were twisted and contorted in a ferocious grimace, and deep within its pupils, data chains emerged, shrieking as they pierced straight for Lin Xiaofan's throat!

A flash of cold light.

Lin Xiaofan had already retreated several feet away. The chain grazed his chin, severing a few strands of his hair.

Zhao Xiao… or rather, Zhao Xiao, who had completely shed his disguise at this moment, had his data flow surge, his robes shattered inch by inch, revealing a body covered with strange patterns, like an activated puppet.

"How did you recognize me?!"

Lin Xiaofan slowly dusted off his sleeves: "Didn't the Script Management Bureau tell you?"

He deliberately dragged out the last syllable: "Looks like you're nothing more than a pawn to those guys."

Zhao Xiao's pupils constricted sharply, and the data chains trembled violently: "Shut up! I'm not some useless piece of trash! I know everything about you!"

Oh? If that's the truth, then the Script Management Bureau's understanding of me is nothing more than that.

"Actually..." Lin Xiaofan spread his hands, "I didn't know you were Zhao Xiao, so I tried to trick you. I didn't expect you to cooperate so readily and admit it yourself."

The air seemed to freeze for a moment.

"You son of a bitch—!!!"

Zhao Xiao was completely enraged. His eyes turned bloodshot, and he suddenly waved his hands, sending dozens of data chains crashing down with a sharp whooshing sound!

Lin Xiaofan simply dodged.

A thin barrier of frost formed around him, and the chains lashed against it, sending ice shards flying, but they could not break through the frost wall. He did not fight back, nor did he retaliate, and he did not even flinch.

Seeing this, Zhao Xiao was extremely pleased with himself, laughing wildly as he manipulated the chains to strangle them like a giant python:

"Useless! Useless! Useless! Hahaha—the weak deserve to be trampled on!"

A cold glint flashed in Lin Xiaofan's eyes, but he still did not make a move.

Zhao Xiao grew even more arrogant: "Stop pretending to be so high and mighty! Once I capture you alive, I'll make everyone my playthings! I'll make them watch you kneel and beg for mercy!"

He suddenly accelerated, and the chains, like a net covering all directions, blocked all escape routes.

This is the moment.

The killing intent in Lin Xiaofan's eyes suddenly surged—

The chill that had been pressing down on Zhao Xiao's shoulder surged forth like a burst dam, instantly freezing all the chains. The ice spread along the chains, and a series of cracking sounds echoed, like the shattering of bones.

Zhao Xiao's smile froze on his face.

"Varied…?!"

His face was ashen, and his voice trembled: "The Script Management Bureau gave me Nascent Soul cultivation... How could you—"

"Nascent Soul?" Lin Xiaofan sneered contemptuously. "You don't really think those guys would let a beast who knows too many 'secrets' live, do you?"

His expression was fierce:

"In their eyes, you're nothing more than a dog used to test me."

"nonsense!"

Zhao Xiao trembled violently, fear flashing in his eyes: "They promised me...they promised me! As long as they caught you, they would make the whole world kneel at their feet!"

He roared hysterically, but it was all bark and no bite.

click -

The ice layer broke apart.

Zhao Xiao's body began to digitize, with dense red code appearing on his skin. The frozen, shattered chains, like living things, turned on him, drilling into his seven orifices and greedily devouring his soul.

"No--!"

Zhao Xiao struggled frantically, his eyes bloodshot and filled with rage.

Lin Xiaofan's eyes remained cold and unmoved. He slowly raised his hand and took out an air bass.

Fingertips landed on a non-existent string, and plucked it hard—

The mournful melody of the Great Compassion Mantra suddenly exploded.

The musical notes transformed into invisible blades, piercing Zhao Xiao's data body. His pupils dilated abruptly, and the scene before him began to distort and tear apart.

"Senior Brother Zhao... save me..."

Wang Wu's figure emerged from the void.

Half of his body had been devoured by wild dogs, his intestines were dragging on the ground, and his face still showed the fear he had before dying.

He stretched out his hand, now just bones, his voice hoarse:

"You said... if I helped you find something to use against Lin Xiaofan... you'd let me become an inner disciple... why did you... push me into this abyss..."

"Get out of my way, you ants!"

Zhao Xiao frantically waved his arms, but passed through Wang Wu's illusion and couldn't grab anything.

More figures appeared one after another—

The vendor who was burned alive by him writhed in the flames, screaming in agony; the disciple who was expelled from his sect because of a single word he uttered knelt in the rain, kowtowing and confessing his sins; the female cultivator who refused to submit and was subjected to the excruciating torture of being slowly sliced ​​to death had crisscrossing wounds, her flesh a bloody mess...

They all died tragically, silently demanding his life.

"Get out of here, all of you!!!"

Zhao Xiao's roar had changed tone: "The weak deserve to die! I, Zhao Xiao, am destined to stand at the top of the world! You trash... are only fit to be my stepping stones!"

Lin Xiaofan remained expressionless, his fingertips moving incessantly.

The music grew increasingly mournful, like the wailing of ten thousand ghosts.

Zhao Xiao's data body trembled violently, and line after line of code crumbled. His last wisp of soul was crushed into dust amidst the wails of countless dead, and his voice grew weaker and weaker:

"I...I was born noble...you...all should...be slaves..."

The sound stopped abruptly.

Zhao Xiao has completely disappeared.

Only a wisp of data carrying some of Lin Xiaofan's parameters remained in place, like a shooting star streaking across the sky, before being instantly reclaimed by some unknown entity.

Lin Xiaofan removed the air bass guitar, stared in the direction where the data stream disappeared, a flash of dark blue in his eyes before returning to calm.

Once there were no further disturbances around him, he waved his hand to recall the Star Shadow Army he had deployed along the way, and had them protect him.

At the dungeon entrance, stone steps wound downwards, disappearing into a thick darkness. Torches flickered on the stone walls, casting blurry, illusory images, like countless ghosts lurking in the shadows.

Lin Xiaofan descended the stone steps.

He was only halfway there when a strong smell of rust hit him. He paused, his brow furrowing.

It smells of blood.

The moment the soles of my boots touched the bottommost stone slab, a sticky sensation spread under my feet.

The torchlight illuminated everything before my eyes—

Blood was everywhere, flowing slowly.

The bodies of the guards lay scattered about.

Some were chained through the chest and nailed to the wall; others had their limbs twisted into bizarre angles, like marionettes carelessly discarded; and one had been burned to a crisp, its original form indistinguishable.

Broken talismans and shattered magical artifacts floated in the blood, silently telling the story of the tragedy that had occurred here.

Lin Xiaofan stood silently.

The fingertips tightened slightly inside the sleeve, then slowly loosened.

He raised his hand to signal, and the Star Shadow Army stepped forward to collect the remains of their fellow disciples one by one.

Inside the alchemy room.

After listening to the story, Dan Xuanzi slammed his fist on the wooden table, making the teacup jump.

"Zhao Xiao...that beast!"

His voice choked and trembled: "These children...they should have had bright futures...My senior brother and I were deceived by Zhao Yi to this extent, we have failed our ancestors' teachings!"

After a long while, he took a deep breath and bowed deeply to Lin Xiaofan:

"If it weren't for your keen insight, senior, the entire Qingyun Sect would have fallen into your conspiracy. I will never forget this kindness."

Lin Xiaofan waved his hand, picked up a can of warm milk tea from the table, and turned to leave.

Twilight Quadruple.

He carried the milk tea along the bamboo path toward the woodshed behind the mountain when he suddenly saw thick, pungent black smoke rising into the sky.

My heart suddenly tightened.

In the next instant, the figure had already rushed towards the billowing black smoke.