Chapter 51: Difficulty Penalty

Chapter 51: Chapter 51: Difficulty Penalty

All eyes were fixed on Yi Xiaoyao’s sword. Some eagerly awaited its magnificent descent, while others wished it would remain frozen in place forever.

The Assessment Elders present were all among the latter, including Lin Jie.

Lin Jie was worried that if Yi Xiaoyao killed Qi Yue, there would be severe consequences. His responsibility was to ensure Yi Xiaoyao entered the Seven Kills Star Hall safely.

As for the other Assessment Elders, they all valued Qi Yue greatly. They didn’t want the Seven Kills Star Hall to lose such a highly talented disciple.

"Yi Xiaoyao, you have already defeated Qi Yue and earned the right to continue the assessment. Stop now."

Several Assessment Elders raised their hands to stop him.

Yi Xiaoyao hadn’t killed Qi Yue instantly, as he was naturally considering the consequences.

"Before I do, I want to ask: if Cultivator Duan were to kill me, how would the Seven Kills Star Hall handle it?"

Hearing Yi Xiaoyao’s question, Lin Jie’s eyes flickered as he stepped forward and said:

"With the ability and talent you’ve just displayed, you’re more than qualified to become an official disciple of the Seven Kills Star Hall. Cultivator Duan would never dare to kill you. Besides, with me here, he can’t touch you."

"Lin Jie!"

Cultivator Duan roared in anger. Lin Jie stepping forward at this moment was clearly giving Yi Xiaoyao even more confidence to kill Qi Yue.

The other Assessment Elders also frowned deeply and said, "That may be so, but Yi Xiaoyao, we have to be honest with you. Even if Qi Yue loses his qualification, we would make an exception for his talent and still allow him to become an official disciple. If you kill him, you will face severe punishment!"

The pale-faced Qi Yue finally breathed a sigh of relief after hearing this.

"Yi Xiaoyao, if you dare to kill me, the Seven Kills Star Hall won’t let you off lightly. If you let me go, the grudge between us will be wiped clean."

Qi Yue offered this compromise to Yi Xiaoyao, his voice laced with nervousness.

Cultivator Duan also said in a low voice, "Yi Xiaoyao, I hope you understand the gravity of the situation. Don’t do anything foolish."

And Yi Xiaoyao listened to all of these words.

"Good, I understand."

Yi Xiaoyao responded, but his response was to Lin Jie’s words: "With me here, Cultivator Duan can’t touch you."

Without those words, Yi Xiaoyao might have temporarily suppressed his Killing Intent for the sake of self-preservation. But now, that was no longer necessary.

As for everyone else’s compromises, threats, and talk of punishment, Yi Xiaoyao acted as if he hadn’t heard a thing, completely unconcerned.

If he wanted to kill someone, why would he care about such things?

"Back when you were hunting me, did you ever imagine this outcome?"

Yi Xiaoyao said coolly to Qi Yue.

Before Qi Yue could respond, blood sprayed in an instant, and Qi Yue’s head, his face a mask of terror... tumbled to the ground!

Kill!

This was Yi Xiaoyao’s decision, a decision that had never wavered.

In that instant, the entire area fell silent, so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

The surrounding crowd drew in a sharp breath. Yi Xiaoyao had actually killed Qi Yue on the spot.

An intensely furious, cold light flashed in Cultivator Duan’s eyes. He stomped his foot and charged toward Yi Xiaoyao, the Killing Intent he had been suppressing erupting once more.

Simultaneously, a well-prepared Lin Jie stepped in front of Yi Xiaoyao, blocking Cultivator Duan.

"Cultivator Duan, Yi Xiaoyao is now a disciple of the Seven Kills Star Hall. If he has made a mistake, it is up to the Seven Kills Star Hall to deal with it. You don’t have that right," Lin Jie said.

Yi Xiaoyao also stared at Cultivator Duan, his own eyes brimming with Killing Intent, and said grimly, "I will slay any who try to kill me! Today, it was Qi Yue. Tomorrow, it will be you!"

Cultivator Duan was so enraged he began to laugh. He shouted to the Law Enforcement Elders, who had already heard the commotion and arrived:

"I request permission from the Law Enforcement Hall to execute Yi Xiaoyao on the spot, to uphold the Hall’s laws!"

Immediately after, disciples from the Law Enforcement Hall moved in, surrounding Yi Xiaoyao.

From behind the crowd, a middle-aged man walked out. He was a Law Enforcement Elder.

"Yi Xiaoyao, why did you ignore our advice and slaughter a fellow disciple?" the Law Enforcement Elder asked.

