Chapter 9

Struck on the head by the Hundred Beasts' Salute, the fallen sawtooth tiger quickly lost its vitality.

Lin Yun, drenched in sweat, felt an indescribable sense of relief, but his expression was somewhat dazed.

He had practiced the Hundred Beasts' Salute in private before.

Today's Hundred Beasts' Salute left him somewhat puzzled. It was clearly a powerful fist technique, yet when he executed it, he felt as if he was not throwing punches but wielding a sharp sword, unmatched in its sharpness!

Fist technique? Sword technique?

Was it because of that painting? The mysterious scroll inscribed with "A fierce tiger, gently sniffing a rose."

In a daze, Lin Yun felt that the fierce tiger boxing he practiced had diverged greatly from its basic form.

To uncover the mystery, he would need to study the scroll more upon his return.

The tiger in the scroll, upon closer reflection, seemed even more mysterious.

Facing a sawtooth tiger that had developed demonic aura, he had no chance of winning. If not for the tiger's spirit in his mind, which invisibly neutralized the sawtooth tiger's demonic aura, the outcome would have been uncertain.

Suddenly, a flash of light appeared and vanished.

Lin Yun, with his keen senses, caught the light and turned to see a faint glow emanating from the sawtooth tiger's chest.

"An inner core?"

Inner cores only form within demonic beasts, and not all demonic beasts have them.

But once a demonic beast develops an inner core, it can break through its own limitations and advance like a martial artist.

For example, the sawtooth tiger, no matter how powerful, was only at the fifth level of martial arts.

If it had developed an inner core, it could break through to the fifth, sixth, or even the tenth level of martial arts.

Lin Yun drew a sharp breath and said in a low voice, "If I hadn't killed this sawtooth tiger today, a demonic king might have emerged in the Transcendent Cloud Range in the future!"

The sawtooth tiger must have consumed the spirit fruit, which led to the rare formation of an inner core.

Thump, thump, thump!

Lin Yun's heart raced uncontrollably.

Even if it was just the inner core of a half-demonic beast, its value was immeasurable.

The materials from the demonic beasts he had obtained in the past three days were worthless compared to this inner core.

Without hesitation, Lin Yun took out a dagger and cut open the sawtooth tiger's chest to retrieve the inner core.

Once the inner core left the body, the light faded, and it looked rather ordinary.

But when Lin Yun held it in his palm, he could clearly feel the surging spiritual energy within.

Carefully storing the inner core, Lin Yun did not rush to deal with the sawtooth tiger's corpse.

He walked to a tree a hundred meters away, looked at the old sword stuck in the tree, and a hint of shame appeared on his face.

As a swordsman, being unable to hold a sword was the greatest humiliation.

Pant, pant!

Just as he sheathed the sword, Lin Yun heard a series of hurried footsteps.

Judging by the footsteps, there were many people coming.

Thinking of the inner core hidden in his chest, Lin Yun inwardly cursed. If it were discovered, he would be in trouble.

Whoosh!

Before Lin Yun could react, a group of people rushed over, all wearing the attire of the Azure Cloud Sect.

After a quick glance, Lin Yun recognized one of them.

He remembered, it was Chen Xiao, an outer sect disciple who had once asked Lin Yun to maintain his sword.

"Is it really a demonic beast? Judging from the cuts on the body, there might be an inner core."

Chen Xiao's eyes were sharp, and he deduced the presence of an inner core from the cuts Lin Yun had made.

What surprised Lin Yun was that after the group arrived, they glanced at him and ignored him.

Chen Xiao scanned the area and said, "It seems this person was seriously injured. After taking the inner core, he didn't even want the valuable demonic beast's corpse."

"Brother Chen, should we chase him?"

"The chances are slim. Let's ask first."

Chen Xiao's gaze fell on Lin Yun, as if noticing him for the first time, and asked directly, "You came early. Did you see anyone?"

Lin Yun was slightly taken aback but quickly understood.

Chen Xiao never thought that the one who killed the demonic beast was him.

It made sense; in Chen Xiao's eyes, he was still a sword slave and couldn't possibly be a match for a sawtooth tiger.

Even Lin Yun hadn't expected to kill the sawtooth tiger before the fight.

"No."

Lin Yun answered calmly, without any sign of panic.

"Useless. Get lost."

Seeing that Lin Yun had no value, a look of disdain flashed across Chen Xiao's face, and he waved his hand, ordering him away.

Lin Yun was more than happy to leave. Chen Xiao alone was at the fifth level of martial arts, and the others were at least at the fourth level.

