Chapter 49

Passing through the Second-Class Demon Beast Zone and the First-Class Demon Beast Zone, Lin Tian arrived at the stone gate leading to the Nine Yang Martial Mansion on Qingfeng Ridge. His disheveled appearance startled the two martial mansion enforcers guarding the gate, who thought he might be a wild man from somewhere.

Lin Tian was speechless about this.

After passing through the stone gate, Lin Tian quickened his pace a bit. He didn't want anyone else in the martial mansion to see his current disheveled state; that would not be a good thing. About a quarter of an hour later, he returned to his residence, pushed open the door with a creak, and saw Su Shu accompanying Lin Xi.

"Brother, you're back!" Lin Xi happily came over, tilting her little face and curiously asked, "Didn't Sister Su say you went far away and would be gone for a long time?"

"Hmm? Go far away?"

Lin Tian was curious.

He looked at Su Shu, who appeared slightly pale but was now wide-eyed.

"You, you, you, you..."

Su Shu pointed at Lin Tian, looking as if she had seen a ghost.

"I'm fine."

Lin Tian smiled.

Su Shu quickly walked over and gently poked Lin Tian a few times, her face immediately brightening.

"You're okay?"

Su Shu's face regained its luster.

Lin Tian's heart stirred. Did Su Shu think he was dead?

Thinking about it, when he returned, Su Shu was right by Lin Xi's side, looking somewhat distracted and absent-minded, even telling Lin Xi that he would be gone for a long time. Lin Tian immediately understood.

Looking at Su Shu again, he felt a bit moved.

"Really, I'm fine. Though it might sound a bit formal, I still want to thank you."

Lin Tian said sincerely.

This girl, who he had only known for a short time, had been very good to him and to Lin Xi.

"Who asked you to thank me!"

Su Shu kicked Lin Tian, both happy and angry.

Lin Tian smiled, knowing that she was actually worried about him and naturally didn't mind. Seeing Lin Tian's torn and mud-covered clothes, Lin Xi immediately went to another room to prepare hot water.

"Really well-behaved."

Su Shu smiled. She often came to accompany Lin Xi, partly because of Lin Tian, but more importantly, Lin Xi was indeed very likable.

"My sister Lin Xi, of course, is well-behaved."

Lin Tian smiled.

Su Shu rolled her eyes: "What are you so proud of!" She looked Lin Tian up and down, and soon frowned. "What happened after you were dragged away by the Centipede Beast? Master Mu Qing and Elder Shi Dong also looked for you, but unfortunately, they didn't find you."

"Master Mu Qing and Elder Shi Dong looked for me?"

Lin Tian was somewhat surprised.

Su Shu nodded. A few days ago, after returning to the martial mansion, she immediately found Mu Qing and told him that Lin Tian was in danger. Coincidentally, Shi Dong was there, and the two immediately went to Qingfeng Ridge. Unfortunately, Qingfeng Ridge was too vast, and finding one person in it was extremely difficult. They searched for a whole day without any results.

"This..."

Lin Tian was moved and felt even more grateful to Mu Qing and Shi Dong.

Patting Lin Tian, Su Shu asked, "What happened after that?"

Su Shu was actually quite surprised. The Centipede Beast was a formidable existence comparable to a Divine Pulse Realm expert. After being dragged away by the Centipede Beast, Lin Tian, who was at the Body Tempering Realm, actually returned alive!

"The demon beast dragged me to its nest, and it seemed to be full, so it didn't pay attention to me. Then, I took the opportunity to escape carefully. After that..."

Lin Tian narrated calmly.

Except for the part about killing the Centipede Beast and absorbing the beast core, he told the truth. Of course, he couldn't mention the Fusion Martial Pattern Scroll.

"Full? Ignored you? You escaped?"

Su Shu stared.

Is that even possible?

"That's what happened."

Lin Tian nodded without a hint of embarrassment.

Su Shu was a bit skeptical but didn't dwell on the issue: "Forget it, being alive is the best. But to think, you actually managed to cross the Fourth-Class Demon Beast Zone unscathed!"

The Fourth-Class Demon Beast Zone was home to terrifying demon beasts comparable to the Divine Pulse Realm. Lin Tian had returned unscathed from the Fourth-Class Demon Beast Zone, which was indeed surprising to Su Shu.

Lin Tian was speechless: "Which eye did you see me unscathed? I have many injuries."

"Hmph!"

Su Shu huffed.

Pausing for a moment, as if thinking of something, Su Shu said, "Right, I have something for you." She turned and walked to one side, and soon returned with a long sword. The sword was more ornate and seemed stronger than Lin Tian's previous one.

"What is this?"

Lin Tian's pupils dilated. With his keen perception, he felt that this sword was extraordinary.

"Middle-grade Spirit Weapon, the Guiyuan Sword."

Su Shu said.

"Middle-grade Spirit Weapon?!"

Lin Tian was shocked.

The world of martial artists was mysterious and fantastical, with elixirs, array techniques, and powerful weapons. In the martial world, weapons were also classified. Ordinary weapons aside, higher-grade weapons were divided into three levels: Spirit Weapons, Treasure Weapons, Supreme Treasures, and Immortal Weapons. Each level was further divided into upper, middle, and lower grades.

Lin Tian was somewhat surprised: "Where did the Guiyuan Sword come from?"

"Reward from the martial mansion."

Su Shu said.

"Reward from the martial mansion?"

