Keep Acting, Keep Acting! Strengthened Again

"Fine. I didn't want blood today, but since you're begging for death, I'll grant your wish!"

The Sallow Man was furious. If this were Vajra Temple, he might have shown some restraint. But some brat who popped out of nowhere dared to provoke him?

Utterly clueless about death!

"Keep pretending. I'll let you pretend."

A familiar voice rang out. Before the Sallow Man could react, a tremendous force slammed into him, sending him flying.

Bam~

The Sallow Man crashed heavily to the ground. A palm print was stamped across his face, his cheek swelling grotesquely.

"You..."

The Sallow Man's expression shifted slightly. Though he wasn't skilled in close combat, the fact that this young man could injure him before he could react meant his opponent was no pushover.

"Pretend. Keep pretending. Bring out whatever tricks you have!" Lin Chen looked down at the Sallow Man on the ground.

"Arrogant bastard! I'll kill you!"

The Sallow Man roared, ghostly qi surging from his body. In an instant, two figures flew out from him—the two Vicious Ghosts he had raised.

"Th-this..."

Seeing the ghosts appear, Wu Hongbin and the bodyguards' faces turned deathly pale. Was this the power of extraordinary people? How could ordinary folks like them ever contend with this?

Lin Chen, however, showed a flicker of excitement. Two ghosts meant another thousand Origin points.

Whoosh~

Lin Chen activated his Blood Qi True Flame and appeared before the two ghosts in an instant. Before they could even strike, they were engulfed by the flame and reduced to ashes.

"Any more?"

Lin Chen stared at the Sallow Man with burning eyes. Two Second-order Ghosts had netted him two thousand Origin points. He was only seven hundred short of his next enhancement!

"You..."

The Sallow Man was horrified. His carefully raised ghosts had been destroyed by Lin Chen before they could even attack?

"None?"

Seeing the Sallow Man's expression, Lin Chen's face fell with disappointment. "Can't you try harder? Raise a few more ghosts?"

"I'll fight you to the death!"

The Sallow Man bellowed, ghostly qi churning around him. His entire body was enveloped in the dark energy, his face twisting into a hideous, savage visage.

"Be careful, Benefactor Lin. He's using Ghost Possession. It greatly amplifies his strength," Master Yi Jie quickly warned Lin Chen.

"Ghost Possession?"

Lin Chen's eyes lit up. This was just like Hu Xiaoling back then—two beings sharing one body. Kill one, get two shares of Origin. Two birds with one stone!

Without a moment's hesitation, Lin Chen swung his fist, wreathed in Blood Qi True Flame, and slammed it into the Sallow Man.

"Ahhh~"

Struck by the Blood Qi True Flame, the Sallow Man let out a bloodcurdling scream. The ghostly qi around him dissipated by half in an instant. But before he could react, Lin Chen's fist came down again.

"Killed Third-order Ghost. Origin +2000."

With just two punches, the ghostly qi on the Sallow Man was completely gone. The Third-order Ghost was dead on the spot!

As the ghostly qi faded, the Sallow Man's form reappeared. But now, his face was pale, and he collapsed to the ground, clearly suffering heavy backlash from the Ghost Possession.

"Got any other tricks? Bring them out. I can still take it." Lin Chen looked at the Sallow Man.

The Sallow Man opened his mouth as if to say something, but no sound came out.

"Damn, that's some foul language. No manners!"

Lin Chen's face darkened. He stomped down, and with a bang, the Sallow Man's head was reduced to ashes under the Blood Qi True Flame.

"Killed Second-order Evil Cultivator. Origin +1000."

"Origin:"

"Upgradable Martial Art: Phoenix Undying Body, First Layer (1/9)"

Looking at the panel, Lin Chen broke into a smile. Then he turned to Master Yi Jie nearby. "This guy counts as an Evil Cultivator, right?"

