Feng Lin, with his past experience, quickly grasped the situation. Without wasting a second, he ran toward a pile of debris and found a half-broken light sword. His cold gaze swept across the ruins around him.

  — Hmph, no wonder thieves are lurking around... The Feng clan has completely given up on defending itself, he murmured with disdain.

  As soon as he gripped the weapon, a metallic flash sliced through the air. A swift sword strike came down upon him. Without hesitation, he raised his damaged blade to parry the attack. The clash echoed in the night, sending sparks flying. Though his body was still weak compared to its true potential, it had already improved. He stood at the peak of the first stage of Body Refinement.

  His opponent took a slight step back, surprised by his resilience. Feng Lin, however, remained unfazed. After all, with tens of thousands of years of combat experience, how could he lose to a mere thief?

  At that moment, one of his eyes gleamed with a golden light, but almost immediately, a sharp pain pierced through him. Blood slowly trickled from his eye socket, forcing a muffled cry from his lips.

  Instinctively, Feng Lin brought a hand to his eye, but what he saw froze him. Around his opponent, faint strands of spiritual energy swayed, revealing a presence he shouldn’t have been able to perceive.

  — Seeing... spiritual energy?

  He had never heard of such an ability. But this was neither the place nor the time to ponder this anomaly. He quickly assessed the situation: with that much energy surrounding him, his opponent must be at the early stage of the second level of Body Refinement.

  — A mere thief, but stronger than expected…

  Feng Lin tightened his grip on his broken sword and immediately adopted a defensive stance. He didn’t know what had just happened to him, but one thing was certain: if he let his guard down, he might never see the light of day again.

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  In any case, one thing was clear—slightly activating his spiritual root had awakened this golden eye.

  Feng Lin recalled the faces of his family. He had observed them closely, and though some tried to hide it, he had noticed the same golden glow in their eyes.

  — A bloodline ability?

  If that were the case, then his spiritual root must also be tied to this heritage. That would explain why he had never found any information about it until now.

  But now was not the time to get lost in thought. He had a fight to win, and his opponent wouldn’t give him the time to contemplate his new discoveries.

  Feng Lin carefully observed his opponent’s movements. When another attack aimed for his neck, he dodged with a slight tilt of his head, feeling the wind of the blade brush past his skin.

  But his opponent didn’t stop there. In a quick follow-up, he threw a dagger at Feng Lin’s leg, aiming to limit his movements. With his reflexes honed by past experience, Feng Lin swiftly pivoted to the side. The weapon grazed his pants before embedding itself into the ground with force.

  He gripped his damaged sword firmly. Though broken, it was still usable. The real problem wasn’t the weapon but his own body, still in recovery. Despite his progress, he could tell that his current strength was limited.

  "I need to end this quickly."

  Judging his opponent, he analyzed every breath, every posture. This man wasn’t a combat expert but seemed experienced in fights. A cold smile crossed Feng Lin’s lips as he prepared to counterattack.

  Without giving his opponent a moment to react, Feng Lin lunged forward, his half-broken sword slicing through the air with deadly precision.

  The attacker, though experienced, was caught off guard by the sudden offensive. He tried to raise his weapon to block, but at the last moment, Feng Lin shifted angles, sweeping horizontally with his sword. A metallic clang echoed as his opponent barely managed to block, stepping back under the force of the impact.

  Seizing the opening, Feng Lin let go of his sword with one hand and struck his opponent’s wrist with the hilt. The man grimaced, his weapon trembled, but he held firm and immediately countered with a quick thrust.

  Feng Lin leaned sideways, narrowly avoiding the blade as it brushed past his shoulder. He retaliated instantly, putting his entire body’s force into the strike. His sword cut through the air in a deadly arc, forcing his opponent to leap backward.

  But Feng Lin gave him no respite. He pressed forward, chaining attack after attack. His style wasn’t refined, but each strike was precise, calculated, and ruthless.

  Cornered, the attacker attempted a last-ditch move—a low sweep aimed at knocking Feng Lin off balance. Anticipating the attack, Feng Lin slightly jumped to avoid it before violently bringing his sword down on his enemy’s weapon arm.

  A cry rang out. His opponent dropped his weapon in pain, and Feng Lin seized the moment, kicking him back and piercing his heart, sending him crashing against a crumbling wall.

  Wiping the blood still dripping from his eye, Feng Lin coldly looked at his opponent, now groaning on the ground.

  — Too weak.

  He sheathed his makeshift weapon and took one last look at the battlefield. This fight had given him a better understanding of his body, but one thing was certain… he was still far from his true strength.