I forged swords at Lingjian Mountain.

Lin Kong's gaze remained fixed ahead.

Suddenly, Blood Blade Leader behind him sprang up, drew his sword, and slashed horizontally.

They were completely unaware.

In an instant.

The short knife in Blood Blade Leader's hand struck Lin Kong hard on the back of the neck.

however--

The anticipated scene of decapitating him with a single blow did not occur.

Instead, the blade that struck the back of his neck sent up a shower of sparks, as if it had struck an incredibly hard steel plate.

Not only did it fail to even break Lin Kong's skin, but Blood Blade Boss was also forced to retreat backward by the shock.

The hand holding the knife was numb and stinging from the shock.

"What... is going on!?"

Blood Blade Boss's eyes widened, and he could hardly breathe.

His eyes were filled with horror and disbelief.

To know.

This was a powerful, all-out slash from him!

Even those who have trained their bodies to be invulnerable and claim to be impervious to swords and spears would not be able to escape unscathed if he struck them from behind with full force, especially at the vulnerable back of the neck. They would not even be left with a mark.

And that feeling just now...

It didn't look like a cut on flesh and blood at all.

It was more like... a collision with some kind of weapon?

He had encountered martial artists who had honed their physical bodies to the extreme before, but he could clearly sense that Lin Kong was completely different from those martial artists!

"Finally, you've decided to take action...?"

Lin Kong slowly turned around.

"...He already knew I was here!!"

"He...he was deliberately waiting for me to make a move!!"

Blood Blade Leader's heart trembled violently. He had been lying in wait for half a day, observing for half a day... searching for the most suitable time to strike.

It turned out that the other party already knew where he was and was waiting for him to make a move.

This made him feel like a clown, and his expression became increasingly ferocious and ruthless.

"I refuse to believe it!!"

With a low roar, he increased his speed, unleashing his full inner strength, and charged to Lin Kong's left side once again.

Swing the sword, a vertical slash!!

This time, he cleaved off Lin Kong's head!

He is very clear.

Even the strongest person has the most vulnerable head.

Moreover, for those who cultivate their bodies in this way, the head is the most difficult part to cultivate.

He didn't believe Lin Kong's head could be as hard as the back of his neck!

Swish!

The black dagger sliced ​​through the air with a sharp whistling sound. With the Blood Blade Boss unleashing all his internal energy, the power of this strike was extremely terrifying.

The whistling sound was sharp and piercing.

The blade slashed downwards at lightning speed, leaving a faint afterimage.

Faced with Blood Blade Boss's full-force strike, powerful enough to shatter stone tablets.

Lin Kong stood still, without moving an inch.

He let the black dagger slam down on his head.

Click!

The moment the black dagger slashed down.

This weapon, which had been with Blood Blade Boss for many years... snapped in two with a crack!

The severed half of the blade spun and flew into the air, tracing several chaotic arcs before embedding itself diagonally into the stone bricks below with a soft thud.

Blood Blade Boss was pale-faced, dumbfounded, and stood frozen in place, as if petrified.

He simply couldn't understand...

Why is this person's head harder than the back of their neck?!

He had just struck the back of the neck, but was only knocked back by the impact.

Now that the blade had struck the head, it actually broke in two.

Is this guy even human?!

Only Lin Kong knew...

As a "humanoid casting hammer," his body is essentially the handle.

His head... was the hardest, heaviest, and most indestructible hammerhead in his entire body!

"Is that all?"

Lin Kong shook his head, looking disappointed, his voice tinged with a sense of utter boredom.

He originally wanted to use this person to test the damage resistance of his divine artifact body.

As a result, he felt nothing at all during the opponent's attack.

This disappointed him.

It did not achieve the desired testing effect at all.

Lin Kong sighed, stretched out his hand, and casually pointed his index finger forward, the movement slow and gentle.

But the instant his fingertips touched Blood Blade Boss's chest!

Blood Blade Boss's eyes suddenly bulged out!

He felt an indescribable force penetrate his body through Lin Kong's fingertips, making him feel as if he had been violently smashed by a terrifying hammer.

His entire body, flesh and bones, instantly exploded and shattered, scattering like ink across the eaves.

With a loud bang.

It exploded into a cloud of blood mist on the spot.

……

boom!

Blood Blade Third Brother slammed his knees to the ground and fell heavily to his knees.

His face was deathly pale.

Especially when he looked up and saw the Lin Jian Sect Master standing calmly above, while their leader was nowhere to be found, a bad premonition made his expression even more unpleasant.

Lin Kong lowered his eyes and looked down at the Blood Blade Third Brother kneeling in front of him.

Although he had already guessed that Zhang's Hundred Forging Workshop was behind it, he still needed to confirm it.

"Who sent you? Tell us, and we'll give you a quicker death."

Blood Blade Third Brother suddenly raised his head without the slightest hesitation.

"It's Zhang's Hundred Forging Workshop!!"