Alone, he had no chance against this group.

"Wait!"

Just as he took a few steps, Chen Xiao called him back and threw his sword to him.

Swish!

The sword sheath stuck firmly into the ground, and the blade trembled slightly.

Chen Xiao said bluntly, "Since you're here, you might as well maintain my sword. That way, I don't have to go to the Sword Washing Pavilion again."

"Sorry, I'm no longer a sword slave. Please understand, Brother Chen."

"Stop talking nonsense. I won't make you do it for free. I'll give you some of the demonic beast's materials later."

Lin Yun was inwardly angry. The sawtooth tiger was his kill, and the materials should have been his. Chen Xiao was truly overstepping.

"Heh, this sword slave is getting a bit too cocky. Brother, should we beat him up?"

"Back in the Sword Washing Pavilion, he was like a grandson. Now he thinks he's something."

"Hehe, I bet if this were Su Zhirao's sword, this little sword slave would be on his knees, licking it."

"Ha ha ha ha!"

Everyone knew that Lin Yun had a crush on Su Zhirao, and now it was brought up, becoming the biggest joke in the sect.

Mentioning Su Zhirao, everyone laughed in unison.

Chen Xiao teased, "Lin Yun, be a good boy. I don't have the habit of bullying people. Beating you up would ruin my reputation. Maintain my sword, and I'll put in a good word for you with Senior Sister Su."

"Ha ha ha!"

Another round of laughter. Looking at the mocking faces, Lin Yun remained expressionless.

Suddenly, he had an idea.

Lin Yun took two steps forward and pulled out Chen Xiao's sword with a sharp sound.

Swish!

The blade trembled, and a scent of blood followed. The sword, two fingers wide, had a wavy cloud pattern, clearly a fine piece of craftsmanship.

The notches on the blade were likely from recent battles but did not diminish its sharpness.

Occasional flashes of cold light made one's heart race.

What a fine sword!

This sword was several grades better than the blue steel swords provided by the sect, almost on par with a mystic weapon.

"Be careful. This sword is very precious. It took me half a year's savings to get it..."

Talking about his sword, Chen Xiao's face showed a hint of pride, his eyes gleaming.

Crack!

Before he finished speaking, the sword in Lin Yun's hand suddenly shattered, breaking into large and small pieces.

Chen Xiao's smile froze, as if a piece of his heart had been torn out, leaving him speechless with pain.

The other outer sect disciples were also stunned, their eyes wide.

Indeed... the three broken swords in the Weapon Pavilion were not a coincidence.

"Brother, it seems your half-year's savings bought you a fake sword."

Holding the bare hilt, Lin Yun looked a bit regretful and said sincerely.

"My cloud... pattern... sword!"

Chen Xiao screamed, his eyes bloodshot, as if he wanted to eat Lin Yun alive, his lips trembling.

The sword was almost like a piece of his heart.

It took him half a year to save up enough money to buy this cloud-patterned sword.

To be precise, he had only had it for less than half a month.

To see it shatter in Lin Yun's hands was excruciating.

"I'll kill you, sword slave!"

Chen Xiao, enraged, took steps toward Lin Yun, his fifth-level martial arts aura surging like a storm.

Lin Yun was slightly startled. Chen Xiao's strength was indeed formidable.

Judging by the aura, he was likely at the peak of the fifth level, just a step away from the sixth level.

But Lin Yun was not panicked, silently counting in his mind.

Roar!

When he counted to three, a deep roar echoed from the distance. With the roar came a thick demonic aura, and the wind it generated battered the surrounding trees.

"Demonic beast!"

Chen Xiao and the other outer sect disciples' faces changed instantly. The thick demonic aura confirmed it was a demonic beast.

Damn!

It must be the sawtooth tiger's corpse attracting other demonic beasts. For them, it was a great supplement.

It was all the fault of this sword slave, who not only destroyed his precious sword but also delayed him from taking the sawtooth tiger's corpse in time.

"Little sword slave, I'll let you off today."

Chen Xiao left with a warning, not daring to risk his life fighting a demonic beast.

"Brother, your sword."

Lin Yun extended his hand and threw the bare hilt to Chen Xiao.

Chen Xiao caught it out of habit, but seeing the broken hilt, he was so enraged that he almost fell over.

In a fit of rage, he wanted to turn back, but his rationality held him back.

[Thank you, fashionc, for the generous donation of 100,000 panda coins. I'll add an extra chapter tonight. Please continue to support with favorites and votes.]