"Qi Yue hunted me for more than ten days in the Earth Star Forest. If it were you, would you just swallow your anger and do nothing?"

Yi Xiaoyao replied calmly, neither servile nor overbearing.

The Law Enforcement Elder’s eyes narrowed, and he said with some displeasure, "Hmph! The Law Enforcement Hall doesn’t care about grudges or who is right or wrong. We only care about the rules!"

Seeing this, a chill ran through the hearts of the crowd. It seemed Yi Xiaoyao wouldn’t be able to escape the Law Enforcement Hall’s judgment this time.

Seeing the situation, Lin Jie stepped forward and said, "There are extenuating circumstances in Yi Xiaoyao’s case. Moreover, since Qi Yue was defeated by Yi Xiaoyao, he had already lost his qualification for the assessment. Technically speaking, he was no longer a member of our Seven Kills Star Hall."

The Law Enforcement Elder was taken aback by these words. Immediately after, the other Assessment Elders also walked over and whispered something in his ear.

"Qi Yue had excellent talent, but he’s dead now, one way or another. The fact that Yi Xiaoyao could kill Qi Yue proves his talent is even greater. We can’t afford to lose another genius like this!"

Hearing these words, the Law Enforcement Elder was finally swayed.

He was heard announcing, "Yi Xiaoyao has violated the Hall’s laws and should be dealt with severely according to the rules! However, this is a special case. I have decided to give Yi Xiaoyao a chance to have his punishment waived."

Hearing this, Cultivator Duan gave a satisfied, cold snort. He knew just how terrifying the Hall’s punishments were—even more terrifying than death.

But when he heard the second half, he was instantly stunned and enraged. "What?!"

No one paid any attention to Cultivator Duan’s reaction. Instead, they were all curious about what Yi Xiaoyao would have to do to have his punishment waived.

"What do I have to do?" Yi Xiaoyao asked, raising an eyebrow.

The Law Enforcement Elder thought for a moment, then said, "Your assessment will be made more difficult! If you fail to meet the requirement, you will face the punishment dictated by the Hall’s rules."

Cultivator Duan’s gaze turned cold, and he said sharply, "In that case, I demand that Yi Xiaoyao’s Demon Core ranking must be number one! Anything less counts as a failure!"

"Cultivator Duan, you’re going too far!" Lin Jie shouted.

Even the Law Enforcement Elder felt this demand was excessive. Since he had offered a chance, it meant he wanted to let Yi Xiaoyao off the hook, but Cultivator Duan was clearly not having it.

But just then, Yi Xiaoyao smiled strangely and said, "I accept this demand."

At his words, everyone looked over in astonishment. This concerned a punishment from the Hall itself; even the Law Enforcement Elder hadn’t agreed, but Yi Xiaoyao had accepted it on his own.

Cultivator Duan, for his part, began to chuckle coldly. He knew that Yi Xiaoyao had been constantly fleeing from Qi Yue’s pursuit in the Earth Star Forest. Under those circumstances, it was impossible for him to have achieved a high rank, let alone first place.

"Very well. Since you’ve accepted, take out your Demon Cores and give them to me to be counted."

The Law Enforcement Elder sighed. He just hoped Yi Xiaoyao’s rank wouldn’t be too low, as there might still be some room for negotiation then.

Yi Xiaoyao smiled faintly and handed over the several Storage Pouches he was carrying.

A Storage Pouch had a large amount of storage space, enough to hold nearly a thousand Demon Cores. Normally, one would be more than enough.

When the crowd saw Yi Xiaoyao take out so many Storage Pouches, they were all baffled.

"Hmph! A bluff! Don’t tell me you have enough Demon Cores to fill all those Storage Pouches," Cultivator Duan sneered.

Yi Xiaoyao couldn’t be bothered with the man and simply waited quietly for the Law Enforcement Elder to announce the results of his count.

"This... how is this possible!"

The Law Enforcement Elder let out a cry of disbelief, causing everyone to look over curiously.

Due to his position, the Law Enforcement Elder was always serious. Realizing his loss of composure, he quickly cleared his throat a few times and schooled his expression.

"Every Storage Pouch is full. I don’t even need to count them. The condition of achieving first place in the Demon Core ranking... has been met."

As his voice fell, everyone’s jaws dropped. Even if the Law Enforcement Elder wanted to intentionally cover for Yi Xiaoyao, he wouldn’t be foolish enough to say something so absurd, would he?

If that was the case, there was only one explanation: what he had just said was the absolute truth.

Cultivator Duan was completely stunned. He recalled his earlier taunts and suddenly felt his face burn, as if countless hands had slapped it red.