Third Grade Precious Medicine, Thousand Spirit Blood Origin Grass!

"Boom!"

In the dead of night, beneath the firelight, Liu Fusheng's mountainous, obese corpse crashed heavily to the ground.

Seeing this, Lin Yi sheathed his long saber, let out a light breath, and then a faint smile crept across his face.

Seventh Grade Mid Stage—he had broken through just a few exchanges into his fight with Liu Fusheng.

After all, he had already reached the limit of Seventh Grade Early Stage, with only a single step separating him from Seventh Grade Mid Stage.

And with the heaven-defying talent of his Martial Saint Body, that bottleneck was nearly nonexistent, always on the verge of being breached.

Thus, under the pressure Liu Fusheng exerted, Lin Yi naturally broke through.

Now, with the strength of Seventh Grade Mid Stage, combined with the formidable defensive power of the Bright Moon Saber Art, even if Liu Fusheng's skill was impressive, he could no longer kill Lin Yi.

Of course, Lin Yi also found it nearly impossible to kill Liu Fusheng.

That was why Lin Yi had later continued to outwardly feign weakness, while secretly seeking an opportunity to slay Liu Fusheng, all while probing for the reasons behind Liu Fusheng's earlier actions.

And in his arrogance, Liu Fusheng had indeed spilled everything, not only revealing all to Lin Yi but also, due to carelessness, meeting his end at Lin Yi's blade in the final moment—wasting all his scheming.

"But now that Liu Fusheng is dead, the trail to that Thousand Spirit Blood Origin Grass is cut off."

Gazing at Liu Fusheng's headless corpse on the ground, Lin Yi's eyes flickered with thought:

"I wonder if Liu Fusheng had already moved the Thousand Spirit Blood Origin Grass from the Medicine Manor west of the city, or if it's still there."

"If it's still there, and I can get my hands on such a treasure—even if it's just a seedling—I'll be set. If he moved it, then it's all for nothing."

"What a pity—there wasn't enough time just now. Otherwise, I could have pressed Liu Fusheng on where he hid the Thousand Spirit Blood Origin Grass. Though he probably wouldn't have told me anyway."

With that thought, Lin Yi shook his head slightly.

He had no choice just now. Given the strength he had outwardly displayed, holding Liu Fusheng off for that long was already his limit.

If he had held out any longer, he would likely have been exposed, letting Liu Fusheng guess that he had broken through.

Then, not only would he have failed to kill Liu Fusheng, but he might have been secretly ambushed, putting himself in grave danger.

So at that moment, Liu Fusheng had to die! He absolutely had to die!

As for the Thousand Spirit Blood Origin Grass, he could only do his best and leave the rest to fate.

"First, I'll search the corpse and see if I can find any clues about the Thousand Spirit Blood Origin Grass on Liu Fusheng."

With that resolve, Lin Yi bent down and began to rummage through Liu Fusheng's body.

Soon, he felt a hard object against the fleshy chest of Liu Fusheng.

"This is..."

Startled, Lin Yi quickly pulled the object from Liu Fusheng's chest and found it to be a Jade Box.

The Jade Box was about the size of a palm, three fingers wide, exquisitely crafted, and made of top-quality jade that emitted a warm, gentle glow under the firelight.

"Could it be..."

With a guess forming in his mind, Lin Yi opened the Jade Box to look.

The next moment, under the firelight, a processed plant about three inches long appeared before him. It resembled an ordinary Blood Origin Grass, but its roots, stems, and leaves were covered in mysterious, noble golden patterns.

"This is the Thousand Spirit Blood Origin Grass!"

Staring at the herb radiating a mysterious, noble aura inside the box, Lin Yi—though he had never seen or even heard of the Thousand Spirit Blood Origin Grass—was now certain! Absolutely certain!

Found in Liu Fusheng's bosom, resembling a Blood Origin Grass, yet with golden patterns covering its roots, stems, and leaves, exuding an incomparably noble air—what else could this miraculous plant be but the Thousand Spirit Blood Origin Grass?

"Jackpot! This time, I've really hit the jackpot!"

Gazing at the three-inch spirit herb in his hand, Lin Yi couldn't contain his joy:

"The Thousand Spirit Blood Origin Grass! A peerless divine medicine worth over two hundred thousand taels of silver!"

"Poor Liu Fusheng—he schemed so meticulously, only to end up handing everything to me on a silver platter! Ha! Hahaha!"

Lin Yi laughed heartily.

