Seventh junior brother and the others had barely caught their breath when they heard the command, forcing them to once again draw their weapons, their eyes pleading for help as they looked towards Du Ge, who was holding Lu Dong by the neck.
The newcomer clearly outranked Lu Dong, compelling the disciples surrounding seventh junior brother to rejoin the battle.
"Is it worth it, Brother Lu?" Du Ge taunted with a shake of his head, casually tossing aside his sword and carrying Lu Dong to rescue his little junior brother. After using a heart-piercing rebuke on Lu Dong, he bellowed, "Do not harm my junior brother!"
During the standoff.
Du Ge and Lu Dong's spiritual power had reached equilibrium, unable to absorb any more from each other.
At this moment, Lu Dong in his grasp was nothing more than a shield. Despite the newcomer's instruction to disregard Lu Dong, all of Tianlan Valley's disciples had been trained by him.
Human emotions are not so easily discarded.
Even though it was clear that Tianlan Valley had abandoned Lu Dong, Du Ge couldn't bring himself to directly attack him.
Having plundered much of Lu Dong's spiritual power, Du Ge's movements became more agile. Among the Qi Refining Stage disciples who hesitated to harm Lu Dong, he moved as if he was in a realm devoid of people.
His fingers flicked rapidly.
The sound of metal clinking filled the air.
In an instant, swords clattered to the ground.
"Lu Dong's fate today could be yours tomorrow. Is such a sect worth risking your lives for?"
Now in control, Du Ge refrained from needless slaughter, only disarming them.
Occasionally, when his hands itched, he would strip them of an item or two of clothing to boost his attributes. With a few swift movements, he reached seventh junior brother and his companions, unhesitatingly placing his hand on seventh junior brother's shoulder.
The Way of Heaven takes from the excess to replenish the insufficient.
The spiritual power he had taken from Lu Dong surged into seventh junior brother's meridians.
Originally at the peak of the Qi Refining Stage, Du Ge had absorbed so much of Lu Dong's spiritual power but was constrained by his cultivation technique and failed to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage.
With spiritual power accumulating inside him and unable to extract more from his enemies, it was better to benefit his own junior brother.
After all.
In Tianlan Valley, only the Sect Leader was close to the Golden Elixir stage, and the rest were at Foundation Establishment. Keeping himself in a state of hunger allowed him to maximize the power of his abilities. Otherwise, he would only possess the ordinary skill of plucking feathers from a passing goose.
"Woah! Third senior brother…"
Seventh junior brother's eyes widened in shock.
The spiritual power that surged into his meridians didn't care whether he could bear it or not, forcibly pouring into his dantian, domineering and inescapable.
In a few breaths.
His cultivation level was forcibly raised from the mid-Qi Refining stage to the peak of Qi Refining.
"Damn it…"
Stripped, drained of spiritual power, maimed, and abandoned by his sect, Lu Dong experienced the darkest moments of his life within the span of half a cup of tea.
He had hoped to hold on until his martial uncle arrived to save him, and perhaps find a doctor to reattach his arm…
But in the blink of an eye, the spiritual power that had stopped leaking began to drain away again.
What did Wang Chong take him for?
He refused to die such a suffocating death…
It was infuriating!
Lu Dong gathered his spiritual power and aimed a palm strike at Du Ge's dantian, intending to take someone down with him in his final moments…
"Don't be rash!" Du Ge quickly released his hand transferring power to his little junior brother, blocking Lu Dong's hand with his arm, "Join the Seven Stars Sect, and you can get your spiritual power back!"
Lu Dong was stunned.
Seventh junior brother's face flushed red, and as Du Ge's hand left his body, his undergarments were pulled away as well.
The Way of Robbery was too domineering!
When would third senior brother master the essence of the Way, so he wouldn't need to strip others?
"Can it really come back?" Lu Dong asked with a glimmer of hope.
"Isn't the one who gives spiritual power already here?" Du Ge smiled, effortlessly lifting Lu Dong again, fending off a Tianlan Valley disciple who tried to sneak attack him, then darted to his side. His fingers glided over the disciple's body like playing a piano, stripping him completely of his clothing.
The disciple, embarrassed, let out a sharp cry, instinctively covering himself and staring at Du Ge in horror, frozen in place, at a loss.
Although his clothes were stripped clean, he felt his spiritual power slightly increase in an instant…
What was this?
A reward for his physique?
The other Tianlan Valley disciples now understood why Brother Lu was naked.
The sound of rustling.
In a blink of an eye, a five-meter vacuum formed around Du Ge, with no one willing to approach him anymore.
The skill of plucking feathers from a passing goose had a tremendous deterrent effect.
At this moment.
