[In the 130th year of practicing the Chaotic Blood Hidden Tiger Saber, you began attempting to stimulate the power of the cells in your body.]

...

[In the 171st year of practicing the Chaotic Blood Hidden Tiger Saber, your cellular activation reached three percent.]

...

[In the 215th year of practicing the Chaotic Blood Hidden Tiger Saber, your cellular activation reached seven percent.]

...

[In the 256th year of practicing the Chaotic Blood Hidden Tiger Saber, your cellular activation reached ten percent!]

Jiu Zhen True Man stared at Bai Yuan, his eyes filled with nothing but shock.

An epiphany!

Bai Yuan’s aura was skyrocketing.

"Damn it!"

Jiu Zhen True Man’s composure finally shattered, his previous calm completely gone.

Because he was about to die...

Bai Yuan raised the back of his hand to wipe away the bloodstain at the corner of his mouth. Leaning on his long saber, he slowly rose to his feet, a violent killing intent running rampant.

"You damn old Taoist, take this!"

Bai Yuan violently swung the long saber that had been plunged into the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust and soil.

The saber swung in a full circle, momentarily blocking the scorching sun.

Slash!

The saber descended mercilessly toward the top of Jiu Zhen True Man’s head.

Jiu Zhen True Man panicked. He knew that in his current state, it was impossible to block this strike.

So, he chose to flee...

But how could Bai Yuan give him a chance to escape?

At his peak, he naturally wouldn’t have been able to catch Jiu Zhen True Man, but now, he had recovered a full twenty percent of his strength.

Catching sight of the rapidly closing Bai Yuan from the corner of his eye, Jiu Zhen True Man’s eyes widened with fury and despair.

"No, you can’t kill me."

No matter how powerful, even the greatest figures were no different from ordinary people in the face of death. They all felt fear.

In fact, great figures sometimes feared death even more, because they had more to lose.

Jiu Zhen True Man wanted to promise the young man before him the greatest treasures of the Celestial Profound Sect in exchange for his life.

Bai Yuan’s face was ice-cold. He brought his saber down with a merciless slash, giving his opponent no chance to speak.

A second slash... a third...

He didn’t stop until Jiu Zhen True Man had been hacked into a pulp.

He couldn’t help it. It was his first time killing a Martial Artist this powerful; he had to be absolutely sure.

Enhancement Points +5637!

A huge haul!

Bai Yuan stared at the panel.

’The rougher the seas, the more valuable the fish,’ he thought. ’It really is true.’

Bai Yuan then took a vial of poison from his robes and completely dissolved Jiu Zhen True Man’s remains into a puddle of liquid before finally stopping.

Leave no trace of the body—a lesson he had learned long ago.

Only when the scene was completely devoid of any trace did Bai Yuan finally breathe a sigh of relief.

He turned and left the scene.

...

"Sect Leader."

Yu Hui arrived with the Firearms Team.

Bai Yuan waved his hand. "He got away. Continue the search."

"Yes, sir!"

Yu Hui immediately accepted the order.

Watching the Firearms Team depart, Bai Yuan finally allowed his weakness to show.

The battle had not been easy for him, and his body was now frighteningly weak.

He hadn’t told Yu Hui the truth.

It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Yu Hui, but the matter was too significant. The slightest misstep could lead to the complete annihilation of the Divine Mansion Sect.

Yu Hui was trustworthy, but with hundreds of men in the Firearms Team, not everyone could be trusted. Too many eyes and ears. So, he chose to conceal the truth.

Bai Yuan forced himself to hold on until he reached the secret chamber in the Sect Leader Hall.

He had a large stash of pre-made Healing Spirit Soups hidden here.

’Good thing I came prepared,’ Bai Yuan thought.

Otherwise, trying to recover to his peak condition would undoubtedly attract too much attention.

Bai Yuan tilted his head back and downed a bottle of Spirit Soup, the extreme weakness finally subsiding.

He looked at the number on his panel, the corner of his mouth twitching upward.

