I gain ten years' worth of cultivation every day, and even geniuses will only see my doorstep!

Hearing footsteps, Chen Tianyu turned around, a gentle smile already on his face.

"This must be Junior Brother Qin. I've heard so much about you."

He stepped forward with great enthusiasm: "I am Chen Tianyu, the senior disciple of the Fifth Peak. I witnessed your divine might during the competition yesterday, and it was truly astonishing. Meeting you today, I can confirm your extraordinary bearing."

Qin Yuan watched his performance and said calmly, "Senior Brother Chen, you flatter me."

"No flattery, no flattery," Chen Tianyu said with a smile. "It is our honor that Junior Brother has chosen my Fifth Peak. Come, have a seat. Elder Xu will be here soon."

The two sat down in the hall, and Chen Tianyu took the initiative to make tea, acting as the host.

"Junior brother, are you finding anything difficult to adjust to here?" he asked with concern. "If you need anything, just tell your senior brother. In the Fifth Peak, your senior brother still has some influence."

"Thank you for your concern, Senior Brother." Qin Yuan picked up his teacup, took a sip, and said, "Everything is fine."

"That's good." Chen Tianyu nodded, then casually asked, "By the way, I heard that Junior Brother and Junior Sister Lin Qing'er are from the same hometown?"

Qin Yuan looked up at him: "Yes."

"Then the relationship must be very good." Chen Tianyu said with a smile. "Junior Sister Qing'er has good talent and is a key student being cultivated on the Third Peak. However, the competition on the Third Peak is fierce, and life there may not be easy. If you are interested, Junior Brother, you can talk to Elder Xu and bring Junior Sister Qing'er to the Fifth Peak as well. Our peak has fewer people, so we are more united."

These words sounded very respectable. If Qin Yuan hadn't overheard their plot earlier, he would have really thought he was a caring senior brother who looked after his fellow disciples.

"I'll consider it," Qin Yuan said noncommittally.

The two chatted casually, and time passed little by little.

About an incense stick's time later, hurried footsteps suddenly came from outside the hall, accompanied by a girl's panicked cry:

"Brother Qin Yuan! Brother Qin Yuan, save me—!"

The palace doors were flung open, and Lin Qing'er stumbled in, her hair disheveled, her pale yellow dress torn in several places, and a bloodstain on her face. Upon seeing Qin Yuan, tears instantly welled in her eyes, and she rushed towards him.

"Qing'er?" Qin Yuan stood up and caught her, his eyes instantly turning icy. "What happened?"

"Someone was chasing me!" Lin Qing'er's voice trembled. "I had just reached the fifth peak when two men stopped me and said they wanted to 'invite' me to sit in the back mountain. I refused, and then they attacked me..."

Before he finished speaking, two young men dressed in the robes of the Fifth Peak disciples rushed in. They were stunned when they saw the scene in the hall.

Chen Tianyu stood up at the opportune moment and said in a deep voice, "Wang Hu, Li Bao, what's going on? Why are you chasing after Junior Sister Lin?"

The two men exchanged a glance, and Wang Hu cupped his hands and said, "Senior Brother Chen, this woman has trespassed on the Fifth Peak. We suspect she is a spy from another peak, so we would like to take her to the back mountain for questioning."

"Nonsense!" Lin Qing'er pulled out a jade token from her bosom. "I have a visitor's pass for the Fifth Peak! Brother Qin Yuan gave it to me yesterday!"

The jade plaque is engraved with the three characters "Tingzhuyuan," which is the emblem of Qin Yuan's courtyard. Holding this plaque allows free passage to the Fifth Peak.

Qin Yuan took the jade token, glanced at it to confirm its authenticity, and then looked at Wang Hu and Li Bao: "The proof is here. Do you have anything else to say?"

Wang Hu's expression changed, and he looked at Chen Tianyu.

Chen Tianyu frowned and said, "Since there's evidence, it must be a misunderstanding. Wang Hu, Li Bao, you were too reckless. Aren't you going to apologize to Junior Sister Lin right now?"

"Apologize?" Qin Yuan suddenly laughed.

He released Lin Qing'er, stepped forward, his gaze sweeping over Wang Hu and Li Bao before finally settling on Chen Tianyu's face.

"I had just arrived at the fifth peak, and Qing'er had just climbed the mountain, when someone 'coincidentally' wanted to take her to the back mountain for questioning. Isn't this misunderstanding too much of a coincidence?"

Chen Tianyu's expression darkened slightly: "Junior Brother Qin, what do you mean by this? Do you suspect that I instigated this?"

"Whether you ordered it or not, you know best," Qin Yuan said calmly. "But I didn't expect that there would be such scoundrels on the Fifth Peak. Very well, I'll help clean house today."