A third-grade peerless divine medicine, even if only a seedling, was worth at least ten to twenty thousand taels of silver.

Of course, since Lin Yi lacked proper channels and, more importantly, this seedling couldn't be shown openly, he would have to sell it through some black market or similar means, likely at a discount.

But no matter how much it was discounted, selling it for several thousand taels of silver was absolutely no problem!

"My next talent is secured!"

Lin Yi's eyes burned with fervor. He quickly and carefully stowed away the Jade Box, then kicked Liu Fusheng's head and corpse into the blazing fire of the warehouse. Finally, he hurriedly fled the medicine shop.

After his fierce struggle with Liu Fusheng, judging by the sounds of battle around him, the bandits of Black Wind Stronghold seemed to be gaining the upper hand.

If he didn't leave now, he would be in serious trouble once the Black Wind Stronghold bandits surrounded him.

With these thoughts racing through his mind, Lin Yi moved like the wind, swiftly leaving the county town and hiding himself in a dense forest outside.

Time passed quickly, and soon, a whole night had gone by.

In the sky, as the sun rose, it heralded the arrival of a new day.

However, Lin Yi did not rush back to the county town after dawn. Instead, he waited in the woods until past noon before cautiously returning to the city.

The scene in the county town was not as tragic as Lin Yi had imagined.

Although the major families and powerful forces in the county had been wiped out, and many houses burned to ashes, most of the common folk had survived, with only a few living near the large families caught in the crossfire.

This was not because the bandits of Black Wind Stronghold were merciful. First, the commoners had little to plunder; even a whole night of looting might yield less than breaking into two or three major powers.

Second, it was due to the deterrence of the Tianshan Sect. After all, the Tianshan Sect was still very powerful. Though not among the absolute peak forces in the entire Jiuzhou World, it was still one of the top-tier sects.

For a large stronghold like Black Wind Stronghold, if they merely wiped out a few family forces, the Tianshan Sect might turn a blind eye. After all, there were formidable figures among the bandits, and the sect had to consider their stance.

But if the Black Wind Stronghold bandits dared to massacre the entire city, then not even the Heavenly King himself could save them!

Thus, even if Black Wind Stronghold wanted to establish their authority and take revenge, they had to exercise some restraint.

Thoughts churned in Lin Yi's mind. After a moment, he returned to the branch of Wang's Pharmacy.

Then, he began searching the pharmacy for any survivors.

Suddenly—

"Young Master Lin Yi!"

A delighted voice rang out beside Lin Yi. He turned to see the young maidservant Xiao Zhi approaching him with a bright smile:

"Young Master Lin Yi, I'm so glad to see you're safe! Last night, when the Black Wind Stronghold bandits suddenly attacked the city, I hid in your small courtyard the whole night, not daring to make a sound."

"Several groups of bandits came to search the courtyard, but luckily they didn't find me. Otherwise, I would have been done for."

"Oh! Young Master Lin Yi, where did you go last night? Why did you only return today?"

"Xiao Zhi, I spent the entire night battling a bandit. I chased him dozens of li out of the city before finally managing to kill him, which is why I'm only back now."

Lin Yi casually explained, then asked:

"Never mind me for now. Tell me, what are the casualties at the pharmacy? How are the members of the Medicine Escort Team who came with me?"

"The pharmacy's losses are heavy."

Hearing this, Xiao Zhi's mood visibly darkened. Her eyes reddened as she explained:

"Sun Hu, A Shan, Master Wang, Aunt Zhang, and many doctors, instructors, and guards are dead. The shopkeeper is missing. There aren't many people left in the pharmacy."

"The Medicine Escort Team also suffered heavy losses. Eight of the twenty-five are dead, twelve are injured. Even Captain Wang Chuan is severely wounded. He's in the pharmacy now, being treated by a master sent urgently by the Main Family."

"Oh, the Wang Family's Main Family sent someone? That's good!"

Hearing this, Lin Yi breathed a slight sigh of relief.

Since the Wang Family's Main Family had sent people, there was no need to worry about the Black Wind Stronghold bandits launching a counterattack.

As for the grudges between the Wang Family and other forces against Black Wind Stronghold, those would naturally be handled by the big shots. It had nothing to do with him.

As long as he followed the Main Family's important figures back to the Commandery City, everything in Beicang County would be settled.

Thinking this, Lin Yi felt a wave of relief. His heart began to quietly anticipate returning to the Commandery City with the Wang Family's Main Family members, selling the Thousand Spirit Blood Origin Grass seedling, and evolving his talent.