Wu Family Treasury

The Wu Household was the largest household in Baoshan Village, with countless acres of fertile land and wealth piled as high as mountains.

And the way they had amassed such a vast fortune was actually quite simple.

Lending money!

Loan sharking!

It wasn't for that tiny bit of interest.

Whenever a farmer came to borrow money, they would use their own land as collateral.

Then, after some time, those farmers who had borrowed money would mysteriously disappear.

On the surface, it was said that they had encountered ferocious beasts in the mountains and been eaten.

But in reality, the Wu Household had a cooperative relationship with the demons in the mountains.

The demons received food, while the Wu Household helped conceal the truth and took possession of the farmers' land.

They had never met with failure.

Hearing this, Shen Lin asked curiously, "After all this time, didn't the other people of Baoshan Village discover anything? Didn't the County Yamen send anyone to investigate?"

The corners of Zijing's mouth curled into a mocking smile. "When the Wu Household took action, they naturally made sure every connection was in place. The common people blindly followed along and couldn't distinguish anything suspicious. And people from the County Yamen have come before, too."

As she spoke, she glanced at Sun Zhi ahead and continued, "For example, Captain Sun has come several times. Yet every time, he judged that the culprit was a ferocious beast from the mountains. Coincidentally, not long afterward, he would find traces of demons somewhere else."

Shen Lin fell silent and let out a helpless sigh.

Before long, a village appeared ahead of them.

Compared with Bai Family Village, Baoshan Village was more than five times larger in area alone. Candlelight dotted the densely packed earthen houses.

Shen Lin was just about to continue forward when Zijing stopped him.

"Wait. Dog demons have keen senses; their sense of smell and hearing are both stronger than those of ordinary demons. We need to keep at least five li away. Once their attention is focused on Sun Zhi, we'll act."

Shen Lin nodded and quietly waited for Sun Zhi to enter.

"Speaking of which, aren't you afraid those demons will attack Captain Sun directly? At this distance, you won't be able to get there in time."

Zijing looked at Shen Lin in confusion.

Hadn't this fellow always treated Sun Zhi as his cover?

How could he so casually let him fall into danger this time?

Shen Lin said quietly, "In that case, Captain Sun can only fight to the death and slay the three demons, then die of his severe injuries on the way back."

A shiver ran through Zijing as she listened to the script he had arranged for Sun Zhi. "You really are ruthless. But if you do that, you won't be able to keep hiding your cultivation anymore."

Shen Lin nodded, but gave no response.

If he could no longer hide it, then he would simply act openly and boldly.

After some more time, once he broke through his twelfth meridian, he would be able to advance to the Innate Realm.

By then, with his talent, he should qualify to enter the Demon Suppression Division.

At the thought, Shen Lin felt tremendously invigorated.

The Demon Suppression Division specialized in slaying demons and exterminating devils. If he could enter it, he would inevitably encounter more demons and obtain more Demon Lifespan.

As he was thinking, his eyes suddenly shifted. He discovered that two figures had appeared in front of Sun Zhi at some point.

After exchanging a few words with them, Sun Zhi was led by the two men toward a corner of the village.

"Let's go!"

Zijing had seen this scene as well, and her eyes lit up. She led Shen Lin around the edge of the village toward a particularly conspicuous, grand residence.

The two moved lightly, making not the slightest sound.

After successfully slipping past the Wu Household's patrolling guards, they soon ran into a courtyard.

"That must be the Wu Household's treasury. I'll pick the lock. Keep an eye on the surroundings for me."

After Zijing said this, she was just about to move when Shen Lin stopped her.

Shen Lin shushed her and pointed toward a corner of the courtyard.

Zijing looked over in confusion, and her pupils abruptly contracted.

In the corner of the courtyard, within the pitch-black shadows, a figure was standing there quietly.

Meridian Opening Realm!

Even an ordinary martial artist who exerted all their strength to suppress their aura couldn't escape the perception of someone in the Meridian Opening Realm.

