Wind and Thunder Demon-Subduing True Interpretation

It was a sleepless night.

Shen Yi tossed and turned, barely managing to endure until dawn.

Even though he knew Lin Baiwei's vital acupoints had been sealed by the demon fox, and that even his predecessor—a useless drunkard—could have easily slaughtered her, let alone his current level of cultivation, he still felt uneasy.

Furthermore, he had kept his saber pressed beneath his arm, ready to draw it at a moment's notice.

But he simply wasn't used to having a living person behind him.

Secondly, while Shen Yi certainly didn't believe the nonsense Lin Baiwei spouted about martial arts, he was certain she possessed at least a few decent skills to protect herself.

The woman refused to tell the truth.

Shen Yi closed his eyes, feigning sleep, while his mind wrestled with whether he could gain anything if he used force or withheld food.

If he were still his predecessor, he would have helped the local magistrate cover up the demonic infestation. As long as he fooled the Demon Suppression Division and let the fox demon fully assume the identity of the Lin family's only daughter, he could deal with this woman however he pleased.

But Shen Yi could not do that.

He wanted to join the Demon Suppression Division. Once the fox woman's affair was exposed, he would be like a man who fell into a latrine—no matter how much he tried to explain, he would never be able to wash the stench off.

To be a perfectly upright young hero and suddenly have such a massive black pot dumped on his back was just too unjust!

After much deliberation, Shen Yi concluded that the only solution was to hack Lin Baiwei down with a single blade, find a place to bury her, and even if the Demon Suppression Division discovered something, he would stick to his story: he had been deceived by the fox demon's illusions.

Dead men tell no tales, and he could even squeeze some martial arts techniques out of her before she died.

"..."

His fingertips brushed against the scabbard, gently gripping it.

Shen Yi slowly sat up from the bed, his eyes bloodshot from the sleepless night, and stood up with a gloomy expression.

Hearing the movement, Lin Baiwei, who had been leaning against the foot of the bed, blinked awake and wiped the corner of her mouth. "Is it dawn?"

Shen Yi glanced at her and walked straight out of the room.

Feeling the killing intent hidden within that casual gaze, Lin Baiwei sobered up instantly and muttered, "Hey, I don't even snore. Where does all that morning grumpiness come from?"

About a cup of tea's time later.

Shen Yi stood at the doorway, chewing on a pancake, and expressionlessly tossed an oil-paper parcel inside.

Lin Baiwei tore it open to find a few steaming hot flatbreads.

She subconsciously swallowed, her eyes lighting up, and she sank her neat little white teeth into one. As she chewed, she asked, "Why... no meat..."

Shen Yi took out a clean outer robe and rolled his eyes at her. "The ones with meat are called stuffed buns. I'm out of money, so just make do."

Although he hadn't killed anyone in either of his two lives, Shen Yi wasn't afraid to do it. He had already hacked demons to death; a frail mortal was nothing.

He just felt that being forced to kill like this was senseless and made him look like a complete idiot.

Besides, there was more than one way to solve this.

As long as he could kill the fox demon at the Lin residence before the Demon Suppression Division arrived, everything would be fine.

As for the woman before him, out of sight, out of mind.

Shen Yi finished changing his clothes and turned to leave the room.

Once his footsteps faded, Lin Baiwei stopped chewing and looked toward the door, lost in thought, clearly relieved.

She knew well how terrifying the craving for a path to transcendence could become once a martial artist reached Shen Yi's level.

But even with a blade at her throat, Lin Baiwei could not reveal a single word.

These were the rigid rules set by those above.

If she violated them, the other party would certainly die, and she wouldn't have a good end either.

"To be able to hold back even this... his endurance is almost on par with mine."

Lin Baiwei sniffed the aroma of the flatbread, licked her lips, and took another bite.

East Street, Baiyun County.

Shen Yi slowed his pace and summoned the panel.