"It was those two bastards, Zhang Chen and Zhang Li, who paid us a huge sum to assassinate them!!"

He now hates those two people to the core.

I suspect this whole thing was a setup to kill someone using someone else's knife!

Zhang's Hundred Forging Workshop sent them to assassinate Lin Jianmen, actually intending to eliminate them directly through this method!

Such a terrifying sect...

Are they the ones who can assassinate him?

This is clearly sending them to their deaths!

"really……"

Lin Kong understood immediately, and a cold glint appeared in his eyes.

He nodded slightly, signaling Nie Shuang and the other two to make their move.

Lin Huiyue immediately raised her greatsword, her eyes flashing with killing intent.

Just as he was about to strike.

puff!

Nie Shuang acted first, slitting the throat with her sword.

Lin Kong gave Nie Shuang a deep look.

A system notification suddenly popped up in my field of vision.

[Should the task be settled?]

Lin Kong's heart skipped a beat.

Although this was an unexpected mission, he knew that if the option "Should I settle the mission?" popped up, it meant that the mission was not completely over and could still be continued.

of course.

You can now also choose to settle your payment.

However, if we settle the score now, the task rating won't be very high.

"no."

After responding in his heart, Lin Kong looked at Nie Shuang and the other two.

"Zhang's Hundred Forging Workshop has tried to kill us time and again. What do you think... we should do?"

Lin Kong had just finished speaking.

Lin Huiyue stepped forward and made a gesture.

The meaning is very clear—

kill!!

Lin Kong nodded.

"very good."

"Well then... Huiyue, I'll leave this matter to you. Do it according to your own ideas."

Lin Huiyue's eyes flashed with murderous intent, and she nodded emphatically.

Nie Shuang, who was standing to the side, became anxious.

"Senior Brother, wouldn't it be... bad to let Huiyue go alone?"

Before he could finish speaking, he was abruptly stopped under Lin Kong's gaze.

Lin Kong's gaze held no anger, but rather the authority of a sect leader. Nie Shuang felt a chill run down her spine and dared not speak further.

Lin Kong looked at Lin Huiyue.

"Go."

"I believe you will give me a satisfactory result."

Lin Huiyue nodded again, holding her greatsword, exuding an almost predatory aura, and turned to leave.

Lin Kong watched Lin Huiyue's departing figure, his eyes narrowed slightly, his gaze deep.

"You noticed it too?"

"……yes."

Nie Shuang said in a low voice, her expression worried.

Nie Shuang had already noticed this junior sister when Wei Xun came to their door to coerce them, and Lin Huiyue almost drew her sword against him...

Extremely bloodthirsty!!

When Lin Yue was alive, they had never been involved in killing, not even fighting.

Therefore, no one knew that this seemingly quiet and well-behaved junior sister actually harbored such a side...

"Everyone has a hidden side that is unknown to others. Only under certain circumstances will this hidden side be revealed, and only then can one truly understand oneself."

"Huiyue's true nature may be that of a bloodthirsty wolf, but her previous life never gave her the opportunity to unleash her true nature."

To put it bluntly.

"She's like a wolf being raised as a sheep. After being in the sheepfold for so long, she's even forgotten what she really looks like."

Nie Shuang was silent for a moment, then asked in a low voice.

"...So, is Senior Brother now going to awaken her true nature?"

For him.

He didn't want to see his junior sister become a bloodthirsty person.

That's why he acted before Lin Huiyue, not wanting Lin Huiyue to destroy Zhang's Hundred Forging Workshop alone.

He feared that Lin Huiyue would kill too many people, and that her own bloodlust would grow stronger, eventually turning her into a bloodthirsty and murderous person.

"No."

Lin Kong shook his head.

"I need to see clearly whether her murderous intent is controllable or uncontrollable."

"You need to understand that lust for killing and indiscriminate killing are not the same thing."

"In this world, a thirst for killing is not necessarily a bad thing."

"But indiscriminate killing... I will never allow it."

"So I have to figure out whether Huiyue's bloodlust will make her bloodthirsty or push her toward indiscriminate killing."

"If she is just bloodthirsty, I will respect her nature and not interfere too much."

"But what if it's indiscriminate killing..."

"As the sect leader and as her senior brother, I have a responsibility to guide her back to the right path."

"She's not just your junior sister, she's my junior sister too."

Nie Shuang was startled, realizing that she had misunderstood Lin Kong, and felt a pang of self-reproach.

"Senior Brother, I..."

"It's alright."

Lin Kong waved his hand, not blaming him.

He understood Nie Shuang's concerns.

My current actions are indeed awakening Lin Huiyue's bloodthirsty nature, which carries a certain risk.

However, to truly understand Lin Huiyue's true nature...

We must let her release it once.

If Lin Huiyue's bloodlust can be controlled, she will become the sword that Lin Jianmen wields for slaughter.

If its murderous intent becomes uncontrollable...

Lin Kong would then have to suppress her bloodlust through the subsequent sword forging process and teach her... how to control her bloodlust.