Golden Bell Shield Ninth Level, Physical Strength 108,000 Jin

An hour later!

Lin Baichuan had completely finished off all eleven demon beasts, not letting go of their Demon Cores, nor even their flesh and blood.

Demon beasts were treasures from head to toe; even their blood could be used for alchemy, and their bones and hides for artifact forging. Their uses were unparalleled, so Lin Baichuan naturally wouldn't let even a speck go to waste, stuffing everything into his Space Ring.

As for the carcasses of wild beasts tainted with demonic energy, Lin Baichuan didn't bother with them. Firstly, their value was low, and secondly, his Space Ring didn't have that much storage space. Even if he collected them, he couldn't carry them, so it was better to leave them.

"Eleven Demon Cores, plus so many materials. This time, I've definitely struck it rich."

Lin Baichuan, holding his Battle Saber, returned to the small tree and sat down cross-legged, a smile on his face. He muttered to himself, "If all these things are processed, I'm looking at tens of thousands of contribution points. But this isn't my biggest gain..."

As he spoke, his mind stirred, and a flash of light appeared in his sea of consciousness. The status panel automatically opened.

[Name: Lin Baichuan]

[Identity: Junior Demon Slayer of the Demon Suppression Division]

[Cultivation: Ninth Rank]

[Cultivation Method: Golden Bell Shield (Level 7, 5%+)]

[Martial Skills: Seven Kill Saber Art (Sublime), Wind Shadow Steps (Minor Accomplishment+), Brute Ox Fist (Minor Accomplishment+)]

[Intent: Saber Intent (24%+)]

[Merit: 2139]

Lin Baichuan's gaze swept over the panel, and his smile grew even more pronounced. The Merit was actually 2139 points, which far exceeded his expectations. He had originally thought it would only be a little over a thousand points, mainly because there were too many ordinary demon beasts tainted with demonic energy. Lin Baichuan had only made a rough estimate, thinking there were over a thousand of them, but he hadn't counted them carefully.

"Over two thousand Merit points are enough for me to raise the Golden Bell Shield to level nine, and I'll even have enough left to advance Wind Shadow Steps and Brute Ox Fist to Major Accomplishment."

Lin Baichuan muttered, his eyes shining with brilliance.

With a thought, he glanced at the fruit on the small tree before him, then shifted his attention back to the status panel, and without hesitation, began to allocate points to the Golden Bell Shield.

Currently at the seventh level of the Golden Bell Shield, his cultivation realm was still the Ninth Rank Skin Refinement Realm. Lin Baichuan had long wanted to break through the Ninth Rank limit and step into the Eighth Rank Bone Tempering Realm, and using the system to add points was naturally the fastest way.

"Merit is like money; it's only yours when you spend it. Otherwise, it belongs to the system."

Lin Baichuan murmured, his intent moving, and directly added two thousand Merit points to the Golden Bell Shield.

Boom...

Instantly, a powerful force erupted, coursing through his entire body in the blink of an eye. Lin Baichuan's consciousness entered a martial world, transforming into a young man who cultivated the Golden Bell Shield diligently for decades, breaking through its limits time and again, forcefully raising the Golden Bell Shield from its original three levels to nine.

Practicing in the scorching heat of summer and the bitter cold of winter.

For decades, through various medicinal baths and arduous training, he had finally refined his flesh and skin to the extreme, breaking through the limit of Grand Perfection Bronze Skin, returning to his true nature, and undergoing a complete transformation.

His physical strength reached an astonishing 108,000 jin.

"Hoo..."

In the next moment, Lin Baichuan's consciousness returned. In that martial world, he had cultivated the Golden Bell Shield for decades, but in the real world, less than a quarter of an hour had passed. He exhaled a turbid breath, and a powerful surge of energy coursed through his body, vigorously tempering his flesh and skin.

Immediately, his flesh and skin began to emit a faint glow, like yellow bronze. Then, the bronze color grew brighter and brighter, finally reaching a peak in an instant. Suddenly, a golden light flashed, and his skin membranes began to peel off, much like a snake shedding its skin.

In just a moment, a thick layer of old, dead skin fell off Lin Baichuan's body. His flesh and skin, which had been like yellow bronze, turned snow-white and tender like jade, even better than a woman's skin.

But beneath this tender white skin lay explosive power, as if it could swallow mountains and rivers.

This sight caused Lin Baichuan himself to secretly gasp in amazement.

He was then filled with immense joy.

In the path of martial arts, Ninth Rank is Skin Refinement. Legend has it that prodigies who cultivate to the extreme can refine Bronze Skin, possessing an incredibly powerful and unparalleled defensive body. But he had now gone a step further, breaking through the limit of Bronze Skin and entering a higher level.

This realm was called Ice Skin.

The ancients said, "Ice Skin, Jade Bone." Many people thought it referred to women, but in martial arts, it represents two realms, two legends.

Ninth Rank refines Ice Skin, Eighth Rank tempers Jade Bone.

These were two realms that existed only in legends. For countless years, only peerless monstrous talents had the possibility of reaching this stage. Lin Baichuan never expected that after spending two thousand Merit points to raise the Golden Bell Shield to the ninth level, he would gain such a great fortune, refining his flesh and skin to return to its true nature and reach the realm of Ice Skin.

This was simply an immense fortune. Lin Baichuan knew that this was not solely due to the system; the most important factor was that he had bathed in the Return Origin Body Tempering Soup, which had allowed him to undergo a complete transformation and reshape his physique and bone structure.

With a solid foundation, he was able to soar after the transformation.

Lin Baichuan was ecstatic. With a thought, he leaped up and threw a punch.

Crack... Bang...

This ordinary punch carried astonishing force, forcefully tearing through the air and producing a shocking sonic boom. Faintly, sparks even seemed to fly in the air – a phenomenon that occurred only when speed and power reached a terrifying level.

"My goodness, a casual punch can break the sound barrier. My current physical strength has probably truly reached 108,000 jin."

Lin Baichuan was astonished, muttering to himself, "If I add the amplification from internal energy and martial skills, one Brute Ox Fist of mine would probably have hundreds of thousands of jin of force. And that's with my Brute Ox Fist only at Minor Accomplishment. If it reaches Perfected, it would likely be even more terrifying."

Thinking this, Lin Baichuan immediately focused his attention back on the status panel in his sea of consciousness.

He had 139 Merit points left. Continuing to upgrade the Golden Bell Shield was clearly unrealistic. The Golden Bell Shield now required 1000 Merit points for each level increase. Moreover, Lin Baichuan had a premonition that the jump from the ninth to the tenth level would be a bottleneck, and the Merit required would likely be even greater.

Since that was the case, he could only upgrade his two martial skills: Wind Shadow Steps and Brute Ox Fist.

These were both Upper-grade Mortal-tier martial skills, currently only cultivated to Minor Accomplishment. Lin Baichuan was thinking of concentrating all his Merit points to upgrade one martial skill. After all, with only 139 Merit points, if used separately, the result would be unsatisfactory for both martial skills, at best reaching Major Accomplishment.

But if concentrated on one martial skill, it might even be enough to raise it to Perfected.

"I already have the Seven Kill Saber Art for offense. In combat, speed is very important, and it can save my life at critical moments," Lin Baichuan pondered in his heart. "Since that's the case, I'll upgrade Wind Shadow Steps first!

As for Brute Ox Fist, it's not too late to upgrade it when I have more Merit points in the future."

With this thought, Lin Baichuan willed it, and poured all the remaining 139 Merit points into Wind Shadow Steps.