[Current Martial Arts]

Bone-Piercing Grappling Hand (Great Success)

Demon-Subduing Blade Technique (Perfected): Initial Realm Subduing Demon Yang-Blade

Cloud-Parting Long Fist (Perfected): Fist and Palm Mastery

Spirit Snake Eight Steps (Perfected)

Wind and Thunder Precious Scroll, First Volume (Perfected)

[Current Remaining Lifespan: Twenty-one years]

[Remaining Demonic Lifespan: Two hundred and twenty-two years]

He found an empty alley and sat down.

Shen Yi skillfully poured the demonic lifespan into the Wind and Thunder Precious Scroll.

Whether he would gain anything from continuing to invest in already-perfected martial arts was an unknown.

The Subduing Demon Yang-Blade, which involved the Initial Realm, alone consumed an additional twenty-seven years of lifespan.

But what Shen Yi wanted now... was an entire volume of techniques regarding the Initial Realm!

For that, he didn't care about the cost.

[In the first year, you look at the Wind and Thunder Precious Scroll you already know by heart and begin to reflect on your life...]

[In the fifth year, whether in blade technique or fist and palm, your skills have reached the pinnacle. Your physical body has been thoroughly tempered by the essence of heaven and earth, yet all the experience from the first half of your life has lost its effect at this moment.]

[In the twentieth year, you seclude yourself to perceive heaven and earth, capturing those breaths that haunt your dreams.]

[In the thirty-seventh year, the Wind and Thunder Precious Scroll is a method of medicinal refinement, using essence to temper oneself. You think that the things within the medicine and the things within heaven and earth seem to be no different. You seem to have grasped a little.]

Prompts flashed before his eyes, year after year.

Shen Yi could not personally experience the agony of time slipping away with nothing to show for it.

Just by imagining himself in that position, he felt a chill run down his spine.

[In the sixtieth year, you have become as familiar with the qi of heaven and earth as an old friend of many years, but you still cannot make them merge with your body. You look at the blade beside you.]

[In the eighty-second year, you use the Subduing Demon Yang-Blade countless times. Each time you strike, your flesh and blood essence is consumed a fraction. The body previously tempered by essence begins to decay after years of self-consumption.]

[In the ninetieth year, you successfully turn yourself back into an ordinary person, but you still do not put down the blade.]

[In the one hundred and fifth year, your flesh and blood are withered, and there is nothing left to convert. You swing that familiar Yang-Blade and collapse to the ground. Your trembling palms make you unable to believe this is your own body. You close your eyes.]

[In the one hundred and sixth year, when that wisp of coolness flows into your skin, a smile finally appears on your tense face. You know you guessed right.]

[In the one hundred and twentieth year, your line of reasoning is correct. Since you cannot figure it out, let your body reach a near-death state and use instinct to draw upon the gifts of heaven and earth. Over these years, you have continued to repeat this behavior, becoming increasingly familiar with the way qi enters the body.]

[In the one hundred and forty-sixth year, you finally perfect the entire process and record it in a book, calling it the <Wind and Thunder Demon-Subduing True Interpretation>.]

[Remaining Demonic Lifespan: Seventy-six years]

Shen Yi gritted his teeth as a sudden wave of exhaustion swept through his entire body.

He reached out to support himself, his breathing ragged and weak.

But the information appearing in his mind made Shen Yi ignore the changes in his body; instead, his eyes brimmed with intense excitement.

To trade the lives of only three ape demons for a path to transcendence—and with lifespan to spare—was an absolute steal!

The <Wind and Thunder Demon-Subduing True Interpretation> obtained after consuming over a hundred years of time was not actually obscure.

The human body has three hundred and sixty-two acupoints.

Only twelve major acupoints are suitable for absorbing and storing the qi of heaven and earth.

In the martial arts deduction, what he had done was use the most brute-force method to identify these twelve acupoints and master the way to temper the qi of heaven and earth through them.