The battle at Weeping Ghost Mine had transformed Lin Feng's name within the Demon Suppression Division of Nan Yan Commandery from "a newcomer who had stepped in dog shit" into "a freakishly ruthless man no one could afford to provoke."
The entire Iron Token Courtyard was permeated by an unprecedented atmosphere of harmony.
Those seasoned old hands who had once loved gathering to gossip and point fingers at newcomers now acted as though they had seen their own ancestral tablets whenever they saw Lin Feng. From dozens of yards away, they would already be bowing and scraping, their forced smiles uglier than crying.
As for Wei Jin's lackeys, they had become thoroughly frightened birds startled by the mere twang of a bowstring.
It was said that they did not even dare mention Lin Feng's name in their dreams at night, terrified that the God of Slaughter would crawl out from beneath their beds with a saber in hand and ask them, "What are my rules?"
Lin Feng, meanwhile, did not care in the slightest.
To him, beating this swarm of flies into submission was merely to create an environment where he could spend freely in peace.
Under the Mission Hall steward's ghost-stricken gaze, Lin Feng smoothly received 1,500 Merit Points.
With this enormous sum tucked away, he headed straight for the martial arts repository in high spirits.
It was still the same repository, and still the same two stewards.
Only this time, the treatment could not have been more different.
Before Lin Feng had even reached the entrance, the two stewards sprang from their chairs as if they had springs beneath them and hurried over at a run.
"Brother Lin! Y-you're here!"
One of the stewards bowed and scraped, the fawning expression on his face nearly overflowing. "The repository was specially cleared out for you today! It'll be absolutely quiet! Absolutely no one will disturb you!"
The other promptly brought over a cup of hot tea.
"Brother Lin, please watch your step! Be careful of the stairs! We'll be waiting at the entrance. If you need anything at all, just call out!"
Just two days ago, they had been mocking Lin Feng as a coward, yet today, he had returned carrying the head of a third-tier Golden Corpse King.
That slap to the face had been swift and vicious, nearly sending them straight to the afterlife.
Forget making things difficult for him—they practically wanted to put Lin Feng on an altar and worship him.
Lin Feng could not be bothered to argue with these fence-sitters and headed directly to the second floor of the repository.
Unlike the dazzling array of bookshelves on the first floor, the second floor was spacious and solemn.
There were only a dozen or so bookshelves made of rosewood, sparsely displaying secret manuals carefully preserved in jade boxes.
Every secret manual emitted faint spiritual energy fluctuations, clearly marking them as anything but ordinary.
Lin Feng's goal was clear.
He now had a cultivation art, saber technique, and movement technique, but they were all common beginner-village goods from a place like Qingyang County. They had long since failed to keep pace with the growth of his strength.
He soon found the three manuals he had set his sights on.
The first was a cultivation art, the Blazing Heaven Sun Art.
It was an advanced version of the Blazing Sun Art. The true qi it cultivated was fiercer and more tyrannical, like flames that could burn the heavens, enough to support a martial artist's cultivation up to the peak of the ninth layer of the True Qi Realm.
Price: 1,000 Merit Points.
The second was a saber technique, the Nine Tribulations Thunder Slash.
It had nine forms. Each slash was like a bolt of thunder, every strike a tribulation. Its power far surpassed the Seven Fiends Saber Technique.
Price: 1,000 Merit Points.
The third was a movement technique, the Phantom Flowing Light Steps.
Once cultivated to great mastery, one's body would become like a phantom and one's steps like flowing light. During movement, it could even leave behind an afterimage to confuse enemies.
Price: 1,000 Merit Points.
The three manuals together cost 3,000 Merit Points.
Lin Feng walked to the exchange counter and handed over the manuals along with his token.
The person in charge of the exchange was still that old man with the goatee.
When the old man saw Lin Feng, his eyelids twitched, and his attitude was visibly better than last time.
"The Blazing Heaven Sun Art can be exchanged using your mission reward."
As he registered the exchange, the old man said, "The remaining two require 2,000 Merit Points. You only have 1,500, so you're short 500."
"How many Merit Points can this be exchanged for?"
Lin Feng had come prepared. He placed the copied manual of the Heavenly Corpse Soul Control Art, which he had seized from the mine tunnel, onto the table.
The old man with the goatee initially paid it no mind. But when his gaze fell upon the four twisted, sinister seal-script characters on the cover, his clouded eyes abruptly lit up. He snatched up the manual as though he had obtained a priceless treasure.
"The Heavenly Corpse Soul Control Art! It's actually this long-lost evil path cultivation art!"
"Though this cultivation art is vicious, its methods of corpse refinement and mental control hold extremely high reference value for our Demon Suppression Division's research into Zombies' weaknesses!"
