Immortality by Merit and Sin Coins

Chapter 98: Chapter 83: Defending the Pass Alone

”The Rotating Jade Scroll.”

Lin Shu held out the object in his hand.

He also observed the people on the Signal Tower.

There were three Mid-stage Foundation Establishment Cultivators in total, plus eight at the Qi Cultivation Stage.

The former were responsible for activating the Signal Tower, while the latter patrolled on foot.

’Just as I thought.’

After all, Yu Qing’s thirty-plus disciples alone could manage nine signal towers, so the pressure couldn’t be that great.

”How strange. What’s gotten into Steward Luo? Or did you offend him?”

One of the Cultivators grumbled, seeming unable to figure it out.

He looked over again and added a warning, ”Ah, whatever. It’s none of my business. The Jade Scroll is all that matters. But you’d better be careful. Don’t doze off. There are several spirit medicine fields past here. If anything happens, your Master will suffer along with you.”

”Thank you for the warning.”

Lin Shu gave a slight nod, watching the group of Cultivators fly away.

He stared at the tall tower, then stepped inside and ascended the stone stairs.

’No wonder Gu Nanzhi and Yan Jin looked down on Loose Cultivators, even though they were both trapped in Black Water City.’

’They’re lacking in so many techniques.’

’It’s not enough to just be a good fighter; you have to be able to catch your opponents too.’

Lin Shu reached the top of the tower and sat down, placing his palm on a translucent, blood-colored stone.

As he channeled his Spiritual Power into it, the entire Signal Tower began to glow faintly again.

The light drifted out like floating fireflies, and his surroundings gradually materialized in his mind.

Controlling the Signal Tower consumed a great deal of Spiritual Power, which was why the shifts rotated every seven days.

Lin Shu didn’t let his guard down. In addition to the Signal Tower, he also sent out his Soul-Splitting to watch over half of the area for him.

Once his preparations were complete, he began circulating the Cyan Bird Guarding Essence Technique to regulate his breathing.

Guard duty was a tedious affair.

Especially when you came alone, with no one to talk to.

His only companions were the chirping of insects and the calls of birds.

「Four days passed just like that.」

Night and day cycled past.

Lin Shu had done nothing at all, yet he had already earned twenty merit points.

According to Steward Luo, a bottle of Crimson Heart Pills was worth a hundred merit points and could save twenty years of hard cultivation.

Guarding this post for twenty days could be exchanged for one bottle of pills.

In other words...

Spending one night sitting here was equivalent to a year of cultivation.

No wonder Cultivators would risk life and limb to follow an Immortal Descendant and fight desperately at Yongzhou Pass.

For others, sitting here idly might be incredibly boring.

But for Lin Shu, it was a rare chance to relax. Back in Black Water City, he never had this much time to rest.

But it was too quiet. Something was wrong.

He opened his eyes and scanned the deathly still surroundings.

’I don’t think I misjudged that Steward,’ Lin Shu thought, ’which is why I deliberately concealed my abilities earlier.’

’He didn’t ask about any of the other disciples, yet he singled out the subordinate of the most useless Immortal Descendant to show his concern.’

’If he were truly such a good person, he wouldn’t have focused only on Yu Qing before while completely ignoring Yu Sheng.’

BOOM! BOOM!

As if in response to his thoughts, sharp, piercing whistles suddenly shattered the silence of the mountains.

Four distinct streams of Sword Qi shot toward him from different directions.

Aside from the varying amounts of Spiritual Power they contained, the Sword Qi streams were all a pale yellow, clearly originating from the same school.

”The intel was right. Kill him!”

”...”

The Filthy Moon Wolf Lord, which had long been stirring, suddenly opened its eyes.

A dense wave of Magical Power surged into Lin Shu’s body.

He remained seated cross-legged, his robes billowing along with a translucent black flame as he released the Formulas he had prepared in advance.

A crimson orb of light materialized in mid-air, replacing Lin Shu’s eyes.

The Red Moon Dharma Eye was only a Qi Cultivation Stage technique, but under the combined might of their Magical Power, it still managed to affect the attacking Cultivators, causing the four streams of Sword Qi to deviate slightly from their original paths.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The mountainside exploded in succession, sending boulders tumbling down.

”Ha! So the Yu Family actually produced a disciple who specializes in the Divine Soul. Interesting, very interesting.”

As the voice spoke again, four figures appeared simultaneously.

The moment they revealed themselves, a wolf’s howl erupted from thin air. It was as if a red moon was spinning as several invisible arrows shot accurately toward the group.

Lin Shu remained motionless, quietly looking down from above.

A familiar THWIP-THWIP sound echoed in the air.

The Howling Moon Soul-Eroding Curse was a Foundation Establishment Seventh Grade Immortal Technique. Amplified by his current cultivation, its power was immeasurably greater than before.

However, it failed to kill or even seriously injure any of the Cultivators.

Instead, one after another, the Clear Heart and Protect God Talismans they had activated in advance shattered rapidly—over twenty of them in total!

’No Cultivator would prepare so many identical talismans for no reason.’