Zijing hadn't noticed the other party at all at first. This meant that the other party was definitely a powerhouse of the same level as her.

She frowned and thought, This is troublesome.

The intelligence they had obtained earlier had never mentioned that a Meridian Opening Realm martial artist guarded the Wu Household.

It seemed that her actions some time ago had aroused the Wu Household's vigilance, prompting them to specifically invite a Meridian Opening Realm expert to guard the treasury.

The other party had chosen an excellent position. The entire treasury fell within his field of vision, and there was no way she could get around him.

Could they deal with him first?

But if they did, the commotion would be too great. It was highly likely that... huh?

While Zijing's thoughts raced as she pondered a solution, she suddenly noticed the other party's shadow wriggle. A figure appeared beside him.

Was that... Shen Lin?

Zijing instinctively turned her head, only to find empty space beside her. She immediately confirmed her guess.

Shen Lin didn't have time to dawdle here. What if those dog demons discovered Sun Zhi's purpose and fled after realizing something was wrong?

Where would he find another three Meridian Opening Realm demons?

So while Zijing was still thinking, he had already begun to act.

Relying on the Shadow-Breaking Step, he appeared soundlessly behind the Wu Household's Meridian Opening Realm expert. Shen Lin gestured at the man's neck, formed his right hand into a blade, and chopped down with one palm.

Thud!

The other party didn't even let out a grunt before rolling his eyes back and collapsing limply to the ground.

Though this fellow was also in the Meridian Opening Realm, he had only opened one or two meridians. The gap between him and Shen Lin was enormous.

On top of that, Shen Lin had launched a shameless sneak attack. The Meridian Opening Realm expert the Wu Household had spent a fortune inviting over immediately began sleeping like a log.

Not far away, Zijing's expression turned strange when she saw Shen Lin make the gesture indicating that he had "taken care of it."

But she knew there was no time to dwell on it. She ran straight to the treasury door and began trying to pick the lock.

Watching Zijing pull out all kinds of tools and diligently embark on her lock-picking endeavor, Shen Lin yawned in boredom, bent down, and searched the unconscious man's body.

The search really did turn up something good.

Besides nearly a thousand taels' worth of silver notes, Shen Lin also found a martial art.

"Mountain-Opening Fist."

Well... with such an imposing name, it should at least be better than Blood Battle Saber Technique, right?

He flipped through it casually, then tucked it into his robe.

Just then, a click came from Zijing's side. The treasury door's lock had been opened.

"You opened it?"

Hearing the voice behind her, Zijing took a deep breath and pushed the door open with slightly trembling hands.

The moment the door opened, a dazzling array of wealth greeted them.

Pearls and coral, gold bricks and silver ingots, filled the entire room.

Yet Zijing didn't spare a glance for these riches that ordinary people couldn't earn in a lifetime. Instead, she looked straight at the famous paintings hanging on the walls.

But after scanning the room, the excitement on her face instantly froze.

"How is that possible???"

Her emotions surging, she rushed inside and began rummaging through everything.

After a while, she sank weakly into a chair and murmured, "How could it not be here..."

Shen Lin wasn't blinded by the gold and silver filling the room, either. Instead, he carefully searched through it all, trying to find some martial arts manuals.

After all, no matter how much of this worldly wealth he found, he couldn't carry much of it out even if he stuffed his clothing pockets full.

And once his strength was sufficient, wealth would be nothing more than a thought away.

Unfortunately, he didn't find any martial arts manuals in the treasury.

He returned and looked at the dejected Zijing. Stroking his chin, he said, "You didn't find what you were looking for. Why not go ask?"

"Ask who?"

Zijing's voice was wooden as she asked instinctively. Then she suddenly drew in a deep breath, shot to her feet, and said, "You're right! Let's go ask!"

She hadn't wanted to personally meet the Wu Household Head, because doing so carried the risk of exposing herself.

But now that she hadn't found what she was looking for, she had no choice but to trouble this Wu master.

As for the risk of exposure...

There was a very simple solution.