Demon Crystals

With Lin Xiao and the other man tying down the Dark Gold Red Tiger, Ren Yunzhao and his companion closed in again and joined the fight.

"Roar!"

Beset by all four men, the Dark Gold Red Tiger struggled to defend against attacks from every direction. Its wounds gradually multiplied, and it let out another furious roar.

"Cover your ears!"

This time, however, the four men were prepared. They all covered their ears with their hands to block the tiger's roar.

As soon as the roar passed, the four charged forward again, taking turns keeping the Dark Gold Red Tiger occupied and giving it no chance to escape.

"Force Breaking Thousand Armies!"

While the other three held it back, Ren Yunzhao seized another opening. His long saber became a full moon as he brought it crashing down on the Dark Gold Red Tiger's waist and belly, ripping open another enormous gash.

"Die!"

Yao Jiheng leaped onto the Dark Gold Red Tiger's head and brought his fists down on its skull again and again.

"Uugh!"

Blood streamed from the Dark Gold Red Tiger's eyes, ears, nostrils, and mouth as it let out an unwilling roar. Its mountain-sized body staggered several steps, then crashed heavily to the ground. Its eyes remained wide with fury, but it was dead on the spot.

"Huff, huff, huff..."

All four men who had taken part in the battle were now gasping for breath, their faces deathly pale.

"Glory to Incense Master Ren!"

"Glory to the Market Masters!"

"..."

Seeing the Dark Gold Red Tiger slain, everyone beamed with delight and burst into cheers.

"Is that Dark Gold Red Tiger dead?"

Watching from a distance, Shen Mu wasn't surprised.

From the moment the two Incense Masters arrived, the outcome of the battle had been beyond doubt.

If the Dark Gold Red Tiger hadn't been able to unleash that terrifying roar, it would probably have died even sooner.

Still, the fight had given Shen Mu a much deeper understanding of the strength of demon beasts and martial artists who had entered the ranks.

By rights, a ninth-rank martial artist and a first-tier demon beast were on equal footing in terms of cultivation.

But in a one-on-one fight, a ninth-rank martial artist probably wouldn't be a match for a first-tier demon beast.

The main reason was likely that demon beasts had far tougher bodies and stronger attacks than martial artists. A blow of the same power would be a fatal wound to a martial artist, but might only leave a superficial injury on a demon beast.

The difference was that martial artists could work in groups, set traps, and launch planned attacks, while demon beasts tended to roam alone. That gave martial artists a chance to hunt them.

"Everyone who isn't injured, come help. Treat the wounded first, then take the injured and unconscious members back."

Ren Yunzhao looked around and called out.

Although Emerald Cloud Valley was overseen by the two Market Masters, Lin Xiao and Kong Mingyuan, Ren Yunzhao, as an Incense Master, stood above them.

As for Yao Jiheng, Ren Yunzhao had invited him to help kill the Dark Gold Red Tiger.

Under ordinary circumstances, Ren Yunzhao lived in Cloud Dragon County. He only came to assist when something arose in Emerald Cloud Valley that neither Market Master could handle.

"Yes!"

At Ren Yunzhao's signal, the two Market Masters gave orders to the six Deacons beneath them, who then saw to the actual work.

At Hong Jingcheng's signal, Shen Mu was assigned to help carry the wounded.

Later, he was also assigned to help several other members carry the Dark Gold Red Tiger's corpse.

When Shen Mu got a close look at the corpse, he saw that its eyes were still glaring and its face still twisted into a savage expression, radiating a ferocity that made his blood run cold.

The enormous corpse remained oppressive, even though it had long since drawn its last breath.

Shen Mu then looked at the two saber wounds on the Dark Gold Red Tiger: one on its left shoulder, the other across its waist and belly. Both were extremely lethal.

"That Incense Master Ren Yunzhao must have been using the Army-Breaking Saber Technique. He's probably even cultivated it to perfection..."

But Shen Mu immediately realized something was wrong.

"No, he wasn't using the Army-Breaking Saber Technique. He was using the unabridged Demon-Subduing Saber Art..."

Shen Mu thought to himself.

Even he had to admit that the upgraded version of the Army-Breaking Saber Technique, the Demon-Subduing Saber Art, was truly astonishingly powerful.