[Name: Bai Yuan]

[Class: Demon Hunter, Sword Ghost, Boxer, Spirit Cooker, Skin Painter]

[Skills: Chaotic Blood Hidden Tiger Saber (Proficient), Toad Poison (Legendary), Ten Thousand Poison Hand (Master), Thousand Shadows Poison Technique (Legendary), Spirit Extraction (Master), Spirit-Seizing Technique (Master)...]

[Enhancement Points: 5637]

"Allocate the points!"

...

[In the 530th year of practicing the Ten Thousand Poison Hand, your mastery of poisons has reached its peak.]

...

[In the 697th year of practicing the Ten Thousand Poison Hand, you can now administer poison with every breath.]

...

[In the 891st year of practicing the Ten Thousand Poison Hand, you have reached the Legendary level!]

Bai Yuan had finally cultivated his third poison technique to the Legendary level.

The Ten Thousand Poison Hand was a cultivation technique focused solely on administering poisons. Now that it had been upgraded to the Legendary level, it had become even more absurdly powerful.

Similar to the Toad Poison, it allowed him to store poison in his body and transmit it to an opponent’s system through his own breath.

But what Bai Yuan wanted was far more than this.

Because he now possessed three Legendary-level poison techniques.

"Fuse!"

[Congratulations! You have obtained a new skill: Manggu Zhuhe Technique!]

[Name: Bai Yuan]

[Class: Demon Hunter, Sword Ghost, Boxer, Spirit Cooker, Skin Painter]

[Skills: Chaotic Blood Hidden Tiger Saber (Proficient), Manggu Zhuhe Technique (Initiate), Spirit Extraction (Master), Spirit-Seizing Technique (Master)...]

[Enhancement Points: 247]

The legendary Manggu Zhuha was a toad-like poisonous creature known as the King of Ten Thousand Poisons.

Since Bai Yuan had previously practiced the Toad Technique, he had guided the fusion process to use it as the main component, resulting in the creation of the Manggu Zhuhe Technique.

The Manggu Zhuhe Technique merged the strengths of all three poison techniques.

More importantly, the Manggu Zhuhe Technique had far greater potential.

The Initiate level was equivalent to the Legendary level of the three previous poison techniques, which was the greatest advantage of fusion.

He was naturally delighted to have obtained a new skill.

Even the wounds on his body seemed to have healed considerably.

As Bai Yuan’s understanding of the Martial Dao grew, his own intentions began to have a greater influence on his upgraded cultivation techniques.

Just like with the Chaotic Blood Hidden Tiger Saber, it was precisely because Bai Yuan had been influenced by the text on that beast hide that the technique’s improvement had been so immense.

The system was important, but the person using it was just as crucial.

...

"It’s been five days. Why hasn’t Master returned?"

Zhou Yun gazed out the window every day.

Jiu Zhen True Man had treated her well, so she felt a deep affection for her master.

Jiu Zhen True Man had taken Cangsong Taoist’s disciple, Chen Qing, to Huanglong Prefecture to investigate the true reason for Xu Hui’s disappearance, but unexpectedly, there had been no news for many days.

Beside her, Cangsong Taoist was also frowning, his face a little pale.

Once again, events had exceeded his expectations.

He had just secretly used the Celestial Derivation Technique to divine Jiu Zhen True Man’s situation, but he had unexpectedly suffered a backlash. Not only that, but he hadn’t received a single shred of information.

Clearly, his divination had touched upon an existence he could not afford to provoke.

However, given Jiu Zhen True Man’s power, no one in Huanglong Prefecture should have been able to threaten him.

Not to mention, Dong Wanjun had been in Ling Province the whole time.

Could that young Sect Leader have actually killed Jiu Zhen True Man, who had achieved his high cultivation level so long ago?

’The very thought is impossible.’

The more baffling the situation became, the more Cangsong Taoist dared not set foot in Huanglong Prefecture.

If even Jiu Zhen True Man couldn’t handle something, it would be useless for him to go.

"Nephew Zhou, all we can do is wait patiently."

Cangsong Taoist offered the half-hearted consolation.

He had already made up his mind to complete his mission and return to the Celestial Profound Sect as soon as possible. He had no desire to get any more involved in this affair.

