The Imperial Martial Pill Venerable

"Qin Ya, I’ll make you die a horrible death!"

Under the threat of death and consumed by hatred for Qin Ya, Black Saber played his final card. Streams of black energy shot out from all over his body, enveloping him completely as a dark and utterly evil aura erupted.

"Hah, to think I’d run into another mongrel here," Qin Ya said, his eyes glinting with an icy killing intent. "You had the choice to be human, but instead, you became a running dog for the Demon Race. Does it feel good to have a Demon Seed planted inside you?"

Black Saber wasn’t the first person he had seen with a Demon Seed; back when he was still in Anxing City, he had killed a similarly demonized Qin Yunlong.

The Demonic Qi around Black Saber boiled, his face a contorted, savage mask. Although the Demonic Qi had extinguished the lingering Purple Flame, the right side of his face had been burned to a mangled pulp of flesh and blood. He was grotesque, like a devil returned from Hell.

"Heh heh, you forced me to use the Demon Seed. You’re dead!"

Black Saber raised his long saber, the Demonic Qi churning with a thick killing intent.

’No wonder Hua Wuchang said Black Saber had once hunted a Celestial Essence Realm expert,’ Qin Ya thought. ’So he was relying on the power bursting from this Demon Seed. This power is indeed comparable to the Celestial Essence Realm.’

The power of Demon Seeds varied. The one implanted in Qin Yunlong had been a low-level Demon Seed, but the one in Black Saber before him was clearly a cut above.

"You won’t act like a man, and you can’t pass for a demon. I guess I’ll have to send you to become a ghost!"

Qin Ya spoke with cold indifference. With a flick of his spear, the purple celestial Flame soared into the air and coiled around the weapon. Seeing this, Black Saber’s pupils couldn’t help but shrink slightly.

He could feel his own Demonic Qi growing restless and agitated upon seeing the Purple Fire, as if it had encountered its natural enemy. It was truly bizarre.

"Hmph." Qin Ya scoffed. The Purple Lotus Celestial Flame was a Heaven and Earth Strange Fire of the purest Yang essence, the natural bane of sinister, foul energies like Demonic Qi—to say nothing of the impure Demonic Qi Black Saber produced from a mere Demon Seed.

A growing sense of unease made Black Saber even more frantic. With a sudden roar, he raised his jet-black saber and charged, slashing down at Qin Ya. The chaotic Demonic Qi mingled with his killing intent, creating a sensation that Qin Ya found deeply unpleasant.

"How utterly... disgusting!"

Qin Ya let out a cold shout. His spear struck like a dragon, breaking past Black Saber’s blade and thrusting directly at his head. Black Saber’s pupils shrank, and he dodged instinctively. He twisted his saber, swinging it upward from below in a sweeping arc through the void, and a close-quarters battle commenced.

The clash of their weapons, faster than the eye could follow, laid waste to more than half of the Chaotic Stone Forest.

"Heavenly Cold Earth Freeze!"

Qin Ya retracted his spear and struck out with a palm that had been gathering power for some time. The strike triggered a dramatic change in the heavens and the earth as countless shards of frost condensed from the air and surged toward Black Saber.

"Ghost Slayer Slash."

Black Saber roared, unleashing a wave of Blade Qi several times stronger than before, which shattered the endless frost. But at that moment, a cry was heard, "Chasing the Sun!"

After the frost came an extreme, scorching heat!

The Purple Flame soared, blazing like a dazzling sun.

Black Saber held his saber horizontally across his chest in a desperate block. The spear struck the body of the blade, and the immense force sent Black Saber stumbling back dozens of steps, his heart pounding with shock.

Just then, the spear began to spin violently, attempting to break through Black Saber’s defense. However, the saber in his hand was of a high grade, and it had somehow endured the Ghost Cloud Pan Dragon Spear for so long without a scratch. "Extreme Ghost Slayer Slash!"

Black Saber roared as the Demonic Qi around him surged, blasting Qin Ya away. He then gathered his power for a single chop. A torrent of black energy rolled forward, filled with what sounded like the wails of a hundred ghosts.

"I’m done playing. Time for you to die."