Demon beasts were naturally tough-skinned, yet Ren Yunzhao had used the Demon-Subduing Saber Art to severely wound the Dark Gold Red Tiger in a single blow.

That only made Shen Mu look forward even more to the day he entered the ranks and learned the Demon-Subduing Saber Art. Just what kind of power would he unleash?

"Lift!"

The Dark Gold Red Tiger's corpse weighed several thousand pounds. At a glance, it looked like a small mountain.

More than twenty members, including Shen Mu, put their backs into it. Like ants carrying a house, they hoisted the corpse and trudged toward Emerald Cloud Valley.

"Brother Ren, we agreed beforehand: whoever killed the Dark Gold Red Tiger would get its tiger whip. In the end, I beat the beast to death with my fists, so it rightfully belongs to me!"

"Bullshit. If I hadn't bled it with those two cuts, would your few punches have killed it? Don't talk so big—you'll bite your tongue."

"Ren Yunzhao, you bastard! If you hadn't begged me on your knees, would I have come all this way to help you kill the Dark Gold Red Tiger? The tiger whip is mine!"

"When did I ever beg you? Don't go spouting bullshit. I was planning to come alone from the start. Who was it that heard a Dark Gold Red Tiger had fallen into Emerald Cloud Valley and shamelessly insisted on tagging along?"

"If it weren't for me, you and those two fellows wouldn't have been able to kill the Dark Gold Red Tiger. You'd probably have died in its jaws!"

"Hmph. Even if I couldn't kill the Dark Gold Red Tiger, I'm confident I could've driven it away."

"Hey, so you admit it. Without me, you wouldn't have been able to kill the beast. All I want is one tiger whip, and you're still arguing with me. Aren't you afraid the people below will laugh at you?"

"You... No. The most I'll give you is half. I have a friend..."

"A friend? Heh, I get it. You mean your own flesh and blood, your brother from the same father and mother. There's no one else here, so you don't need to hide it..."

"..."

By the time Shen Mu and the others brought the Dark Gold Red Tiger's corpse to the mouth of the valley, they heard the two Incense Masters arguing so fiercely over the spoils that their faces had turned red.

The two Market Masters, Lin Xiao and Kong Mingyuan, stood not far away, wearing peculiar expressions and pretending they hadn't heard a thing.

"I'll count to three. Everyone, let go together."

"One, two, three!"

"Bang!"

Everyone heaved the Dark Gold Red Tiger's corpse up, then quickly scattered as it crashed heavily to the ground.

No one left, though. They stood off to the side, eager to watch the Dark Gold Red Tiger being butchered.

They didn't get to see something like this often. After spending so long carrying the corpse, no one wanted to miss the chance.

"Tsk, tsk. Even dead, this beast still cuts an imposing figure."

Under everyone's watchful eyes, Ren Yunzhao walked up with his saber, clicking his tongue in amazement.

"What are you dawdling for? The sooner we finish, the sooner we can leave. If those old fogies hear about this and come running over, the two of us will have done all this work for nothing."

Yao Jiheng urged him impatiently.

At Yao Jiheng's words, Ren Yunzhao's face twitched. He put his long saber to work, following the existing cuts on the Dark Gold Red Tiger and slicing deftly up and down.

The saber was like an extension of Ren Yunzhao's right arm, its edge extraordinarily sharp. In the time it took to drink a cup of tea, he had peeled off an enormous tiger hide.

Everyone present watched in silent amazement. Ren Yunzhao's skill at butchering demon beasts was so flawless that they couldn't help but call him a professional.

"Heh, now for the main event."

Ren Yunzhao licked his lips, sweeping his saber around the Dark Gold Red Tiger's hindquarters. A long tiger whip, several feet in length, came free in his hands.

Everyone stared at it, their eyes going wide.

Shen Mu's expression turned a little odd. Did soaking that thing in liquor really work?

After carefully putting the tiger whip away, Ren Yunzhao continued butchering the Dark Gold Red Tiger.

A moment later, a smooth, dark-gold orb the size of an infant's fist lay in Ren Yunzhao's hand.

"So it did form a demon crystal."

Seeing the dark-gold orb in Ren Yunzhao's hand, Yao Jiheng couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.

Ren Yunzhao chuckled. "The beast had already awakened a bloodline ability. It's only natural that it formed a demon crystal."