Chapter 268 A Face Worth Ten Thousand Taels

Chapter 268: Chapter 137: A Face Worth Ten Thousand Taels

"I wasn’t confident I could defend the county seat, so this was my only option."

Lin Shu turned around and shook his head gently.

He casually made up an excuse to explain why he hadn’t made a move.

The actual situation was about what he had guessed.

The area outside Wuyang County was Demon Monarch Bi Hai’s territory. Since this Demon Monarch had organized the revenge plot, the group of demons from Seven Stars Mountain was surely part of it.

’After all, I’m a Demon Monarch myself. They should at least give me that much face.’

...

Awestruck, the crowd fell silent in unison.

He had said he wasn’t confident he could defend the county seat, not that he couldn’t defeat the group of demons.

The two concepts were worlds apart.

At that moment, they suddenly grew curious about what had truly happened on Seven Stars Mountain.

In that so-called "great defeat," it seemed only the Demon-slaying Bureau had actually been defeated.

And this Mountain Master Disciple standing before them seemed to have left an indelible shadow in the hearts of the group of demons!

’No wonder he was so furious back then...’

Ruan Xiangling suddenly remembered something.

This Senior Brother Lin’s earlier fury probably wasn’t because Yu Mingxuan had sent assassins after him, nearly causing his demise in the mountains.

It was because those people’s interference left him unable to act, preventing him from quickly killing Fei Huang and rushing back to provide reinforcements, which led to the failure of the demon-slaying operation.

In short, it wasn’t that he couldn’t win, but that he couldn’t kill them fast enough.

"By order of Vice Mountain Master Yu, you are to temporarily take charge of the sixteen county seats and assume the duties of the County Magistrates. Don’t wander off."

Lin Shu issued the order on behalf of the little chick.

He looked at the Merit Coin notifications appearing before him.

Besides the ones from these Vice Generals and Captains, there were also quite a few from the demons.

And sure enough, there were none from ordinary commoners.

This meant that Demon Monarch Bi Hai could still control the Little Demons under his command.

’In that case, even though the group of demons gave me face, they still need to get their revenge. As long as they don’t touch the county seats Yu Sheng is responsible for, it’s fine. As for these people here, they should just stay put for a while and rack up achievements under the little chick.’

"We obey!"

The Vice Generals and Captains all cupped their hands in salute, their minds still reeling with uncontrollable waves of emotion.

The young man had scared off a group of demons without making a single move.

This feat alone was enough for Senior Brother Lin’s name to shake the entire Anren Prefecture.

What good was it if the Yu Family didn’t acknowledge this Mountain Master? The demons did.

The one who can intimidate a horde of demons—now that’s a true Mountain Master!

"Go on."

Lin Shu nodded and turned back toward Wuyang County.

Faced with the fervent gazes of the entire city’s populace, he had no intention of using his Wind-Riding Mountain Patrol.

He wanted to use the mouths of the people to solidify the news that he was in the sixteen counties surrounding Wuyang.

Only then would he have his hands free to do other things.

Lin Shu returned to the inn, changed out of his conspicuous Flowing Cloud Sword Robe, and put on a simple, ink-black shirt.

’This has to be the easiest batch of Merit Coins I’ve ever earned.’

Acting as a peacemaker this one time had earned him a fortune.

The eight Vice Generals—with the Mid-stage Core Formation ones worth a minimum of 300 Merit Coins and two Late-stage Core Formation ones worth over 500 each—totaled over 2,900 Merit Coins.

The thousand-plus Captains were worth anywhere from one to nine Merit Coins each, for a total of 5,800 Merit Coins.

The demons got off a bit easier. After all, they had strength in numbers; without Lin Shu’s interference, it would have only cost them six Demon Generals to annihilate this force.

Correspondingly, he earned far fewer Merit Coins from them—only 1,900.

’As expected, when navigating the martial world, face is also very important.’

Lin Shu looked at the full 10,900 Merit Coins and was quite overjoyed.

’But I can probably only earn these kinds of Merit Coins once. If I were to proactively mobilize the demons to attack again, my intent would just be to earn Merit Coins, not to actually kill these people. In that case, at a fundamental level, they wouldn’t actually die. I can try it next time I have a chance.’

"Come here."

Lin Shu summoned the Calamity-Crossing Cyan Simurgh.

Although tempering the Mud Pill with Merit Coins wouldn’t increase his own strength before he achieved the Golden Core, he hadn’t forgotten that while the Cyan Simurgh was an Immortal Descendant’s phantom and improved slowly after the Golden Core stage, its upper limit was now Mid-stage Golden Core after devouring Yu Qiheng’s soul.

