Chapter 85: The Eleventh Death Pact

The leader remained unmoved upon hearing the words. Given his position as the head of this group, his intelligence was naturally above average. He gazed at the five individuals still immersed in their cultivation. These five had slain the great water python at the peak of the Spirit Master rank; their abilities were surely not insignificant. The arrival of his group could not have gone unnoticed, yet they remained indifferent, which could only mean that they regarded his people as inconsequential.

At that moment, Xue Wen, whose cultivation level was the lowest, was the first to break through, reaching the third rank of Spirit Adept. After her advancement, she glanced at the adventurers, ignored them, and, right in front of their eyes, swallowed two Essence-Boosting Pills before resuming her cultivation.

Watching Xue Wen consume such pure Essence-Boosting Pills, the adventurers grew visibly excited.

"Those are Essence-Boosting Pills! Essence-Boosting Pills! They are priceless, and she just swallowed two at once?"

No one doubted that Xue Wen possessed even more of these pills.

One adventurer turned to the leader, saying, "Boss, if we get our hands on those Essence-Boosting Pills, we’re set for life."

The leader was tempted as well. He realized the slain water python was a pregnant one. Near the time of birth, a water python's combat power would be greatly diminished, and even an ordinary Spirit Master of the fifth or sixth rank could defeat it.

If that were truly the case, the most powerful among this group would be at most a sixth-rank Spirit Master; even if there were a seventh-rank among them, it would match his own level and pose no threat.

As he pondered this, Gu Yan's body suddenly erupted with a terrifying aura, sweeping in all directions.

Gu Yan, who practiced the Heaven-Swallowing Technique, had also broken through, reaching the fifth rank of Spirit Master.

She didn’t bother to open her eyes, instead taking out three even purer Essence-Boosting Pills and swallowing them to continue her cultivation.

Seeing Gu Yan consume those Essence-Enhancing Pills, the bandits were stunned, and their leader was equally shocked.

"Who are these people? They eat Essence-Boosting Pills like they're nothing!"

It should be known that in the Great Qin Empire, major forces reserved Essence-Boosting Pills for critical breakthroughs, yet these people used them just for cultivation.

Soon enough, breakthroughs occurred every now and then.

When Xue Lin broke through, the terrifying aura of a ninth-rank Spirit Master swept across eighty miles, disturbing countless slumbering wild beasts and eliciting roars.

The adventurers who had not left stood numb and dazed.

"Leave, go, hurry!"

The adventurer leader suddenly realized that, having learned so much, his group would not be spared.

Gu Feng revived behind them, his voice soft: "Since you’ve come, you might as well stay."

Flame arrows shot out seven times in rapid succession, instantly killing any adventurer below the second rank of Spirit Master.

Then, before the adventurers could react, he unleashed a triple slash, cutting them down.

The leader was the first to respond, furious that this young man had suddenly killed more than half his brothers.

"You deserve to die!"

He roared, determined to kill Gu Feng and avenge his brothers.

"Ding! Zhou Fugui’s killing intent toward you has reached maximum value, activating the eleventh Death Contract."

Upon hearing the Death Contract notification, Gu Feng smiled, sensing that everyone was within the blast radius. He softly said, "Self-destruct."

With a boom, the five women cultivating knew instantly that Gu Feng had self-destructed again.

"Ding! Eleventh Death Contract completed. Level increased by five."

"Wow! Five levels up! Old man system, you finally opened your eyes this time!"

The system replied unhappily: "You’re so weak, like trash. Even the women around you are stronger. It’s embarrassing for me, so I prioritized boosting your level."

"Thank you, really. By the way, old man, I've always wondered—why is it that every time I self-destruct, the enemy is blown into a mist of blood, and even their spatial rings are destroyed?"

The system replied smugly: "Wrong. The blood mist is just for show. Nothing is left behind. All the essence of any creature killed within the Death Contract radius is refined and injected into your body. Otherwise, how do you think you get stronger?"

What the old man didn’t mention was that the spatial rings were, of course, confiscated by him.

"Wow! So, the better the talent of the deceased, the greater the benefits I receive?"

"Exactly! You finally understand after all this time."

"Wow, so in the future, I should target geniuses for my explosions!"

"Good idea, I support you."

After revival, feeling his strength surge, Gu Feng was in high spirits.

After a tedious wait of five days, everyone finished their cultivation. Xue Lin reached the peak of Spirit Master, Gu Yan was at eighth rank, Xue Ziyan at sixth, Xue Wen at the peak of Spirit Adept, and Feng Wan’er at the peak of seventh-rank Spirit Master.

Their overall strength had greatly increased, and the group of six finally set out on their journey.

When they took off, they discovered Gu Feng’s speed had soared as well. Gu Yan asked in surprise, "Brother, what rank are you now?"

Gu Feng replied gloomily, "Only third-rank Spirit Master, nowhere near you all."

He felt dejected...

"Haha, don’t be sad, brother. Yan’er will protect you."

"And me—Ziyan will protect you too."

"I don’t count! I’m only at the peak of Spirit Adept." Xue Wen sounded disappointed, her rank too low.

Gu Feng smiled, "Be content. Many people your age are still mere warriors. You’re already a peak Spirit Adept. It won’t be long before you become a Spirit Master."

"But Gu Yan is so young, only fourteen, and already an eighth-rank Spirit Master."

"If you compare yourself to Yan’er, you’re just asking for trouble. Look at me, I’m her brother and I don’t compare myself to her. Seems like, aside from you, I’m second to last among us."

"Ah, how sad! A grown man, and I’m still not as strong as you women."

Tch...

Four rolled their eyes, one covered her mouth and stifled a laugh.

Xue Lin chimed in, "It’s alright, pretty boy. From now on, your elder sister will take care of you."

Gu Feng crossed his arms, "Sister, don’t tell me you fancy me too?"

"Get lost, are you looking for trouble? Do you want to collect all three generations of the Xue family?"

"No, please! Don’t joke like that, I can’t bear such blame."

"Stop right there! Women stay, men leave."

A burly, bald man soared up, blocking their path.

Covered in weeds, it was clear the bald man had been hiding below for a long time, waiting for someone to come.

Gu Feng and his companions exchanged glances, incredulous. Was this bald man stupid? Could he not sense the extraordinary nature of this group? And he still planned to rob them, apparently aiming for more than their valuables.

Gu Feng smiled, stepping out from the group, "Bald brother, could I borrow something from you?"

The bald man was stunned. He was here to rob them, yet this young man wanted to borrow something? Was he out of his mind?

Still, curiosity got the better of him. He shouted, "Speak, what do you want to borrow from me?"

Gu Yan and the others were equally curious—what did Gu Feng want to borrow?

Gu Feng smiled, "It’s nothing precious, really... just your head."

As he spoke, Gu Feng rapidly closed in on the bald man. The first-rank Spirit Master had no time to react, only felt a tightness around his neck, and before he could even be shocked, there was a sharp snap.

Blood dripped from his mouth as the bald man stared at Gu Feng, struggling to speak, "You..." but could not finish.

Gu Feng released him, saying, "Never mind, seeing your unwilling expression, I don’t want your head after all."

"Let’s go! To White Spirit City."

There was killing intent in Gu Feng's words. Gu Yan and the others understood—White Spirit City was about to be awash in blood.