Demon Core, Song Ren

"Rumble rumble"

The moment the invisible shockwave met the blue light, the surrounding space seemed to freeze.

Then, a deafening roar erupted, like mountains collapsing and seas surging, shattering vegetation for miles around.

A colossal force, capable of moving mountains and draining seas, pushed the giant blade through the blue light, as if intending to cleave the entire world in two.

"Swoosh"

The Ghost Head Saber sliced through the tiger's claw, from the Tiger Demon's right collarbone downwards, all the way to below its left ribs. A massive amount of blood sprayed out like it was free.

The Tiger Demon's body snapped in half with a crash, falling as two pieces, one large and one small.

"Pfft"

The Tiger Demon spat out a mouthful of blood, its terrifying tiger face still attached to the smaller section of its body. Its voice rasped like a broken bellows, "Hhkk... Who exactly are you?"

"Are you from the Demon Suppression Division, or a helper the magistrate hired?"

A bone-chilling coldness answered the Tiger Demon's question for Su Ye. With a "whoosh," its massive head rolled away.

Su Ye lifted his leg and charged straight for the remaining Demonic Beasts. He concealed his surging blood energy beneath his feet, and as his speed increased dramatically, the Ghost Head Saber spat out a fiery red mist extending over ten feet.

Moving at extreme speed, he left blurry afterimages in the air. His broad blade either slashed, smashed, swept, or chopped.

Su Ye was like a demon god, continuously reaping the lives of the Demonic Beasts in the field. In the time it took an incense stick to burn, over thirty Demonic Beasts had fallen.

[Killed [Meridian Opening Mirror Mid-stage · Tiger Demon], gained 76 Assistance Points]

[Killed [Late Sentience · Wolf Demon], gained 33 Assistance Points]

[Killed [Mid Sentience · Ape Demon], gained 29 Assistance Points]

[Remaining Assistance Points: 512]

The sun had just risen, and the autumn wind rustled. Su Ye sat cross-legged on a smooth stone surface, tallying the spoils of his trip. Not far away, Big Black came sprinting over, "Boss, boss!"

As the voice approached, Su Ye turned his head. Big Black slid to a halt and knelt on the ground.

He pointed a wing at the Tiger Demon's corpse on the ground and said fawningly, "Boss, your strength is heaven-defying. You surely won't need this. Could you bestow it upon me?"

"The Tiger Demon's corpse? What use do you have for it?" Su Ye asked, puzzled.

"Of course, it's for the Demon Core! Boss, don't you know?" Big Black's eyes showed surprise.

Su Ye nodded, gesturing for him to continue.

Big Black explained, "For Demonic Beasts, once they break through to the Meridian Opening Mirror, most will form a Demon Core within their bodies."

"This Demon Core, as their cultivation deepens, will gradually form an embryonic Golden Core, laying the foundation for the next realm."

"Where is this Tiger Demon's Demon Core hidden?"

"Boss, the Demon Core is usually..." As he spoke, Big Black used his wing to draw a rough location on the ground where the Tiger Demon's chest was.

As Big Black tore open the Tiger Demon's belly and chest on the ground, he reached in with his sharp claws and fumbled around for a moment.

Before them, a blood-red fleshy lump appeared. Big Black lifted it with a single claw, and a strong smell of blood immediately assaulted his face.

"Boss, this is the Demon Core!" Big Black's eyes gleamed with greed. He gripped the lump tightly with his four claws. If Su Ye hadn't been there, he would have swallowed it whole long ago.

Leaning down, Su Ye took the Demon Core under Big Black's reluctant gaze. He carefully examined the object before him. It felt unusually slippery to the touch and was still warm. He could sense the surging demonic power within it.

"This Demon Core, do all Meridian Opening Mirror Demonic Beasts have one?"

"Most do, their locations just differ," Big Black replied.

Then, his expression turned solemn, "This is a good thing."

"This item has many uses. Whether used as medicine or swallowed directly, one can gain immense benefits."

"A single Demon Core can save years of arduous cultivation. It is rumored that Martial Artists who have just completed Body Tempering, if they swallow this item directly, can break through to Mid Body Tempering overnight. And this is without any refinement."