No matter how slow the progress, pouring in this many Merit Coins ought to cause some change.

FWOOSH.

Lin Shu expertly channeled the Merit Coins into it.

Inside the Mountain and Sea Immortal Mansion.

Dao Essence surged along the meridians of the Star Fighting, continuing to wash over the already perfectly round Mud Pill.

Even though the price of further tempering had skyrocketed after the Third Tempering, under the infusion of so many Merit Coins, it only took over a thousand Merit Coins for another Dao Pattern to appear on the Mud Pill.

’I must have infused some extra last time. By that calculation, adding each new pattern only requires three thousand Merit Coins. Right now, it seems this thing is purely a matter of grinding. With enough money, you can just brute-force it.’

He smashed 7,800 Merit Coins into it.

The Dao Essence Red Sea practically roared.

Three more obscure Dao Patterns appeared on the Mud Pill, reaching the Sixth Transformation Realm!

This time, however, Lin Shu didn’t feel that alluring sensation from before. Instead, he felt an emptiness, as if he had lost something, creating a flaw in his path of Dao and preventing him from achieving this Dragon Tiger Treasure Pill.

’There really is a problem.’

He narrowed his eyes, slightly annoyed. ’Still, it’s a good thing. Although it’s much more expensive now, the Purple Sky Golden Core is no longer an illusory and vague object. At least now there’s something to look forward to.’

Lin Shu briefly sensed the Mud Pill.

He discovered that the difficulty of continuing to temper it had more than multiplied several times over.

SCREECH!

A clear cry rang out. He glanced sideways at the Calamity-Crossing Cyan Simurgh.

The Cyan Sparrow’s phantom twitched slightly, struggling to digest the white light, its aura already stepping into a whole new level.

The oppressive pressure rushing toward him inexplicably reminded Lin Shu of an old acquaintance.

Mid-stage Golden Core. It could now match Yu Qiheng.

This also meant it had reached its limit and needed to devour a new Cyan Simurgh soul.

"Come back."

Lin Shu recalled the Calamity-Crossing Cyan Simurgh and put away the remaining 3,100 Merit Coins.

He would keep them on him for now. He could use them to replenish the Cyan Simurgh’s Magical Power, or he could wait until he had saved up enough Merit Coins to attempt the seventh tempering.

His foundation had been strengthened once again, which meant he could now truly activate the power of the Mountain God Mirror.

Even without any stored Power of Mountains and Rivers, this Treasure Mirror was an unparalleled treasure in its own right.

Lin Shu hadn’t tested its specific effects yet, but overwhelming others at the same realm should be no problem.

SWOOSH!

Just then, a paper crane transformed into a streak of light and flew in through the window.

Lin Shu reached out, caught it, and gently unfolded it.

Now that they were out of Anren Prefecture, they no longer had to be so on edge when passing messages.

Elder Xu was traveling through the mountains with Monkey and the others, responsible only for gathering information, not participating in the struggles between Demon Fiends and the Demon-slaying Bureau.

And these were the Sin Coins Lin Shu planned to earn next.

With the Wind-Riding Mountain Patrol at his disposal, his cultivation might not compare to other Great Demons, but when it came to his ability to "put out fires," he was far beyond any ordinary Demon Monarch.

’The Mountain Master Disciple is going into temporary retirement.’

Lin Shu finished reading the message, stretched his arms, and gave a casual stretch.

’While the proper Mountain Masters from the Qi and Yu Families have yet to enter the world, I need to speed up the pace of earning money.’

The paper crane spontaneously combusted, turning into wisps of green smoke.

The green smoke was scattered by a light breeze, and the figure had already vanished from the inn.

「At the same time.」

Dozens of Demon Generals landed deep in the mountains.

Many of them looked indignant. "What was that about? Why did we have to retreat just because that Mountain Master showed up? Not every Mountain Master is a Golden Core Powerhouse, and he’s so young... We should have at least seen what he was capable of!"

"You’re wrong."

Ling Liu turned around, a strange expression on their face. "Did you think we were giving him face and temporarily sparing that bunch from the Demon-slaying Bureau?"

The Demon General shrugged. "Weren’t we?"

Before he could finish speaking, a Demon General from Seven Stars Mountain smacked him hard on the head. "You idiot! That was the f*cking Demon Monarch drawing a line for you!"

"It means something’s going on in the sixteen counties including Wuyang! The Lord is conducting business there and wanted to avoid you getting caught in the crossfire and losing your pathetic little life! That’s why he kindly told you to get lost. Understand now?"

"A... a Demon Monarch?"

The crowd of demons stood stunned, looking at each other in dismay.

When did another Demon Monarch arrive in Anren Prefecture?!