True Qi Realm, Ninth Layer

Bronze Token Courtyard.

Unlike the crowded, noisy communal dormitories of the Iron Token Courtyard, this was the exclusive domain of the Demon Suppression Division's true upper echelon.

Every Bronze Token Envoy possessed an independent, exquisitely designed courtyard spanning a vast area.

Within the courtyard were rockeries and flowing water, pavilions and towers, abundant spiritual energy, and even a dedicated quiet chamber for cultivation.

With the newly issued key in hand, Lin Feng could not wait to head to the armory.

It was still the same two stewards, but upon seeing Lin Feng now, they bowed and scraped, without the slightest trace of neglect.

"Your humble servants pay respects to Lord Lin!"

They were genuinely terrified.

This was a joke—he was the youngest Bronze Token Envoy in the history of the Demon Suppression Division, a ruthless man who had sent a Half-step Dan Yuan Realm expert flying with one slash!

They had even dared to make things difficult for him before. Looking back on it now, they had practically been repeatedly hopping on King Yama's grave. The fact that they had not been ground to dust on the spot meant smoke was rising from their ancestral graves.

"Enough. Don't pull that empty formalities nonsense in the future."

Lin Feng waved a hand and headed straight up to the third floor of the armory.

This was the true forbidden ground.

Only Bronze Token Envoys were qualified to set foot here.

Unlike the first and second floors, the third floor was almost excessively empty, containing only a lone black bookshelf.

Only a dozen or so manuals sealed within golden jade boxes and several divine weapons rested upon that shelf.

Yet every jade box and divine weapon emitted spiritual energy fluctuations that made one's heart palpitate.

Lin Feng drew a deep breath and began sweeping up the goods.

He had earned twenty thousand Merit Points from this Four-star Mission. Added to those accumulated from previous missions, he now possessed an astonishing total of 62,700 points!

He could be called the Demon Suppression Division's number one tycoon!

Without the slightest hesitation, he directly locked onto his targets.

The first item was a weapon.

His previous Hundred Refined Steel Blade had broken, so he set his sights on a savage battle blade that was crimson-black throughout, its blade inscribed with ancient demonic patterns.

[Killing Blade]: Forged from extraterrestrial meteorite iron mixed with molten earth-core lava, tempered for eighty-one days. The blade contains Killing Intent and can pierce anything. Exchange price: 20,000 Merit Points.

The second item was a blade technique.

[Abyssal Path Three Slashes]: A blade technique of unknown origin. It is said that once cultivated to perfection, it can slaughter gods with a single slash and sever the Great Dao. It consists of three forms: Mortal Severing, God Slaughtering, Dao Extinguishing. Exchange price: 20,000 Merit Points.

The third item was a movement technique.

[Treading Snow Without Trace]: A movement technique. Once cultivated to great mastery, one may tread through the void. With a single step, one's body can shift between reality and illusion, impossible for gods or ghosts to find. Exchange price: 20,000 Merit Points.

The three items came to exactly 60,000 Merit Points.

The old man with the goatee watched Lin Feng select these three "treasures of the armory," and his hands began to tremble.

"L-Lord Lin, are you sure you want to exchange for them?"

Which of these manuals and divine weapons was not enshrined like a treasure?

Several years might pass without anyone exchanging for even one of them.

Yet this lord had come in and bundled them all away at once!

Bronze Token Courtyard, Courtyard Number Seven.

This place was completely different from the crowded, noisy Iron Token Courtyard, which was comparable to a university dormitory.

It was an independent courtyard of quiet elegance, with rockeries and flowing water, pavilions and towers.

Lin Feng had no interest in admiring it. The first thing he did was shut the door.

He did not care about his elevated status or improved treatment.

The only thing he cared about was that glittering string of numbers on the system panel.

[Crit Points: 257550]

"System, stop sleeping and get to work!"

[Ding! Detected that the host possesses a massive amount of Crit Points. Would you like to begin increasing your strength?]

"Obviously!"

Lin Feng did not hesitate in the slightest.

[Ding! Consumed 100000 Crit Points. Blazing Heaven Sun Art crit successful!]

Boom!!!

A golden torrent, purer and more blazing than any before, exploded within his body!

If his spiritual power had previously been a surging river, then this force was sun lava condensed from the energy of a hundred thousand volcanoes!

The vortex within him spun madly, accelerating to the extreme, as though it were about to transform into a black hole that devoured all things.

The cultivation bottleneck at the seventh layer of the True Qi Realm was as fragile as window paper before this unreasonable force, breaking with a single poke!

Eighth layer of the True Qi Realm!

Ninth layer of the True Qi Realm!

His cultivation was like a runaway spiritual-energy flying vessel, charging forward in triumphant song before finally stabilizing firmly at the peak of the ninth layer of the True Qi Realm!