He raised his head, and even the way he looked at Lin Feng had changed.
"Ahem... according to the rules, turning in valuable evil path cultivation arts such as this will earn a reward from the Division."
"This copied manual—I'll make the decision and value it at... 500 Merit Points! What do you think?"
"Fine." Lin Feng secretly laughed. This old man was quite the businessman.
His Merit Points now added up perfectly, and all three brand-new secret manuals were in his hands.
After returning to the Iron Token Courtyard, Lin Feng shut his room's door, an excited expression appearing on his face as though he were about to start drawing cards.
He first committed the contents of all three manuals to memory, then opened the system panel.
[Crit Points: 78050]
Seeing that string of numbers, Lin Feng was suddenly filled with heroic spirit.
"Having money means I can do whatever I want!"
"System! Start adding points!"
[Ding! Consumed 50000 Crit Points. Blazing Heaven Sun Art critical hit successful!]
Rumble!!!
This breakthrough was far more violent than any of the previous ones!
If advancing from Body Tempering to the Meridian Opening Realm was a small stream flowing into a great river—
Then advancing from the Meridian Opening Realm to the True Qi Realm was a great river flowing backward, surging into the sea against the current!
Within the meridians of his body, the surging golden true qi began undergoing a qualitative transformation under the catalysis of massive amounts of Crit Points!
It was compressed, purified, and refined again and again. In the end, strands of pale golden "spiritual energy," purer and more agile, as though they possessed life itself, were born from the true qi!
At the same time, a massive spiritual energy vortex formed explosively within his dantian!
This was the mark of the True Qi Realm—an energy vortex!
With an energy vortex, a martial artist could absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth into the body, transform it into personal spiritual power, and maintain an endless cycle of replenishment as their strength soared!
True Qi Realm, first layer!
True Qi Realm, second layer!
True Qi Realm, third layer!
A full 50,000 Crit Points, like fuel, forcibly propelled his cultivation from the complete ninth layer of the Meridian Opening Realm directly to the third layer of the True Qi Realm!
"Phew..."
Lin Feng slowly opened his eyes. Feeling the unprecedented power within him, he moved at a thought.
He held two fingers together like a sword and lightly pointed at the bare wall.
A concentrated strand of pale golden spiritual energy shot from his fingertips, silently leaving a tiny, bottomless hole in the hard wall.
External release of true qi!
This was the most distinctive trait of a True Qi Realm expert—killing without leaving a trace!
"Not bad, not bad."
Lin Feng nodded in satisfaction, then turned his gaze to the system panel again.
After thinking for a moment, he issued a command.
[Ding! Consumed 10000 Crit Points. Phantom Flowing Light Steps critical hit successful!]
Endless insights into movement techniques flooded into his mind. Lin Feng only felt his body become lighter than ever before, as if he had merged with the wind itself.
With a thought, he casually took a step inside the cramped room.
His figure instantly vanished from where he stood. The next moment, four identical "Lin Fengs" appeared simultaneously in the southeast, southwest, northeast, and northwest corners of the room!
These afterimages were lifelike. Even the folds of their clothing were clearly visible, carrying faint spiritual energy fluctuations—enough to pass false for true!
Phantom Flowing Light Steps, minor mastery!
By rights, even a movement technique cultivated to completion could only produce one afterimage to confuse an enemy.
Minor mastery should not have been able to produce afterimages.
Yet relying on his sixtyfold critical hit, Lin Feng had forcibly accomplished at minor mastery what even completion could not achieve.
"This speed is simply the difference between a horse-drawn carriage and an airplane compared to the Flowing Wind Steps. If it reaches completion, combined with the critical hit, dozens—or even hundreds—of afterimages could appear in an instant..."
Lin Feng was extremely satisfied with the result and finally fixed his gaze upon the saber technique.
[Ding! Consumed 18000 Crit Points. Nine Tribulations Thunder Slash critical hit successful!]
Bzzzt—!
This time, what flooded into his mind was no longer mere killing intent.
It was a tyrannical saber intent—violent and fierce, seemingly capable of stirring the divine thunder of the Ninth Heaven!
The Hundred Refined Steel Blade in his hand, drawn by this saber intent—
Actually emitted faint crackling sounds, as though tiny arcs of electricity were dancing across its blade!
Nine Tribulations Thunder Slash, proficient!
Third layer of the True Qi Realm.
A movement technique at minor mastery.
A saber technique at proficiency.
And on top of that, a critical hit multiplier as high as sixtyfold...
Lin Feng rose to his feet. Feeling the earth-shaking transformation in his strength, the curve of his lips became increasingly unrestrained.
If that Golden Corpse King came back to life again—
One slash would send him straight back to his coffin!
Before you continue