Chapter 8:
At this moment, Qin He looked disheveled and exhausted, a complete mess.
Ever since he had followed Qin Chuan into the Guiyun Mountain Range a few days ago, he had suffered greatly. Not only had he failed to find any trace of Qin Chuan, but he also had to fight off numerous beasts. At one point, he even encountered a 3rd-rank, 5th-grade Profound Beast—the Cloudwing Eagle!
If he hadn’t run fast enough, he might have already become its meal. Qin He swore that once he found Qin Chuan, he would make him suffer a fate worse than death!
At that moment, their eyes met. Qin He finally saw Qin Chuan not far ahead!
“Qin Chuan, you little brat! I’ve finally found you! Time to send you to your grave!” Qin He’s eyes lit up as he burst into mad laughter.
He had already forgotten his fatigue. As long as he could kill Qin Chuan, everything would be worth it.
“Even though Qin Xuan’s arms were crippled by me, with some pills and proper treatment, he’ll recover soon enough,” Qin Chuan said with narrowed eyes and a calm smile. “Surely, the Fifth Elder isn’t risking everything to kill the Qin family’s young master just for that?”
Qin He was startled, then sneered. “Worthy of being the battle-hardened young master of the Qin family—so sharp!”
He paused, then laughed coldly. “Since you’re going to die anyway, I don’t mind telling you the truth. Might as well let you die with some clarity.”
“That’s right, a large part of this is because of the Great Elder. If I kill you, he’ll fully support Xuan’er in becoming the next young master. After that, the Qin family will be under our control!”
As he spoke, he laughed maniacally, as if already witnessing Qin Xuan seated as the Patriarch.
“How pitiful…” Qin Chuan shook his head with a mocking look. “Qin He, use that pig brain of yours for a second. Do you really think your pig of a grandson has what it takes to be the young master?”
“Even if he somehow sits in that seat, why would the Great Elder help him for free? Just because you killed me? What a joke. You’re being used and you don’t even know it.”
Qin He’s expression turned uncertain. Qin Chuan’s words, though harsh, made a bit too much sense.
After a moment’s silence, Qin He’s eyes flashed coldly. “Qin Chuan, you almost tricked me. Trying to sow discord just to survive? Too bad it won’t work. Go to hell!”
As soon as he finished, a surge of Profound Energy burst from Qin He’s body. He stomped forward and launched a punch directly at Qin Chuan.
Watching Qin He charge toward him, Qin Chuan simply shook his head. Calling him pig-brained might have been too generous.
He raised a fist and summoned his own Profound Energy to meet the attack.
“A mere ant at the 6th stage of the Profound Realm dares to fight a Profound Master head-on? Courting death!” Qin He’s eyes were full of disdain. A victorious smile had already appeared on his face, as if he could already see Qin Chuan’s corpse.
“AHHH!”
The next instant, their fists collided—and Qin He let out a miserable cry. His body was blasted away like a cannonball.
Before the scream even finished, Qin Chuan activated Shadowstep and caught up to him in an instant.
He struck fiercely at Qin He’s face mid-air.
Qin He had no time to dodge and could only raise his arms to block the attack.
Pfft!
Blood spurted from Qin He’s throat as he crashed through several trees and landed heavily on the ground.
“Profound... Profound Master Realm! You’ve already broken through to the Profound Master Realm?!” Qin He wiped the blood from his mouth and struggled to his feet, staring at Qin Chuan in disbelief.
Just a few days ago in the Qin family, Qin Chuan was clearly still at the 6th stage of the Profound Realm. How could he have advanced so quickly?
Suddenly, greed filled Qin He’s gaze. He stared at Qin Chuan as if he were a rare, naked beauty.
With a cold smile, he said, “You’re hiding something. That’s how you recovered your strength, right?”
“You’re not entirely stupid,” Qin Chuan said, shaking his hand with a smile.
“Haha! You may have just reached the Profound Master Realm, but don’t think you can beat me. I’ll tell you this—just now, I was only using half my strength!”
A murderous light flashed in Qin He’s eyes as he charged forward again.
At the same time, white light glowed at his fingertips—he fired streaks of Profound Energy like arrows at Qin Chuan’s vital spots.
“Profound Energy Finger!”
Qin Chuan’s expression tightened. This was a high-grade Yellow-rank martial technique that could condense Profound Energy into sharp arrows.
Not daring to be careless, he quickly activated Shadowstep to dodge the attacks.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Each explosion left a deep crater in the ground.
Watching Qin Chuan dart around like a slippery eel, Qin He narrowed his eyes. “Go ahead and dodge—I’ll see how long you can keep it up!”
“Who said I was only dodging?”
A calm voice suddenly echoed beside Qin He’s ear.
In the blink of an eye, Qin Chuan’s shadowy figure appeared near him.
“What?!”
Before Qin He could react, he saw a flaming palm strike growing larger in front of his face.
“Flame Palm!”
Qin Chuan roared and unleashed the martial skill.
At such close range, Qin He had no time to escape. He quickly crossed his arms to block the blow.
“AHHH!”
With a scream, his body arced through the air and slammed into the ground.
He now looked ghastly pale, his hair disheveled, and his chest heavily caved in. Blood soaked the ground beneath him—he was unrecognizable from before.
Cough, cough…
He hacked up several mouthfuls of blood and tried repeatedly to stand but failed.
“Spare me, young master! Spare me! I was fooled by Qin Kun! Please forgive me this once!”
Seeing Qin Chuan approach, Qin He quickly begged for mercy.
“Spare you?”
Standing beside him, Qin Chuan smiled coldly and mocked, “If I hadn’t had the strength to defeat you, I would’ve been dead under your hand already, wouldn’t I?”
Without another word, Qin Chuan threw a punch that crushed Qin He’s throat—blood spurted out instantly.
Qin He’s eyes widened in death, unable to believe that he’d lost his life in this mountain range… all because of a moment of greed.
“I may have just reached the Profound Master Realm, but I’ve fought countless battles for the Qin family. My experience far exceeds yours.”
Looking at the corpse at his feet, Qin Chuan spoke calmly.
Then, he crouched down and took a spatial ring from Qin He’s hand.
With Qin He dead, Qin Chuan’s Divine Sense easily accessed its contents.
“No wonder he’s the Fifth Elder. His wealth is definitely greater than his grandson’s.”
Qin Chuan smiled as he examined the ring’s contents.