"Of course. Using ghost cultivation to harm ordinary people for personal gain—absolutely an Evil Cultivator!" Master Yi Jie said solemnly.

"Right, right!"

Wu Hongbin nodded frantically. The Sallow Man was someone even Master Yi Jie dared not confront head-on, yet Lin Chen had killed him in the blink of an eye.

In that moment, Wu Hongbin fully understood—Lin Chen's strength far surpassed Master Yi Jie's!

Looking at the corpse on the ground, Lin Chen curled his lip. "Not pretending anymore, huh?"

"I think he won't be pretending ever again," Master Yi Jie said with a sigh.

Dead. What was there to pretend? Playing dead?

Wu Hongbin and the bodyguards were speechless. No life left—pretending my ass!

"Now I can treat Miss Wu." Lin Chen looked at Wu Hongbin.

Returning to the room, Lin Chen directly activated the Blood Qi True Flame at full force, approaching Wu Xue on the bed. In an instant, ghostly qi surged from Wu Xue's body, and a human figure drilled out from within her.

"Eh~"

Looking at that figure, a flicker of surprise crossed Lin Chen's face. "Isn't this her best friend? How did she turn into a ghost?"

"Best friend?" Wu Hongbin was stunned. The one who had caused Wu Xue to fall unconscious was her best friend?

"This humble monk understands now!"

At that moment, Master Yi Jie's voice rang out. "That person used Miss Wu's best friend to raise a ghost, letting Miss Wu let down her guard so it could enter her body. Otherwise, with my Vajra Temple's protective talismans, ordinary ghosts wouldn't be able to get close."

The Wu Family was an important benefactor of Vajra Temple, so they naturally received truly effective protective talismans. Yet Wu Xue had still been entangled by a ghost. Master Yi Jie hadn't thought deeply about it before, but now he understood the reason behind it.

"Can ordinary people also raise ghosts?" Lin Chen's eyes lit up. What if he raised some ghosts himself, then killed them to obtain Origin, self-sufficient?

"Without the methods of the Ghost Raising Lineage, raising a ghost is equivalent to offering oneself as sustenance to the ghost. In the end, one merely becomes the ghost's food." Master Yi Jie said calmly.

That dangerous?

Upon hearing this, Lin Chen immediately abandoned the idea of self-sufficiency. He didn't have the techniques of the Ghost Raising Lineage.

Now that the ghost had already taken form, Wu Xue's best friend's fate was clear! But all of this was her own doing—if she hadn't thought of raising a ghost to harm Wu Xue, she wouldn't have ended up like this.

Bam~

A fist wrapped in Blood Qi True Flame swung, and the ghost on Wu Xue's body instantly turned to ash and scattered. With the ghost gone, Wu Xue's complexion immediately became rosy.

Master Yi Jie stepped forward to examine Wu Xue, then spoke, "Benefactor Wu, Miss Wu is out of danger. However, for the next two days, she needs to get plenty of sunlight."

"Dad, Xu Huan wanted to harm me, there's a ghost!" Wu Xue on the bed screamed in terror, sitting bolt upright.

Seeing this, Wu Hongbin hurried forward and hugged Wu Xue. "Dad's here, it's alright. It's all over."

Wu Xue calmed down, her gaze sweeping across the room. When she saw Lin Chen, she was clearly startled. "It's you!"

"Miss Wu, we meet again. Now do you understand I wasn't hitting on you?" Lin Chen said with a light laugh.

At these words, a trace of embarrassment immediately appeared on Wu Xue's face. Last night when she met Lin Chen, she thought he was trying to flirt with her, even making up a story about encountering a ghost. But now she understood that Lin Chen hadn't lied to her last night.

"Xiaoxue, why don't you thank Master Lin? If not for his help, your life would have been in danger." Wu Hongbin quickly spoke.

He had seen Lin Chen's ruthless methods firsthand—he had directly turned someone's head to ash. He didn't want Wu Xue to leave a bad impression on Lin Chen.