As for his disciple, well, his fate was his own.

Was he really going to risk his own life for a mere disciple?

Cangsong Taoist planned to wait a few more days. If Jiu Zhen True Man still hadn’t returned, he would report the news to the Celestial Profound Sect, and whatever happened after that would have nothing to do with him.

...

「Ling Province, Prefecture Magistrate’s Office.」

"Jiu Zhen True Man of the Celestial Profound Sect has gone missing in Huanglong Prefecture."

Du Qinghui stared at the personal letter from the Celestial Profound Sect’s Sect Leader.

The Celestial Profound Sect’s Sect Leader wrote that Jiu Zhen True Man had been traveling in Huanglong Prefecture before all contact was lost. He hoped Du Qinghui could dispatch troops to search, and he specifically mentioned Bai Yuan’s name.

The implication between the lines was a clear request for Du Qinghui to interrogate Bai Yuan.

An interrogation at the Prefecture Magistrate’s Office was, of course, not as simple as sipping tea and making small talk.

Anyone who entered the prefecture’s dungeons would be lucky to leave with their life, let alone their skin. Coerced confessions under torture were commonplace.

Du Qinghui handed the letter to Dong Wanjun, who stood beside him. "Lord Dong, what do you make of this?"

Dong Wanjun took the letter from the Celestial Profound Sect, his expression unchanging. "Lord Du, surely you don’t believe my disciple is capable of killing Jiu Zhen True Man?"

Du Qinghui’s eyes narrowed slightly.

Of course, he didn’t believe it.

Although he was optimistic about the rising star Bai Yuan, the boy was ultimately too young to possibly pose a threat to an existence like Jiu Zhen True Man.

But if Bai Yuan truly *could* kill Jiu Zhen True Man, then he was all the more worth protecting.

To have such strength at his age... he was practically a future Martial Saint of the Empire. He should be nurtured with great care.

Dong Wanjun calmly met Du Qinghui’s gaze.

Although Bai Yuan hadn’t sent him any word, Dong Wanjun didn’t hesitate to stand by his disciple.

If he couldn’t even protect his only True Disciple, there was no point in him continuing as a General.

He could also guess why Bai Yuan hadn’t sent a message.

All of Ling Province was crawling with Du Qinghui’s spies. No matter how a message was sent, Du Qinghui was bound to detect it.

This was a test of the tacit understanding between master and disciple.

Du Qinghui snorted coldly. "It seems the Grand Tutor is still too deferential to the Celestial Profound Sect."

In his view, for the Celestial Profound Sect’s Sect Leader to think he could order Du Qinghui to arrest someone with just a scrap of paper was utterly contemptuous.

Du Qinghui brought out a brush and paper and, without ceremony, wrote a line of large characters.

"The Celestial Profound Sect must also report their movements."

That Jiu Zhen True Man had deliberately hidden his tracks upon entering Ling Province, and now that he was missing, they wanted him to expend effort to find him? There was no such free lunch in this world.

As a high-ranking official with immense power, Du Qinghui had no fear of the Celestial Profound Sect.

Did they really think Ling Province was the Celestial Profound Sect’s private garden, where they could come and go and demand searches as they pleased?

Moreover, Bai Yuan’s military achievements were outstanding, and his reputation was considerable not just in Ling Province, but in Qingzhou and Yu State as well.

If he were to move against Bai Yuan, it would undoubtedly dishearten the soldiers.

The Celestial Profound Sect’s "face" was not worth such a heavy price.

...

When the Celestial Profound Sect received Du Qinghui’s reply, they were all stunned.

They had originally thought that with the Celestial Profound Sect’s prestige, getting Du Qinghui to arrest a minor Junior Fifth-Rank official would be as easy as flipping a hand. They never expected to be so sternly refused.

It seemed Du Qinghui was determined to protect this Lingzhou person named Bai Yuan, even at the cost of offending the Sect Leader of the Celestial Profound Sect.

This outcome was truly unexpected.

In the end, the Sect Leader of the Celestial Profound Sect had no choice but to first dispatch his own people to search for Jiu Zhen True Man’s whereabouts.