Lin Tian's eyes flickered, as if he had an idea.

Su Shu nodded and said, "A few days ago, wasn't there the Outer Mansion Ranking Trial? We collected over six hundred beast cores in total. I thought you were dead, so I wanted to at least make your death honorable. I attributed all the beast cores to your name, and the final ranking was second in the Outer Mansion. This Guiyuan Sword is the reward."

"Honorable death?"

Lin Tian was both moved and amused.

Taking the Guiyuan Sword from Su Shu, Lin Tian tried out a sword technique and found it much stronger than usual.

"Middle-grade Spirit Weapons are more durable and can enhance your strength by about 20%."

Su Shu said.

Lin Tian nodded: "Indeed, there's about a 20% enhancement."

Higher-grade weapons primarily enhanced a martial artist's strength, thereby increasing their combat power. Lower-grade Spirit Weapons enhanced strength by about 10%, middle-grade Spirit Weapons by 20%, and upper-grade Spirit Weapons by 30%. Treasure Weapons, Supreme Treasures, and Immortal Weapons enhanced strength even more.

Lin Tian swung the Guiyuan Sword a few times and felt it was very smooth.

Putting away the Guiyuan Sword, he looked at Su Shu again, feeling a bit awkward: "You attributed all the beast cores to my name, so what about you?"

Su Shu naturally knew what Lin Tian was thinking and didn't mind at all.

"I have a middle-grade Spirit Weapon, the one I used last time, the Qing Lei."

Su Shu said.

Lin Tian was slightly stunned but quickly remembered.

"An upper-grade Spirit Weapon."

Lin Tian nodded. No wonder the last strike of the Qing Lei sword was so powerful when he saw Su Shu use it. It was a middle-grade Spirit Weapon. He wasn't surprised that Su Shu had a middle-grade Spirit Weapon, as she was Mu Qing's disciple.

Thinking for a moment, Lin Tian asked, "Who was the first in this Outer Mansion Ranking Trial?"

"Still Zhou Hao, with a total of 491 beast cores, but most were Third-Class beast cores, with the highest overall score."

Su Shu said.

"Indeed, it's him."

Lin Tian nodded.

His expression was calm, but he was inwardly sneering. Zhou Hao, huh? In two months, I will definitely kill him.

"What's wrong?"

Seeing Lin Tian's strange expression, Su Shu asked.

Not long ago in Qingfeng Ridge, Zhou Hao's deliberate attempt to harm Lin Tian was something only Lin Tian could sense. Even Lu Sheng, who was with Zhou Hao, didn't know about it.

"Nothing."

Lin Tian shook his head.

Su Shu said, "Oh," and didn't pay much attention. Thinking for a moment, she added, "Right, the reward for the first place in this Outer Mansion Ranking Trial is an upper-grade Spirit Weapon."

"Upper-grade Spirit Weapon."

Lin Tian's eyes narrowed.

In Qingfeng Ridge, he had truly felt Zhou Hao's strength, which was indeed formidable. Now, with an upper-grade Spirit Weapon, his combat power would be even stronger. However, Lin Tian only thought about it for a moment and then dismissed it. So what if it's an upper-grade Spirit Weapon? It only enhances combat power by 10%, nothing to worry about. He just needed to become stronger himself!

"What's wrong again?"

Su Shu frowned.

"Nothing."

Lin Tian smiled and shook his head.

As the sky gradually darkened, Su Shu soon left and headed to her residence. These past few days, she had thought Lin Tian was dead and had been in low spirits, not sleeping or eating well. Now, seeing Lin Tian safe and sound, she felt much lighter and just wanted to go back and have a good sleep.

Lin Tian smiled as he watched Su Shu leave. At this moment, Lin Xi had just prepared the hot water.

Lin Tian washed up, changed into a clean set of clothes, and after resting for an hour, he went to the top pavilion. By now, the sky was dotted with stars. Lin Tian practiced the Four Extremes Scripture, gradually enhancing his vitality. After about half an hour, with the help of the Four Extremes Scripture, his vitality reached its peak.

"Phew!"

Exhaling a breath, Lin Tian's eyes flashed with a sharp light.

He took out a small jade bottle from his pocket, which contained a plant about an inch tall with three leaves.

This was the Bai Ling Grass, a spirit medicine for refining the internal organs.

Lin Tian removed the wooden stopper from the jade bottle, and immediately, a rich fragrance wafted out, making him shiver slightly and feeling his pores relax. Taking a deep breath, he took out the Bai Ling Grass and slowly chewed it, filling his mouth with a unique fragrance.

Chewing carefully and slowly, Lin Tian eventually swallowed the thoroughly chewed Bai Ling Grass.

Unlike the Nine Curves Essence Pill, after swallowing the Bai Ling Grass, he felt a refreshing sensation, as if he were wrapped in a cool spring on a hot summer day. In just a moment, he felt his vitality significantly enhanced, his breathing more powerful, and his heart beating more robustly.

Lin Tian was slightly surprised. The Bai Ling Grass had just entered his body, and it already had such a remarkable effect!

"Truly worth nearly 100,000 spirit coins, indeed extraordinary!"

Lin Tian thought to himself.

Putting aside his surprise, Lin Tian practiced the Four Extremes Scripture, guiding the special aura of the Bai Ling Grass to quickly flow into his internal organs, completely enveloping them. Then, he began to inject true essence into them, starting the final stage of his Body Tempering cultivation.