Slaying the Xiantian Dog Demon

Just as Shen Lin drew his long sword and shook the blood from it, another figure dressed in night clothes came out of the house.

Zijing stared at the Thousand Pines Diagram in her hands, her whole body trembling slightly.

Originally, she had planned to quietly take something from the Wu Family's treasury.

But she hadn't found the Thousand Pines Diagram there, so she had no choice but to seek out the head of the Wu Family and have a little chat.

As it turned out, three days earlier, the third-in-command of Black Wind Stronghold, Huang Xiaotian, had come down the mountain and taken a liking to the painting.

And now, she had finally obtained the family's long-treasured secret art.

"Found it?"

Zijing nodded. Too excited to talk with Shen Lin, she immediately took a small bottle from her clothes and poured the liquid inside over the Thousand Pines Diagram.

Its contents changed in an instant. The twisted pine trees spread out, turning into rows of tiny characters.

Zijing had just begun to study them closely when a tremendous roar interrupted her.

"Second brother!!!"

Huang Xiaotian clumsily shoved the stones off himself. Seeing the figure collapsed in front of Shen Lin, he roared in grief, "You're dead meat!!!"

He tossed aside the ghost-head saber in his hand, and the hairs on his body stood on end like steel needles.

An unsettling aura began to spread.

Zijing's expression changed. She quickly put away the Thousand Pines Diagram and shouted to Shen Lin, "This is bad! He's trying to break through!!!"

Huang Xiaotian had already opened six meridians and could break through to the Xiantian Realm at any moment.

But he was ambitious and wanted to go further along the path of cultivation, so he had held off on breaking through and kept trying to open one more meridian.

But now, watching his two younger brothers die at Shen Lin's hands, he flew into a rage and chose to break through.

Earlier, when Sun Zhi had told him about Shen Lin, he hadn't taken it very seriously.

He thought Sun Zhi had exaggerated.

Given Shen Lin's age, no matter how talented he was, what resources could he possibly have in a place like Qiulin County?

At most, he'd opened three meridians.

But after just one brief exchange, Huang Xiaotian realized how terribly wrong he'd been.

The sheer depth of the Qi and Blood Force within Shen Lin was more than he could withstand.

Sun Zhi's assessment had even been too conservative.

How could Shen Lin be only at the sixth level of the Opening Meridians Realm? He had opened at least eight meridians.

Of course, a battle in the Opening Meridians Realm wasn't simply a matter of whoever opened more meridians winning. It also depended on whose martial arts were more refined and whose weapon was sharper.

But the skill Shen Lin had shown with that single sword strike made Huang Xiaotian realize that even if they were in the same realm, he still wouldn't stand a chance.

So he had only one choice left.

Break through to Xiantian!

Strange wisps of energy began to flow toward Huang Xiaotian from the world around him, and his body gradually began to change.

His claws and fangs grew more fearsome, while the fat on his body slowly tightened into hard muscle.

But it was obvious that Shen Lin and Zijing weren't going to let him break through in peace.

In the next instant, two streaks of sword light flashed.

Shen Lin and Zijing's attacks arrived almost simultaneously.

But Huang Xiaotian had been ready. He raised his thick, yellow-haired arms and crossed them in front of himself.

Pfft!

After Zijing's soft sword pierced the fur, it lost momentum, and its blade bent over.

Shen Lin's attack fared better. His sword pierced through Huang Xiaotian's defenses and sank deep into his flesh.

Even so, it couldn't pierce all the way through his arms.

Huang Xiaotian slowly raised his head, revealing his savage dog's head as he let out a series of low growls.

He could already feel the spiritual energy of heaven and earth entering his meridians. It wouldn't be long before he broke through to Xiantian and formed a protective aura.

Then these two could only stretch out their necks and await slaughter.

Zijing was panicked now, the joy she'd felt at recovering the Thousand Pines Diagram long gone.

It was true that she and Shen Lin could both risk everything and attempt to break through to Xiantian.

But their opponent had started first. They were already a step behind.

Even if they began their breakthroughs now, they couldn't finish ahead of him.

And neither of them had the dog demon's robust body to withstand his attacks. They'd only end up being devoured.

But just as Zijing looked toward Shen Lin and prepared to take a chance, she realized he was no longer where he'd been.

She wasn't the only one. Even Huang Xiaotian noticed.

Shadow Severing Step! Shen Lin suddenly appeared behind Huang Xiaotian.

Before this, neither the Demon Cultivator nor the Opening Meridians Realm martial artists had been able to see through Shen Lin's Shadow Severing Step.

But now, Huang Xiaotian abruptly turned his head in an uncanny motion, meeting Shen Lin's gaze.

Bathed in the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, he had already begun transforming into a Xiantian body.

"In your desperation, you've resorted to a useless attack?"

Huang Xiaotian wasn't the least bit afraid, even with Shen Lin right behind him.

The only weapon capable of breaking through his defenses was already trapped between the muscles of his arms. Shen Lin couldn't pull it free.

Had this guy lost his mind? He hadn't even tried to retrieve his sword. Was he really going to attack with his bare hands?

Watching Shen Lin bring his fingers together into a sword hand and thrust at him, Huang Xiaotian let out a contemptuous laugh.

A mere human, attacking with his own body? What a joke!

He didn't dodge at all. He even bent down and slammed his forehead straight into Shen Lin.

A cruel smile tugged at his lips. He could already picture the next moment: his skull smashing Shen Lin's fingers to pieces, then his teeth biting off Shen Lin's arm.

But he would never see that moment.

A faint green light suddenly shimmered around Shen Lin's sword fingers. His slender fingertips silently punched through Huang Xiaotian's hard skull, burying half his hand inside.

Boom!

A thunderous explosion erupted where they stood.

The uncontrolled spiritual energy of heaven and earth surged in every direction. The violent shock wave sent Zijing's slender body flying.

After barely managing to land safely, Zijing immediately looked up.

When the dust settled, she finally saw what had happened.

Shen Lin slowly pulled out his right hand, a faint look of disgust on his face, and shook it.

Huang Xiaotian, meanwhile, remained frozen in place with the same cruel smile on his face, standing perfectly still like a wooden post.

[Slain an Awakened Dog Demon...

Newly entered Xiantian, lifespan: 500 years, remaining lifespan: 440 years. Absorption complete.]