As soon as he finished speaking, he moved.

Wang Hu and Li Bao only saw a blur before their eyes, and Qin Yuan was already in front of them! The two were horrified and tried to retreat, but they felt their bodies locked by a terrifying aura, unable to move!

"Junior Brother Qin, calm down!" Chen Tianyu shouted sharply, and at the same time stepped in to stop him.

He was, after all, at the seventh level of Foundation Establishment. With a single palm strike, his spiritual energy transformed into a cyan palm print, aiming straight for Qin Yuan's back! This palm strike, seemingly meant to dissuade him, actually concealed a deadly intent. If an ordinary sixth-level Foundation Establishment cultivator had taken it head-on, they would have been severely injured even if they didn't die!

Without turning his head, Qin Yuan threw a backhand punch with his left hand.

"boom--!!"

Fist and palm collided, and the blue palm print shattered instantly! Chen Tianyu was struck as if by a heavy blow, let out a muffled groan, and took three steps back, each step leaving a deep footprint on the bluestone ground!

"You…" He stared at Qin Yuan in shock, "You've broken through again?!"

The power of that punch just now was definitely more than that of a Foundation Establishment Level 6 cultivator!

Qin Yuan ignored him, reached out with his right hand, grabbed Wang Hu's neck like an iron clamp, and lifted him up.

"Tell me, who ordered you?"

Wang Hu's face flushed red, his legs kicked wildly, and he looked at Chen Tianyu with difficulty.

Chen Tianyu's face turned ashen: "Qin Yuan! How dare you! This is the main hall of the Fifth Peak, how can you use torture on mere presumptions!"

"Torture?" Qin Yuan sneered. "I'm just cleaning up the trash."

He tightened his grip, and Wang Hu's neck cracked, his eyes bulged, and he was about to die.

"Stop!" Chen Tianyu roared and attacked again.

This time he held back, unleashing the full power of his seventh-level Foundation Establishment spiritual energy. He formed hand seals, and a cyan sword beam shot out from his fingertips—the Yellow-rank high-grade spell "Azure Origin Sword Qi"!

The sword energy was sharp, tearing through the air, and aimed straight at Qin Yuan's brow!

At the same time, Li Bao also took the opportunity to break free of the qi lock and pounced from the side, stabbing Qin Yuan in the waist with a short knife!

A pincer attack from both sides!

Qin Yuan's eyes turned cold, and he used Wang Hu in his hand as a punching bag, slamming it hard at Li Bao!

"Bang--!!"

The two collided, the sound of bones cracking was clearly audible, and they both collapsed to the ground, coughing up blood.

At the same time, Qin Yuan clenched his right fist, a faint golden light emanating from it, and threw a punch to meet the cyan sword energy!

"break!"

The moment the sword energy collided with the fist, it shattered like glass! Chen Tianyu's pupils shrank sharply, and before he could react, Qin Yuan's fist had already passed through the shattered sword energy and slammed heavily into his chest!

"puff--!!!"

Chen Tianyu coughed up blood and flew backward, crashing into a pillar in the hall before sliding to the ground.

He struggled to stand up, only to find that at least three of his ribs were broken, his internal organs were displaced, and his spiritual energy was disordered, rendering him unable to fight any longer.

And all of this happened in the span of three breaths.

From the moment Qin Yuan made his move to the moment all three were defeated, it happened so fast that no one could react in time.

Lin Qing'er stared blankly at the scene, her mouth slightly agape. She knew Qin Yuan was strong, but she hadn't expected him to be this strong—Chen Tianyu, at the seventh level of Foundation Establishment, was as vulnerable as a child in front of him!

"Now," Qin Yuan walked up to Chen Tianyu, squatted down, and said with icy eyes, "can you talk now? Who ordered it?"

Chen Tianyu coughed up blood, his eyes filled with venom: "Qin Yuan...you dare to hurt me...my grandfather will not let you get away with this..."

"Your grandfather?" Qin Yuan raised an eyebrow.

"My grandfather is Chen Changqing, the Enforcement Elder of the Fifth Peak!" Chen Tianyu hissed. "You, a mere newcomer, dare to lay a hand on the grandson of an Enforcement Elder? You're dead!"

"Oh." Qin Yuan nodded, then slapped him across the face.

*Smack!*

It was crisp and clear.

Chen Tianyu's head tilted to the side after being slapped, half of his face swelled up instantly, and he lost two teeth.

"you……"

"Snapped!"

Another slap.

"I'm asking who ordered this." Qin Yuan's voice was calm, but the coldness in his eyes made Chen Tianyu feel as if he had fallen into an ice cave. "If you say another word, I'll cripple your cultivation."