Upon hearing the voice, the peerlessly talented young man, Lin Mo, turned his head slightly, accompanied by Yingzi.
"Oh, what are you doing here?" Lin Mo said with a faint smile, naturally remembering this female journalist, Qingzhu, whom he had met in New Russia.
"Is it really you?" Qingzhu, overwhelmed with joy and tears, hadn't expected to encounter Lin Mo here after more than half a month.
"Qingzhu, you know him?" Yuan Yuan curiously asked.
"He's the person in my photos!" Qingzhu trembled as she spoke, her beautiful eyes shimmering with bright colors.
Upon hearing her words, Yuan Yuan covered her mouth in surprise and exclaimed, "What, really?"
Hong Shengbao, however, frowned and said coldly, "Hey, you two better leave this place quickly. There are big shots above, and if you disturb them, there won't be a place for you in Jiangzhou."
Hong Shengbao was somewhat jealous that Lin Mo was at least ten times handsomer than him, and the girls by his side seemed like fairies, incomparable to the vulgar women around him—and the way that woman revered Lin Mo only fueled his envy.
"They are all waiting for me," Lin Mo said, his hands behind his back, lifting his head as his starry eyes emitted a dazzling light.
"Ha ha, what joke are you making? You think you are someone important? The Qu Family of Jiangzhou and the top experts on the mountain are waiting for you? That's not how you boast," Hong Shengbao laughed boisterously upon hearing this, as if he had heard the funniest joke ever.
On the riverbank, a green bamboo raft floated on the clear water. Lin Mo stepped onto the raft, and Yingzi, holding a thin bamboo pole, stirred the water, moving along with the current of Li River towards the center.
"Hey, kid, come back quickly. Don't you want to live?" Hong Shengbao shouted gravely, fearing that if those magnates discovered them sneaking in, it could bring disaster to their family.
"Be careful, Mr. Lin..." Qingzhu bit her thin lips, hesitated for a moment, and then kindly reminded him.
Lin Mo stood on the bamboo raft with his hands behind his back, gliding over the clear river water, flanked by verdant mountains like green barriers. Yingzi, with her fair arms superior to snow, used the bamboo as a paddle, creating ripples and waves.
It was a splendid scene, much like a boat ride down the river with a person walking through a painting.
When the people of North and South Peaks saw Lin Mo's arrival, Qu Huaxu's face grew stern, and he coldly said, "I didn't expect you, Mr. Lin from Shu Province, would actually dare to come."
Qu Zhengye, Qu Huaxu's younger brother, snorted coldly, "This time, let him have a journey of no return, let him be slain right here in the waters of Li River."
"Why, now that I'm here, are you hiding like a turtle?"
The bamboo raft positioned in the middle of the lake, and Lin Mo's voice, indifferent and calm, echoed through the entire mountain range and Li River.
Just then, on a mountain peak to the east, a figure as vague as an immortal descended from the ordinary, leaping down from a peak thousands of meters high.
The others present were horrified by this sight, while Lin Mo remained expressionless; to someone in the Martial God Realm, these were mere trivial skills.
"I presume you are Mr. Lin?" Song Yi asked with his hands behind his back, looking at Lin Mo indifferently as he stood steadily on the river water.
"Just you alone? You're not even qualified to play with me," Lin Mo swept a glance at Song Yi, his voice indifferent.
"We'll see whether or not you are a match for Mr. Lin when we fight!" Song Yi said with a cold smirk, then waved his hand, and the calm Li River water began to tremble, generating fierce waves hundreds of meters high, rushing towards the spot where Lin Mo was located.
These means were not strange, but what was terrifying was the power released by the Martial God Realm, extraordinary indeed.
Lin Mo stood on the river, his back turned, and with a casual wave of his hand, he sent the bamboo raft and Yingzi directly to the shore.
Waves hundreds of meters high rose from the river, like heaven and earth's thunder, hurtling towards Lin Mo with a powerful suppression, nearly crushing him to a pulp.
"Such trivial tricks, daring to embarrass yourself before me."