"However, there are also hidden dangers. If one is extremely unlucky, swallowing it might not help their cultivation but instead turn them into a monster; this also happens frequently."

"Can't find the book title? You can try searching for the author, perhaps the name has just been changed!"

"It has such an effect?" Su Ye's eyes narrowed slightly as he asked, "What's the success rate?"

"Ninety-eight percent."

Big Black immediately added, "Ninety-eight percent, the chance of failure."

"Then why do you want it?"

Su Ye's gaze flickered towards the crow in front of him.

"Boss, you forgot, I'm a Demonic Beast myself. I don't have these concerns."

Weighing the lump in his hand, this item wasn't of much use to him, and consuming it required careful refinement into a medicinal formula.

Thinking this, it was more practical to just kill more Demonic Beasts. He casually tossed the lump to Big Black and said, "Skin this tiger, we should head back."

"Alright, boss, just a moment."

Soon, a very large tiger skin was neatly piled by Big Black. He slowly walked towards Su Ye and said with a fawning smile, "Boss, this tiger skin is too big. Why don't I eat the Demon Core first to recover some of my injuries? That way, I can also share your burden, right?"

Su Ye spoke calmly as he scanned Da Hei, "As you said."

With Su Ye's approval, Da Hei swallowed the blood-red tumor in a gulp. In less than fifteen minutes, the severed wing that had been casually attached began to change. Blood vessels writhed, and bones creaked.

Soon, the protruding bone fragments disappeared, leaving only a few bloodstains on the dark black feathers.

Da Hei's cultivation, which was at the eighth level of Sentience, had now leaped to the ninth level, and he was only one step away from the Meridian Opening realm.

With a slight flap of its wings, Da Hei shot up into the sky, its black feathers reflecting a dazzling sheen.

In mid-air, Da Hei, holding the Tiger Demon's fur in its claws, suddenly swooped down and flew to Su Ye's side. "Boss, there are two figures lying on the hillside ahead. They look suspicious and not like good people."

Estimating the distance, Su Ye knew they were only a few hundred meters from Kaoshan Town. Why would people suddenly appear here? Looking up at Da Hei in the air, Su Ye calmly said, "Take me to see them."

Outside Kaoshan Town, in the woods beside the field ridges, Da Hei found a dead tree and pointed its wing towards the southwest. "Boss, they're right there."

Following the direction, Su Ye saw two men in black clothes and black pants walking down a dirt slope about three hundred meters away. They seemed to have confirmed the situation and were heading towards the town.

Seeing this, Su Ye stopped Da Hei.

"Boss, are you just going to let these two go?" Da Hei asked.

Su Ye replied, "These two clearly have a purpose. Let's follow them and see what their intentions are."

Outside the town yamen, the bluestone ground was already covered with the corpses of over a dozen Demonic Beasts. Many farmers in Kaoshan Town still couldn't believe what they were seeing.

The two men in black had changed into the clothes of the town yamen's constables. They had seen the shouts and killing within Kaoshan Town last night but, due to their own lack of strength, dared not approach. They waited until dawn when they saw villagers coming out to move about.

Only then did they enter Kaoshan Town and find Liu Baotian, who was in charge of the aftermath. The two men quickened their pace and approached him. "Are you the Headman here? What exactly happened last night? Who killed these Demonic Beasts?"

Seeing the two men dressed as officials, Liu Baotian said hurriedly, "This old man has seen you, sirs. All these Demonic Beasts were killed by Lord Su."

The older runner's pupils widened. He described Su Ye's appearance in detail, and Li Baotian confirmed it.

He asked again, "Was it that young constable who came here not long ago?"

"Exactly."

Hearing this, the two men were greatly shocked. The strength required to kill the Demonic Beasts on the ground must have reached Late Body Tempering.

They knew very well what Late Body Tempering represented. In Linshan County, anyone with such strength was a high-ranking figure, either a family head or a high-ranking member of a major gang.

Thinking of this, the older runner said, "Let me ask you, where is Lord Su now?"