Killing Begins

"All right! If they don't want to compete, don't force them!" Seeing how unwise the two behind him were being, Huo Lixuan immediately frowned and stopped them from saying anything further.

"Old Huo, it looks like the promising youngsters from your Martial Arts Academy this year still need a good deal of polishing! They're a little lacking in composure!" He Yanjun could not help teasing him.

The two young men behind Huo Lixuan immediately glared furiously.

He Yanjun helplessly shook his head, then called to Chen Lin and the others, "You few, come with me. I have something to tell you."

With that, he led Chen Lin and the others away from Huo Lixuan's area.

Huo Lixuan's perfectly good mood had now been thoroughly ruined by the two young people he had thought so highly of.

After giving the two a dissatisfied snort, Huo Lixuan turned and strode away.

Xu Tao and the other man stared at Chen Lin's departing back with incomparably ugly expressions, a trace of venom flashing through their eyes.

An hour passed quickly.

When the rest period ended, Chen Lin's group followed the military camp's general and continued south in a mighty procession.

Half an hour later, the group arrived outside a ruined fortress.

The blazing sun hung high in the sky.

Yet the strange, heart-palpitating cries coming from the ruined fortress before them left many people feeling weak at the knees.

"Roar~"

"Howl~"

"Woo~"

Chen Lin looked up and saw soldiers in light armor standing all along the fortress's broken walls. Groups of all kinds of demonic beasts kept charging at the ruined fortress as though they had gone mad.

"Chen Lin, see that? Those demonic beasts ahead will be the targets of your practical examination. None of them are weak. At the lowest, they are fierce beasts at the early Martial Apprentice stage, while the strongest are even comparable to martial artists at the early Martial Master stage. Their weakness is their low intelligence, while their strengths are their thick hides, tough flesh, bloodthirst, and madness. Every year, quite a few examinees lose their lives through carelessness. Once you enter, make sure to watch your safety." He Yanjun, who had been following beside Chen Lin, pointed at the beasts ahead and reminded him.

"Thank you for the guidance, Senior He." Chen Lin nodded.

"The Demon Slayer Envoy examination is chiefly meant to temper the mentality of young martial artists like yourselves. You must understand that having great strength does not mean you can kill demonic beasts! Some people have terribly weak courage. At the sight of blood, or when faced with life and death, it would already be decent if they could bring out one-tenth of their strength. When fighting these demonic beasts, do not hesitate or show mercy." He Yanjun gave another uneasy warning.

"Understood." Chen Lin continued nodding.

Chen Lin had already heard Zhu Wei talk about this information many times back at Lieyang Martial Arts School, and he had long since prepared himself mentally, so he was not overly surprised.

"Everyone~"

That deep, resounding voice from before entered Chen Lin's ears again.

Following the sound, Chen Lin saw a burly Golden Armored General with resolute features standing atop a huge tree not far from the group. He addressed all the martial artists. "This Demon Slayer Envoy examination follows the same rules as before. From the moment I announce its start until noon tomorrow, the more demonic beasts you kill, and the stronger they are, the more points you will accumulate."

"Remember, after killing a demonic beast, cut off its right ear as proof. During the examination, you only have three chances to return to the temporary camp and turn in your points."

"Remember, martial artists are forbidden from killing one another. Violators will be killed without mercy. The inspectors in the fortress watchtowers can see every movement you make. Obey the rules, and do not harbor any thoughts of getting lucky."

"After the examination ends, the top three hundred in points will receive the status of Nine-Star Demon Slayer Envoys. Those ranked below three hundred can only wait to participate in the next Demon Slayer Envoy examination."

The martial artists below immediately began discussing among themselves after hearing the Golden Armored General's announcement. Some looked eager with anticipation, some cold and indifferent, some tense, and some calm and composed...

"I now announce that the examination has begun. All martial artists participating in the examination, immediately begin hunting." The Golden Armored General paid no heed to the discussion below and directly announced the start of the examination.

As the Golden Armored General's words fell, the several hundred martial artists taking part shot toward the demonic beast hordes in the distance like arrows released from the bowstring.

As they drew closer and closer to the fortress, everyone consciously began spreading out to hunt the prey they had chosen.

"A Lin, let's part ways here. This Demon Slayer Envoy examination is not only a test of strength, but also a test of courage. If we stay together, we'll definitely affect each other. It's better for us to split up." Chen Yu suggested this to Chen Lin.

"All right!" Chen Lin nodded at his words.