Only a single step remained between him and the legendary Dan Yuan Realm!

"Haa..."

Lin Feng exhaled a scorching breath, and even the air warped faintly from the heat.

The purity and magnitude of his true qi were now more than ten times greater than before!

Should he skip upgrading the Phantom Flowing Light Steps and directly upgrade Treading Snow Without Trace next?

Lin Feng narrowed his eyes and studied the panel in thought.

No.

Although Treading Snow Without Trace was more advanced than the Phantom Flowing Light Steps.

The Phantom Flowing Light Steps focused on displacement, while Treading Snow Without Trace emphasized speed.

Their characteristics were different.

Furthermore, for every cultivation art, the effect of progressing from great mastery to perfection was a qualitative leap.

Having thought this through, Lin Feng no longer hesitated.

[Ding! Consumed 100000 Crit Points. Phantom Flowing Light Steps crit successful!]

Phantom Flowing Light Steps, perfected!

Another immense torrent of comprehension surged into his sea of consciousness.

With a thought from Lin Feng, his figure instantly vanished from the spot.

The next instant, over a hundred identical "Lin Fengs" appeared throughout the cultivation chamber at once!

Every one of them was lifelike. Even the arrogant aura in their eyes that said, "I'm fucking awesome, come slash me," was mimicked with breathtaking accuracy.

These phantoms were no longer mere afterimages. They contained a thread of his true qi and could even independently perform simple attacks, enough to pass false for true.

"Very good. Very powerful. That proves my line of thought was correct."

Lin Feng nodded in satisfaction. "Only the blade technique and movement technique remain."

He fixed his gaze on the two top-tier manuals he had just exchanged for.

[Ding! Consumed 20000 Crit Points. Abyssal Path Three Slashes crit successful! Realm increased to beginner!]

[Ding! Consumed 20000 Crit Points. Treading Snow Without Trace crit successful! Realm increased to beginner!]

Two entirely different profound comprehensions rushed into his mind.

One seemed to originate from the Nine Nether Hells, filled with terrifying blade intent of endless slaughter and destruction.

Even at the beginner stage, it made Lin Feng feel as though his soul would be torn apart by that blade intent.

The other was ethereal and graceful, an exquisite footwork that seemed to merge with heaven, earth, and the void.

With one step, his body could freely shift between reality and illusion.

"Hiss... these cultivation arts truly are not on the same level."

Lin Feng smacked his lips.

Even reaching the beginner stage required twenty thousand Crit Points for each one.

The threshold for burning money had suddenly risen.

However, as he looked at his completely renewed attribute panel, Lin Feng felt those Crit Points had been well spent!

[Host: Lin Feng]

[Realm: True Qi Realm, Ninth Layer (Peak)]

[Cultivation Art: Blazing Heaven Sun Art (Perfected)]

[Martial Skills: Nine Tribulations Thunder Slash (Perfected), Abyssal Path Three Slashes (Beginner)]

[Movement Techniques: Phantom Flowing Light Steps (Perfected), Treading Snow Without Trace (Beginner)]

[Crit Multiplier: 110x]

[Crit Points: 17550]

"Peak ninth layer of the True Qi Realm, cultivation art and movement technique both perfected, with two advanced martial skills at my side..."

Lin Feng rose to his feet and loosened his muscles, feeling as though his entire body was filled with inexhaustible power.

He now had absolute confidence that if that Old Demon of Black Wind came back to life, he would not even need to use the Abyssal Path Three Slashes. With only the perfected Nine Tribulations Thunder Slash and a 110x crit, he could send him away with one slash, man and urn of ashes together!

"Alas, invincibility is always so plain, unadorned, and boring."

Lin Feng gazed up at the ceiling at a forty-five-degree angle and let out a pretentious sigh.

"Crit Points still aren't enough. I need to keep farming them."

Just as he was considering what sort of "slay dragons and exterminate phoenixes" mission to take from the Mission Hall tomorrow, hurried footsteps suddenly sounded outside the courtyard.

It was Zhao Tie and Li Rui.

"Brother Lin! Brother Lin, this is bad!"

Before the two even entered, their noisy shouts had already carried inside.

"What is it?"

Lin Feng opened the door. Seeing the two panting heavily, he frowned slightly.

"Something... something huge happened in the Division!"

Zhao Tie said with a grave expression, "News came from the City Lord's Mansion. Several murder cases have occurred in the county city one after another recently! The victims... the victims were all young, beautiful women, and their deaths were extremely bizarre!"

"Oh?"

Lin Feng was somewhat interested. "How bizarre?"

Li Rui swallowed. "The victims' skin... had all been peeled off completely, as though they were taking off clothes! Yet their corpses were completely intact, and there were even strange smiles on their faces!"

Three words instantly sprang into Lin Feng's mind.

"Skin-Peeling Demon?"