Qin Ya’s expression was like ice. He activated his Cold Flame True Essence, and two diametrically opposed energies gathered at the tip of his spear, forming a spiraling torrent of purple and blue.

"Cold Flame, explode!"

With a furious shout, he thrust his spear forward. The freezing air and the Purple Flame poured out, dispersing the cloud of black energy before the two unstable energies violently collided.

BOOM! An attack with the force of a Celestial-Level Martial Artist’s strike exploded outward.

As the dust settled, a young man in tattered clothes could be seen kneeling in a crater, his Demonic Qi now faint and listless. He glared at Qin Ya with cold eyes, but deep within them was a trace of terror.

’I am an outstanding assassin. I’ve roamed the Black Market for so many years... to think I’m about to be killed by a Spiritual Element Realm martial artist today?’

Spiritual Element Realm?!

At this thought, Black Saber couldn’t help but give a bitter smile. How could this be a Spiritual Element Realm martial artist? Not even someone at Earth Element Realm Perfection or the Celestial Essence Realm would necessarily possess such combat strength.

"Tell me, who planted the Demon Seed in you?"

Qin Ya slowly walked up to Black Saber and asked with indifference.

Black Saber wanted to resist, but he was severely wounded, and his Demonic Qi had been all but annihilated by that strange True Essence. What could he possibly use to fight back?

"Just kill me. I won’t talk."

Remembering the methods of that person, Black Saber shuddered. He would rather die than speak their name. Seeing this, Qin Ya’s brows furrowed, and he said coldly, "Then go be a ghost."

The spear shot out without the slightest hesitation, piercing straight through Black Saber’s head. With a slight tremor of his arm, flesh and blood splattered as he instantly obliterated it.

"The number one assassin of the Crimson Wine Tavern... nothing special!"

With a cold smirk, Qin Ya conjured a Purple Flame in his palm and tossed it onto the headless corpse on the ground. The Flame immediately incinerated the body, leaving nothing behind.

***

「The Wang Family...」

Standing outside the main gate of the Wang Family estate, Qin Ya’s eyes glinted with coldness. He was never merciful to those who wanted him dead.

"Hey, isn’t that Qin Ya? What’s he doing outside the Wang Family’s gate?"

"He just killed Wang Yan not long ago. What’s he here for now?"

"Maybe he’s here to apologize?"

"Are you stupid? He’s a Seventh-Grade Alchemist and a Young National Hero now. Why would he apologize to the Wang Family? We’ll be lucky if he’s not here to cause trouble."

"Uh... you don’t think he’s actually here to cause trouble, do you?"

Under the uncertain and astonished gazes of the crowd, Qin Ya slowly stepped into the Wang Family estate.

Although the Wang Family couldn’t compare to the Four Great Noble Families, it was still considered a top-tier Noble Family in the Imperial Capital. With two Extraordinary experts in its ranks, its foundation was deep.

At this moment, the Wang Family’s training ground was bustling with activity.

The young disciples of the Wang Family were all in the middle of their cultivation. From one particular area, however, came a constant stream of miserable screams and furious roars.

"This piece of trash is useless. He couldn’t even take two of my palm strikes."

The speaker was none other than Wang Yan’s younger brother, Wang Zilu. An aura of brutality radiated from him as he took out a handkerchief to wipe the fresh blood from his hands.

Lying before him was a young man in black armor, a large pool of blood spreading from the corner of his mouth. He was no longer breathing.

"It is because the Young Master has improved by leaps and bounds lately, as if aided by the heavens. How could this meat target possibly withstand your Divine Palm?" a young man standing beside Wang Zilu said with fawning praise, perfectly embodying the image of a bootlicker. His words clearly made Wang Zilu ecstatic.

"You, get over here."

In high spirits, Wang Zilu pointed to one of the armored meat targets in a nearby group. The man’s face filled with terror as he backed away.

"No, no, I don’t want to die." 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

Seeing this, a nearby Wang Family disciple immediately strode over and slapped the young man across the face. "Bastard!" he shouted. "How dare you disobey the Young Master’s command, are you looking to die? Being the Young Master’s meat target is your great fortune! Now get your ass over there and stand still!"