Lin Mo snorted coldly, and with a strike, he chopped out. Sword light, like a hundred-meter wave of rage, shot forth in a golden streak, instantly piercing through the hundred-meter wave on the river. His fist's power unabated, he struck towards Song Yi.
Song Yi's face turned pale with fright. A wooden plaque instantly turned into the size of a human and blocked in front of Song Yi. This plaque, crafted from a thousand-year-old Phoebe and consecrated into a Seventh Grade Defensive Spiritual Treasure, was indestructible. Even an attack from a Basic-level Martial God could be withstood—it was one of Song Yi's proudest defensive treasures.
However, in the next moment, Song Yi's face turned pale. Lin Mo's sword light, like a Nine Heavens golden drill, struck the wooden plaque, directly piercing it. The sword light brutally hit his chest. A burst of explosive sound followed, and rapidly, a hundred-meter Qi Ring expanded.
Song Yi, standing on the water's surface, retreated dozens of meters before stabilizing himself. If it weren't for the plaque dissipating some of the punch's force, Lin Mo's single move might have taken his life.
Lu Haotian, Long San, and members of the Chu Family all showed expressions of pleasant surprise.
As for Qu Huaxu and Qu Zhengye, they frowned, their expressions somewhat grave.
"Indeed, a formidable prodigy. At such a young age to possess the strength of a Half-step Martial God. If given a few more years, even I might not be his match." Song Li, the second-highest in cultivation at the mountain peak, had a flash of cold light in his gaze.
With a casual strike, Lin Mo left Song Yi in a sorry state. Both girls, Qingzhu and Yuan Yuan, looked at him with admiration. From ancient times, women have always admired the strong. As for Hong Shengbao, his mind was already blank.
"If you don't want to see him dead in the next second, stop watching the play and join in!"
Lin Mo stood haughtily with his hands on the Li River, his tone indifferent as he spoke.
His voice, powerful, shot straight into the clouds.
"We originally didn't want to bully the young, but your actions are too arrogant and murderous. Today, I will act on behalf of the world's people to execute this devil!" A cold shout rang out, followed immediately by a longsword about a hundred meters, cutting through several spaces, bringing a thunderous scream, slashing across the sky.
Lin Mo looked up, his eyes cold. In an instant, a powerful streak of energy, carrying an intense killing aura, as if it could split the air, directly shattered Song Li's hundred-meter sword light, dissipating it into the air.
At that moment, Song Li, holding a longsword, floated down, stepping on the water without leaving a trace, and instantly stood next to Song Yi.
"Lin Mo, if you surrender today, discard your cultivation, we might spare your life." Song Li, the second highest in cultivation, clenched his longsword about three feet long, the blade shimmering with cold light, trembling slightly, buzzing, murderously intense.
"That should be left for yourselves," Lin Mo said coldly.
The next moment, the last black figure stepped forth as if treading the heavens, his gaze sharp as sword light, then he spoke, "Are you the Mr. Lin who killed my disciple?"
"Yes, it's me," Lin Mo said coldly, recognizing the elder before him from Master Zhang's memories.
As Lin Mo spoke, he clapped his hand in the void. A golden flame appeared in the air, within which a miniaturized soul screamed in agony, writhing in pain. It was indeed Master Zhang's soul.
"Master... Master, save me quickly..." As Master Zhang's soul saw Song Ge, he begged painfully, having suffered the excruciating pain of a soul burning by fire the day before, feeling as if he were in Asura Hell at every moment.
Song Ge, seeing Master Zhang burned by the flames, remained calm and indifferent, as if he did not recognize him, coldly said, "Just a disciple. If you killed him, then you killed him. We have stepped into the Martial God Realm and have long seen through the seven emotions and six desires. If he had no use to me, I would have killed him myself."
Hearing Song Ge's words, a look of terror appeared on Master Zhang's face. Before he could speak, Lin Mo clenched his palm, directly crushing Master Zhang's soul into air, soul dissipating.
Seeing this, Song Ge's mouth still twitched viciously as he coldly said, "Young man, if you are willing to hand over your cultivation technique to us, we three Martial God Realm experts might offer you a path to live."