He had been worrying over what excuse to use to hunt separately, yet Chen Yu had unexpectedly brought it up first.

"A Lin, be careful too. Don't try to show off. If it really doesn't work out, give up this chance and take the examination again later. Keeping your life is the first priority." Chen Yu reminded him with a serious expression.

"I know. I'll be careful! You be careful too, Brother Yu." Chen Lin said with concern.

"Mm, I know. See you tomorrow at noon." After saying that, Chen Yu turned and swiftly departed in his chosen direction.

"According to the classifications left behind by the sages, demonic beasts are divided into fierce beasts, Demon Soldiers, Demon Generals, Demon Kings, Demon Emperors, and Demon Emperors. They correspond respectively to the human ranks of Martial Apprentice, Martial Master, Martial Grandmaster, Martial King, Martial Emperor, and Martial Emperor."

"Although there are many monsters around this fortress, they can generally be divided into three categories: feline types that excel in speed, canine types with average strength and speed, and porcine types with great strength and strong defenses." Chen Lin's gaze continuously swept over the demonic beasts ahead as he roughly classified the monsters using the mindset from his previous life.

Of these three categories, the porcine types had high defenses and great strength, making them the most difficult demonic beasts to deal with. Although the fastest feline demonic beasts did not have high defenses, their extreme speed and agility also made them the prey Chen Lin least wanted to hunt at present.

After all, during this period, he had spent all the Slaughter Points he gained on his physical strength and soul, without adding a single point to his cultivation techniques or martial skills.

In the end, Chen Mo set his sights first on the canine demonic beasts, whose speed and strength were both average.

Chen Lin moved, swiftly charging toward the nearest canine demonic beast.

Hearing movement from behind it,

This demonic beast, whose body was covered in bristles like steel needles and stood nearly one meter eighty tall, abruptly turned around. Its scarlet beast eyes fixed fiercely on the approaching Chen Lin.

"Howl~"

After opening its bloody maw and roaring at Chen Lin, the demonic beast suddenly charged toward him.

Chen Lin felt no fear whatsoever. Drawing the Deep Blue Sword, he shouted in a low voice, "Iron-Haired Dog, die! Turn into Slaughter Points for me!"

As the distance between them rapidly closed, the Iron-Haired Dog leaped into the air, opening its bloody maw as it fiercely pounced at Chen Lin like a heavy off-road vehicle racing at full speed.

Chen Lin had never intended to clash head-on with the Iron-Haired Dog. The instant it pounced, he swiftly dodged to the side of the Iron-Haired Dog.

Before it could react, he fiercely thrust his sword toward the Iron-Haired Dog's waist.

The Iron-Haired Dog, flying forward at top speed, had no time to halt its pouncing body.

At the instant Chen Lin drove his sword into its body with all his strength, it only had time to let out a piercing howl. Then its body was like a rag doll torn apart by tremendous force, its intestines and organs spilling all over the ground. It collapsed onto the earth, its entire body twitching nonstop as its breath quickly faded away.

[Slaughter Points +1]

"Hoo~" Chen Lin let out a soft breath, then directly cut off the Iron-Haired Dog's right ear and placed it into the cloth bag at his waist.

"This Iron-Haired Dog is only about as strong as a martial artist at the middle Martial Apprentice stage, yet one of them gives a whole Slaughter Point. What a delightful surprise!" Chen Lin stared at the distant demonic beast horde with shining eyes and muttered to himself.

Given the Iron-Haired Dog's strength, an ordinary martial artist would find it difficult to kill one without fighting for at least half an hour.

The reason Chen Lin had dealt with it so easily was because not only was he powerful, but his soul was powerful as well.

In Chen Lin's eyes, the Iron-Haired Dog's sprinting speed was practically no different from a snail's.

That was why Chen Lin could effortlessly avoid the Iron-Haired Dog's pounce, then rely on the advantage of his weapon and his own tremendous strength to finish off with one sword the Iron-Haired Dog that many people found rather troublesome.

With Chen Lin's current strength, he could fight even a demonic beast at the early Demon Soldier stage. Killing a fierce beast whose strength was close to that of a Martial Master was as easy as turning his hand over.

"On to the next one!"

Chen Lin's figure flashed as he rushed at top speed toward the fortress, leaving behind only the corpse of an Iron-Haired Dog that had nearly been severed at the waist. It lay silently on the ground as dark red blood dyed the nearby soil crimson.