”My Immortal Talismans!”

The figures of the men faltered in mid-air, beads of sweat forming on their foreheads. Their faces were etched with pain at their loss.

They clearly hadn’t expected to have such a close call, even after making preparations.

”That old crook! Didn’t he say this guy was only at the level of a Loose Cultivator?”

”Stop squawking! Attack now while he’s recovering his breath.”

All four were at the Mid-stage Foundation Establishment, but the Sword Qi previously unleashed by their leader had a trace of warm, jade-like light flowing within it.

’A Middle Grade Inner Technique. Jade Liquid Foundation Establishment.’

Although Lin Shu’s cultivation was clearly higher than his opponents’, he faintly felt a sense of suppression.

He watched as the four men soared into the air to attack.

Dozens of Sword Qi streams faintly formed an array, and a rampant killing intent enveloped the Signal Tower.

It was obviously some kind of joint-attack Immortal Technique.

Faced with the increasingly majestic might gathering above him, Lin Shu’s expression didn’t change much.

’I have a general understanding of the techniques used by the Cultivators here now.’

’I don’t need to use anything else. Just this Sword Array, controlled by that Mid-stage Jade Liquid Cultivator, would be more than enough to give me a run for my money.’

’Lack of strength isn’t a problem. As long as I have enough Sin Coins, I can make up for it quickly.’

He flicked a finger.

The Soul-Splitting he had sent out earlier shot back toward him.

The soul was formless, but the sword light was sharp.

BUZZ!

A sword shadow threaded with blood-red light within black mist arrived in an instant.

The four Cultivators from the Great Shun Dynasty were still sneering at the figure on the Signal Tower, pouring all their Spiritual Power into the Sword Array, preparing to execute him cleanly.

The next moment, as the sword shadow flashed past, their expressions didn’t even have time to change before their bodies were smashed to pieces!

Faced with a Top Grade Magical Artifact that was almost a Magical Treasure, an ordinary disciple had virtually no chance to resist.

Before the bloody mist could disperse, the sword shadow had already transformed back into a bracelet and landed in Lin Shu’s palm.

He couldn’t use the Ink Flood Dragon Sword Bracelet casually because he was worried about leaving traces that could be investigated.

After all, if a Late-stage Spirit Liquid Foundation Establishment Cultivator was too conspicuous, it would inevitably arouse suspicion.

But if someone had colluded with enemy cultivators, plotting to steal the Spirit Medicine from the fields and divide the spoils afterward...

...then that person probably wouldn’t dare to investigate too closely. They’d even be too guilt-ridden to make a scene.

’No wonder he agreed so easily to let one person come guard the post.’

’The Immortal Descendant is weak, with only a single disciple.’

’Once that disciple loses his life, the Immortal Descendant will bear the responsibility and naturally be driven out of Yongzhou Pass.’

Lin Shu took out his Life Plate and absorbed the four streams of Life Blood.

The old hunchback’s emotion when he lamented his bitter fate wasn’t fake, but his intention to prey on the weak was just as real.

[Murder and arson earn a belt of gold; building bridges and roads leaves no corpse behind. One mortal vessel slain. Reward: three strings of Sin Coins.]

[Murder and arson earn a belt of gold; building bridges and roads leaves no corpse behind. One mortal vessel slain. Reward: six strings of Sin Coins.]

Four consecutive notifications appeared.

Three rewards of three strings, and one of six.

’My previous thinking was correct,’ Lin Shu mused. ’As long as my cultivation level rises, earning money will only get easier.’

[Life and death are decided by fate; a life snatched from the hands of Yama. One worldly life saved. Reward: two strings of Merit Coins.]

[Life and death are decided by fate; a life snatched from the hands of Yama. One worldly life saved. Reward: one string of Merit Coins.]

He had just collected the fifteen strings of Sin Coins when over a dozen more notifications appeared before him.

Aside from saving two Foundation Establishment Cultivators, there were also rewards for saving a dozen or so Qi Cultivation Stage lives, each worth about a hundred Wen.

These were likely for the people the four attackers would have killed after infiltrating the spirit medicine fields.

In total, he had pocketed fifteen strings of Sin Coins and four and a half strings of Merit Coins.

”Thanks.”

Lin Shu put away the Life Plate, a cold glint in his eyes.

’That Steward knew I was short on money and prepared a generous gift for me right away.’

’When the opportunity arises, I’ll have to repay him properly.’

He waved his sleeve, and a Black Mist spread out. Skeletal hands shot up and swiftly dragged the mutilated corpses on the ground underground until they vanished completely.

The four of them had only carried a single Storage Bag among them. Aside from a few talismans, it contained nothing else, not even an item that could prove their identities.

He figured the bag was probably meant for carrying the Immortal Elixirs and collecting corpses.

There were still three days left of his guard duty.

Lin Shu calmed his thoughts and took out the mottled Copper Ring from his own Storage Bag.

’Now that I have enough Sin Coins and am much better off, I can finally see what kind of Immortal Technique this Golden Light is.’