Chapter 60: The Ten Thousand Venoms Massacre—The Decree of Fire Incantation

Everyone was stunned by Lin Le’s fierce tactics. The members of the Tang family stared at him in shock—the Skull Fist of Zuo Tianlang had seemed so formidable, yet Lin Le had shattered it with a single palm strike. It was simply unbelievable!

Zuo Tianlang’s face was filled with astonishment. “True Qi manifestation? You… you’re actually a Grandmaster of the Transforming Realm!” he exclaimed.

Earlier, Zuo Tianlang had only seen Lin Le injure others by plucking leaves and propelling them with external True Qi, a feat only achievable by a martial artist who had perfected their inner force. Even then, Zuo Tianlang thought it remarkable that someone so young could possess such strength. Now, it turned out Lin Le’s true power far exceeded his imagination; he was one of the rare Grandmasters of the Transforming Realm. And the boy was only seventeen or eighteen—an impossibility!

Grandmasters of such level were exceedingly rare. Any one of them could immediately rank among the top fifty on the Shadow List. In truth, strictly speaking, Lin Le’s current strength had not yet reached the true Transforming Realm. His ability to manifest True Qi was entirely due to his cultivation as a Daoist practitioner. With his current foundation-building stage, he could emulate the power of a Grandmaster.

At this moment, Lin Le stood with his hands behind his back on the steps, gazing down at Zuo Tianlang. “Tell me why you’re targeting the Tang family—perhaps I’ll spare your life,” he said coldly.

From Zuo Tianlang’s strength and methods, it was clear he was a highly skilled professional assassin, certainly hired by someone else. The motives of his employer were worth investigating.

“Hmph, such arrogance. Even if you are a Grandmaster, do you think I’ll fear you?” Zuo Tianlang retorted.

He hailed from the Evil Gu Sect, cultivating the wicked path. His techniques took a crooked approach, never confronting directly. In his twenty years as an assassin, Zuo Tianlang had faced many formidable foes, all of whom eventually succumbed to his gu techniques.

So even knowing his opponent was a rare Grandmaster, Zuo Tianlang wasn’t overly concerned. “Let’s see whose fists are stronger—yours, or my evil gu!”

With that, his expression hardened, and his hands swiftly formed a series of seals. “Ten Thousand Gu to Annihilate a City!”

He slammed both hands onto the floor, and an astonishing sight unfolded. A cacophony of creaking echoed as countless black objects surged from his sleeves like a flood of black water. Upon closer inspection, they were myriad black insects, each the size of a finger!

These were the city-clearing gu insects that Zuo Tianlang had refined. His cultivation in the gu arts was not ordinary, but a profound mastery of controlling gu.

Zuo Tianlang’s mentor, Grandmother Gu, belonged to a sect that had existed for millennia since ancient times. Her gu arts were inherited from ancient shamanic sorcery. In the old days, powerful gu masters could decimate an entire city overnight with these insects, a feat known as the Ten Thousand Gu City Annihilation.

Though Zuo Tianlang had only achieved twenty percent of the true power of this supernatural art, its destructive force was already formidable.

Now, as the swarm of gu insects poured from Zuo Tianlang’s sleeves, the Tang family members were pale with terror. They were, after all, ordinary people—never before had they witnessed such a horrifying sight.

Especially Tang Nianchen. Though she dominated the business world and wielded considerable influence, she was, at heart, still a young woman in her early twenties, naturally fearful of insects. To see so many crawling before her made her scalp tingle.

The number of gu insects was immense. In the blink of an eye, the entire living room was covered in a layer of black, like a carpet.

“Attack!” Zuo Tianlang roared, and immediately the swarm surged upward like a tidal wave, forming a black column that charged toward the Tang family on the second floor.

Seeing the overwhelming tide of insects about to engulf the Tang family, Lin Le flashed forward, blocking Tang Nianchen, and rapidly formed a hand seal.

“Command!” he intoned.

As soon as the command was spoken, a fierce flame, like a fire dragon, erupted from Lin Le’s hand seal and crashed into the oncoming wave of insects.

With a thunderous boom, the fire dragon collided with the insect tide, exploding in a dazzling burst. Countless gu insects ignited, raining fire throughout the house.

“The Command Fire Spell?! You… you’re actually a cultivator! Both martial and mystical arts?!” Zuo Tianlang was dumbfounded yet again.

He had always regarded Lin Le as an ordinary martial artist, never expecting that the boy, like himself, was a cultivator—a practitioner who mastered both martial arts and Daoist sorcery!

Zuo Tianlang could hardly believe that someone so young, just seventeen or eighteen, could achieve dual cultivation. Even training in one discipline alone would take years; he wondered how Lin Le had managed it.

Lin Le was already at the foundation-building stage, his body suffused with magical power. As for the Command Fire Spell, it was a basic Daoist art, but Lin Le could wield it with far greater force than any novice cultivator.

To Lin Le, this was nothing extraordinary, but to the Tang family, it was as if they were witnessing a deity. They could not fathom how a mortal could command flames—was this not something found only in myth?

At this moment, Tang Nianchen regarded the young man with newfound awe. Previously, she had only admired his medical skill and martial arts, but now his supernatural abilities seemed unfathomable. She was deeply shaken by his prowess.

“I’ll engulf this house—let’s see how you save them!” Zuo Tianlang threatened.

As soon as his words fell, the insects on the floor responded to his command, climbing the walls and ceiling, encircling the Tang family from all sides upstairs.

“Quick, escape! Jump out the window!” Lin Le urged.

The insects were attacking from all directions; even with the Command Fire Spell, Lin Le could not block them all. The only hope was for the family to flee.

The insects moved with terrifying speed, like a black tsunami, reaching the second floor almost instantly, swarming at the Tang family’s feet.

“Ah!” Tang Baisheng and the others hurriedly kicked away the insects, fleeing down the corridor.

Lin Le followed, using the Command Fire Spell to cover their retreat, but the sheer number of insects was overwhelming. The corridor was crawling with them, closing in rapidly from all sides.

In the panic, Tang Nianchen’s foot slipped and she fell to the ground.

“Nianchen!” Tang Baisheng cried.

“Don’t worry about me—run!” she shouted.

Madam Tang remained unconscious, and Tang Baisheng and Uncle Kang, supporting her, were unable to help Tang Nianchen.

Meanwhile, the swarm sensed the isolated Tang Nianchen; from the ceiling, a mass of black insects surged down like a twisting serpent, lunging toward her.

“Ah!” Tang Nianchen instinctively shut her eyes, nearly resigned to being consumed.

“So you do have your moments of fear!” At that blank instant, Lin Le appeared before her.

He stood with his back to Tang Nianchen, a mocking smile on his lips. At the same time, a fire dragon burst from his palm, shattering the serpent of insects before him.

“Hurry up and go!” Lin Le commanded.

Tang Nianchen tried to stand, but her ankle gave way—she had twisted it in her panic.

“What a nuisance,” Lin Le muttered.

Without hesitation, he scooped Tang Nianchen into his arms.

“You…” Tang Nianchen, proud and fastidious since childhood, had never had such close contact with any man. She wanted to protest, to demand he let her down, but the approaching swarm made her hold her tongue.

Lin Le carried Tang Nianchen, sprinting after Tang Baisheng and the others into a room.

Uncle Kang quickly closed the door, which immediately shuddered under the pounding of countless insects.

“Hurry, the door’s about to break!” Lin Le urged.

Tang Baisheng and Uncle Kang quickly helped Madam Tang through the window, and followed her outside.

Just then, with a thunderous crash, the door burst open—a torrent of black insects surged in, flooding the room!