"Hmm? How are you cultivating so fast? You're already at the 9th level of Qi Refining?"
Xie Ruolan had come to pick up Lin Haoming for another harvesting trip. Seeing his breakthrough, she couldn't help but feel surprised.
Lin Haoming put on a flattering smile and explained, "It's all thanks to the blessings you've given me, Senior Sister. Here, I have an abundance of spirit stones and pills. Combined with the solid foundation I built while my progress was slow before, it was only natural to have a sudden burst of growth."
In truth, taking over a year to move from the 8th to the 9th level wasn't exceptionally fast. Xie Ruolan herself had done it in less than a year with fewer resources. She noted that since Bao Wenliang arrived, Lin had become a hands-off manager, spending every waking moment in cultivation. She wasn't too shocked, though that was partly because she didn't realize just how abysmal his spiritual root quality actually was. She did, however, find herself somewhat admiring his persistence.
"It's better that your cultivation has risen," Xie Ruolan said with a deceptively brilliant smile. "Now we can venture closer to the territories of other sects!"
Hearing this, Lin Haoming sighed inwardly. This woman is truly insidious. Even though he had techniques to restrain his aura, her Spirit Eyes could see right through him. He couldn't hide a thing.
This was their eighth trip to Red Leaf Mountain. In the previous seven, they had slaughtered twenty-two unlucky souls—an average of three per trip. Of those twenty-two, fourteen were fellow disciples from their own sect. The rest included six from Heavenly Sword Mountain and two monks from the Vajra Temple.
This happened for two reasons: first, traveling from their own sect's side meant they were most likely to encounter fellow disciples. Second, within the sect, demonic cultivators were restrained by rules; once outside, that repressed nature exploded. If they didn't know the person, they would kill them without hesitation—who would ever find out? With Lin Haoming acting as weak bait, many literally walked into their own graves.
As for the monks, they were the rarest targets. Their Buddhist techniques naturally countered demonic arts, making them difficult to handle, and their Buddhist artifacts were useless to demonic disciples. There was no profit in the risk.
---
The "Compassionate" Monk
On the second day of this trip, Lin Haoming had just finished digging up a Crimson Sun Ginseng when he heard the faint sounds of fighting about seven or eight miles away. He instinctively moved toward the noise.
He soon reached a small stream in a valley. Hiding in the woods, he spotted a handsome young monk, about sixteen or seventeen years old, sitting by a stream. To Lin's surprise, the monk was chanting sutras over a corpse.
The corpse wore the robes of the Blood Refining Sect—a fellow disciple.
Lin Haoming quietly withdrew his Sub-Mother Sword from his storage bag. These swords were his best tool for sneak attacks; out of the twenty-two people he'd killed, two had died exactly like Li Cang—falling victim to the sword within a sword.
Monks were tough, so a sneak attack was the best option. However, as Lin watched, a soft white light began to radiate from the monk. It was faint but gave off a profoundly peaceful feeling. Under this light, a pale white orb of light rose from the corpse—the soul of the dead demonic cultivator.
As the light hit the orb, it shattered into tiny specks that drifted back into the monk's body, causing his glow to brighten slightly.
"Haha!" the little monk laughed loudly. "Another demonic disciple transcended! Red Leaf Mountain really is a treasure trove. A few more of these and the first layer of my Boundless Merit Golden Body will be complete!"
Then, he kicked the corpse. The body flew into the air and exploded into a red mist, leaving nothing behind.
So much for Buddhist compassion, Lin thought. This monk had no kindness in him at all. He wondered how the man had ever been admitted to the Vajra Temple. But it didn't matter—the monk was heading right for his hiding spot.
---
The Attack
Lin held his breath, waiting for the perfect moment. When the monk was within thirty yards, Lin finally struck, launching the Sub-Mother Sword.
"I knew you were hiding there!" the monk shouted. Instead of dodging, he reached out and caught the flying sword with his bare hand.
Lin was stunned. The Vajra Temple was famous for body-refining techniques, but those usually only became truly formidable at the Foundation Establishment stage. Qi Refining disciples rarely had bodies this strong. Furthermore, the Sub-Mother Sword was a mid-grade magic tool, not some cheap low-grade trash.
Lin didn't panic. He performed a hand seal. The sword flashed, and a hidden secondary blade—the son sword—shot out like a streak of green light directly at the monk's face.
At such close range, there should have been no way to dodge.
Clang!
Lin stared in disbelief. The little monk had used his teeth to bite down on the tip of the secondary blade, stopping it dead in its tracks.
"What terrifying physical strength!" Lin thought, a chill running down his spine.
The monk grabbed the caught blade with his free hand and looked at Lin with a wicked grin. "Demonic disciples really do have insidious tricks. No matter. This humble monk shall transcend you immediately. I've always been generous—there's no need to thank me."