Slaying Liang Youtian, A Great Harvest

Liang Youtian leaped out of the blood pool with a sudden movement and struck out with his palm, a palpitating, bloody aura emanating from it. Strange black mist churned, slithering like venomous snakes directly towards Lin Baichuan.

An icy chill swept over his entire body, as if Lin Baichuan's blood had frozen solid.

"Slash!"

Lin Baichuan snorted coldly, showing no fear. His roar was like a tiger's, and with a sweep of the Battle Saber in his hand, he brought it down with a powerful strike.

His Saber Intent, now elevated to the Minor Accomplishment realm, erupted fully at this moment.

As Lin Baichuan's Battle Saber descended, it was as if a mountain of sabers fell with it, exuding rolling killing intent, surging like rivers, and revealing its sharp edge.

At this moment, Liang Youtian, who had been aggressively advancing, suddenly trembled all over. His mind and will flickered, and he felt a saber mountain pressing down in his mind, completely suppressing his spirit, will, and even his very soul.

He felt as if heaven and earth had collapsed, leaving only this saber mountain, pinning down the world.

This was the Saber Intent affecting his mental will, causing him to hallucinate.

Although it was only for a moment before he broke free from the illusion, it was too late. Lin Baichuan's Battle Saber had already arrived. Empowered by the Saber Intent, its sharpness was unparalleled, cleaving through his palm strike like it was nothing, and then bisecting his body.

Pfft!

Blood splattered, his aura withered, and his life force rapidly vanished.

"How is this possible..."

Liang Youtian grunted with unconcealed unwillingness, "If my cultivation technique wasn't at a critical juncture, leaving me with less than a tenth of my strength, how could I possibly have lost to you."

"Heh, talking so much, you still have to die."

Lin Baichuan sneered, his face filled with disdain.

"You..."

Liang Youtian glared, raising his hand to strike at Lin Baichuan, only to find his body already split in two. His life force completely dissipated, and he fell into the blood pool. His eyes were wide open, filled with lingering resentment even in death.

He had schemed for days, and was only one step away from success, yet he died at Lin Baichuan's hands at the most crucial moment. How could he accept this?

"Raising demons, slaughtering civilians to cultivate demonic arts, a hundred deaths wouldn't be enough for you."

Lin Baichuan snorted coldly, sheathing his Battle Saber. He narrowed his eyes and scanned the entire underground palace, finally resting his gaze on a stone table in the southeast corner.

On the table sat three chests. Lin Baichuan took three rapid strides, reaching the stone table at top speed. He casually opened all three chests, and his eyes immediately lit up. Among the three chests, one contained a box filled with bank notes and silver notes, all in large denominations of one thousand taels.

Lin Baichuan estimated the total to be over a million taels of silver.

He couldn't help but gasp in amazement.

"Damn it, this guy not only raised demons and cultivated demonic arts, but he was also a corrupt official," Lin Baichuan muttered to himself, his gaze falling on the other two chests.

The middle chest held three bottles of pills, three pills per bottle, each no bigger than a little finger, emitting a rich medicinal fragrance. These were low-grade Spirit Pills, Bone Tempering Pills, used by cultivators in the Eighth Rank Bone Tempering Realm to temper their muscles and bones.

"Holy crap, it's actually Bone Tempering Pills! If I remember correctly, these things are already selling for a hundred thousand taels of silver each! And even with money, you might not be able to buy them."

Lin Baichuan's eyes gleamed, and he muttered, "Liang Youtian, you really are a godsend! With these nine Bone Tempering Pills, once I reach the Eighth Rank Bone Tempering Realm, I'll definitely be able to advance by leaps and bounds, saving at least several years of arduous cultivation."

Lin Baichuan was truly excited at this moment. He immediately closed the chest and turned his attention to the last chest.

Inside the chest lay three Demon Cores, each adorned with four demonic patterns. These were Demon Cores from Fourth Tier Soldier-class Demons, comparable to Sixth Rank Blood Refining realm experts among human cultivators.

"I'm rich!"

Lin Baichuan was overjoyed.

A million taels of silver, nine Bone Tempering Pills, and three Demon Cores, their combined value in the millions of taels.

Indeed, one cannot get rich without ill-gotten gains, just as a horse cannot grow fat without night fodder!

Lin Baichuan casually put all three chests into his Space Ring, then glanced at Liang Youtian's corpse floating in the blood pool. Without hesitation, he exited the underground palace and quietly left the county office.

He had already killed the man. As for the sudden disappearance of the Yunshan County Magistrate, that was no longer his concern.

Soon, Lin Baichuan returned to his own room.

He sat cross-legged, and his consciousness entered his sea of consciousness, opening his attribute panel.

[Name: Lin Baichuan] [Identity: Demon Suppression Division Junior Demon Slayer] [Cultivation: Ninth Rank] [Cultivation Technique: Golden Bell Shield (Level 7, 1%)] [Martial Skill: Seven Kill Saber Art (Mastered)] [Intent: Saber Intent (23%)] [Merit: 0]

The Golden Bell Shield at Level 7, and his Saber Intent reaching 23%, equivalent to the Minor Accomplishment realm. It was a pity that his Merit was completely depleted. He didn't know how much Merit would be needed to upgrade the Golden Bell Shield to the next level, so he could only try again later.

"Now that my physical body has broken through its limits, my physical strength has reached thirteen thousand jin. It's a shame about that Earth Spirit Milk; I wonder if it will still be effective after use."

Lin Baichuan muttered to himself, "When I return to the prefectural city, I must go to the Scripture Repository to check for information."

The Earth Spirit Milk was obtained from killing Yin Kuisheng. It was originally intended to help him break through his physical limits, but because he didn't know how to use it, it had been put aside. Who would have thought that when Ying Que used the high-grade Spirit Artifact, the Nine Yin Ice Soul Net, he was forced to use his Merit to upgrade the Golden Bell Shield, thereby breaking through his physical limits.

He wasn't sure if the Earth Spirit Milk would still be effective for him, otherwise, he'd have to sell it.

"This trip has been very fruitful, it's just a shame Li Da didn't die..."

A chilling killing intent flashed in Lin Baichuan's eyes.

He knew that out of Li Da and his four companions, the other four were acting under Song Gang's orders to take his life. Therefore, Lin Baichuan naturally had no good feelings towards Li Da and the others. Now, Niu Zhenye and two others had already been killed by him using the Blood Demon, but Li Da had survived.

Although that guy's fundamental origin had been injured, and his future prospects were likely capped, Lin Baichuan was still very displeased. He planned to take Li Da's life when a suitable opportunity arose.

Lin Baichuan considered himself no saint. If others wanted his life, he certainly wouldn't stand idly by. In this world of the strong preying on the weak, being kind and soft would never earn you sympathy or gratitude; it would only embolden some people to push their luck and escalate their actions.

Therefore, Lin Baichuan had long since seen through everything. To survive well in this cannibalistic world, you had to be more ruthless than your opponents.

The pure and innocent wouldn't last long. Only those who retaliated for every slight were feared and lived long.

"There will be plenty of opportunities later..."

Lin Baichuan sneered, his expression concealed. His mind and will entered a state of calm stillness, and he silently circulated the breathing techniques of the Golden Bell Shield, moving his internal energy to temper his flesh and skin.