The disciples of Tianlan Valley looked at Du Ge as if he were a pervert, especially after seeing him pull away their junior brother's undergarments…
Ma Chuanzong and another renegade disciple watched the retreating crowd and couldn't help but sigh in their hearts, too cunning!
After scanning the retreating crowd, Du Ge smiled, flashed back to seventh junior brother, and reached out to continue transferring power.
Seventh junior brother took a sudden step back.
Du Ge was taken aback, looking at him curiously.
Seventh junior brother's face turned red, unable to resist the temptation of the surge in power, he sighed and looked at Du Ge with a conflicted expression, lowering his voice, "Brother, can we just use the coat?"
"…" Du Ge.
Whoosh!
The people of Tianlan Valley took two more steps back.
Seventh junior brother's face twitched, even redder with embarrassment, too ashamed.
"Spiritual power is for saving lives, what's with all the nonsense?" Du Ge glared at seventh junior brother and scolded, placing his hand back on his shoulder, "Who are you learning from, not your little junior sister?"
"…" The people of Tianlan Valley were speechless.
It was over!
Seventh junior brother closed his eyes in pain.
The reputation of the sect was completely ruined. When the fight started, he would take down as many as he could; it was time to cut the weeds and dig out the roots!
No matter how justified third senior brother's actions were, he would be treated as a devil from the demonic path…
"Brother Lu, you'd better find some clothes to wear. Otherwise, when my hand leaves your body, who knows what part might come off with it!" Du Ge continued to transfer power to seventh junior brother while kindly reminding his human battery, Lu Dong, "Your skills are good, and the Seven Stars Sect needs talents like you…"
I damn well don't want to join the Seven Stars Sect!
Lu Dong was on the verge of tears, thinking of the limbs he had lost inexplicably, knowing Du Ge's words were true. Hesitating for a moment, he used his toes to hook the undergarments Du Ge had thrown on the ground, intending to put them on himself.
Better to live poorly than to die well.
He was already disabled and didn't want to lose more parts.
But with Du Ge holding his neck, he couldn't bend down, so he had to use his legs to awkwardly pull the undergarments onto his body…
Seventh junior brother's expression was twisted, wanting to say that the clothing was his, but he couldn't bring himself to speak.
The people of Tianlan Valley watched their eldest senior brother, their mouths agape in shock.
This scene was too bizarre!
They would probably never forget it for the rest of their lives.
Was this really a challenge?
At that moment, the person who had spoken earlier finally rushed over and, seeing the scene, couldn't help but shout, "Lu Dong, what are you doing?"
Lu Dong was shocked, looking awkwardly at the newcomer, "Can I say I'm saving myself?"
"Uncle Ling." Ma Chuanzong once again took on the role of messenger, "Sect Leader, this is Elder Ling Ping Shuang from the Enforcement Hall, at the mid-Foundation Establishment stage…"
"Scoundrel, stop humiliating my disciples." Ling Ping Shuang didn't pay any attention to Ma Chuanzong and charged towards Du Ge with his sword.
"Bring it on." Du Ge's eyes lit up at the mention of mid-Foundation Establishment stage, and he quickly snatched away his little junior brother's coat and smoothly slid his hand down to take away the undergarments Lu Dong had just half put on.
With a flick of his wrist.
He threw both pieces of clothing at Ling Ping Shuang.
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh!
Ling Ping Shuang sliced the incoming clothes into pieces with a few strokes, his eyes mocking as his sword thrust directly towards Du Ge's chest.
It's over!
Lu Dong saw his martial uncle's move, sighed in his heart, turned his head away as if he couldn't bear to see his martial uncle's upcoming fate.
As expected.
Du Ge traded injury for injury, and once he disarmed Ling Ping Shuang, the fight entered his rhythm.
As clothes flew off one by one.
Ling Ping Shuang's spiritual power plummeted rapidly. The previously composed elder now had eyes filled with horror, "What… what kind of evil technique is this?"
"Seven Stars Technique, old man, if you know what's good for you, let me take your power peacefully, or you'll end up like Lu Dong…" Du Ge sneered and pressed the attack, realizing that with the skills of plucking feathers from a passing goose and acting for the heavens, the sword was a burden; his hands were his best weapons.
Ling Ping Shuang had few clothes left on his body, and Du Ge fought more fiercely. Ling Ping Shuang dared not linger and, like Lu Dong, turned and fled, shouting as he ran, "Brother, come quickly to my aid."
Lu Dong watched his martial uncle flee in embarrassment and Du Ge chasing after him, swallowing hard before turning to seventh junior brother, "Has our Sect Leader always been like this?"
Proofreader & Editor: Lotas