Chapter Thirty-Four: Bountiful Harvest

Luli didn't hesitate at all, raising his blade to strike at the mountain bandit who held a hostage, attempting to force him to spare his life. It's truly bewildering that this bandit could conceive such a thought, showcasing a mind tangled in absurdities.

Observing Luli's complete disregard for the woman, the bandit decisively pushed her towards Luli and swiftly made his escape.

The bandit's intention was for the woman to serve as a shield against Luli. Although the woman was pushed towards Luli and did provide a momentary obstruction, Luli, with his unarmed hand, embraced the woman. He wasn't a virtuous person, but he harbored no intention of harming ordinary individuals.

In the hand wielding the blade, the Red Sleeve Blade, from a distance, swung toward the fleeing bandit.

The blade's radiance pierced directly through his back, thrusting out from his front. Astonishingly, the lifeless body managed to take a few more steps before collapsing, leaving a trail of blood-soaked ground.

Even if one runs swiftly, can it outpace the onslaught of the Breaking Wave Seven Blades?

"Many thanks for the young hero's rescue!"

"I am no hero, nor did I intend to save you!"

Luli released the woman, turned around, and found that the five warriors from Tianfeng Stronghold had already met their demise. Approaching the gate of the stronghold, he witnessed over twenty mountain bandits lying in agony; either their legs were pierced by arrows or a limb had been severed.

Luli used the Red Sleeve Blade to decapitate each one.

Continuously, things entered the Red Sleeve Blade, and this blade seemed to be eagerly devouring the life essence of the slain.

With the mountain bandits eradicated, the radiance on the Red Sleeve Blade became even more dazzling. A hint of crimson brilliance, like a splendid sunset, emanated from the blade.

Luli had noticed that the blood essence produced by martial artists killed with the Red Sleeve Blade was far greater than that of ordinary individuals. Furthermore, the higher the martial artist's cultivation realm, the more blood essence they generated.

Gripping the Red Sleeve Blade, Luli could feel the excitement of the blade spirit. Spiritual weapons possessed spirits, and the Red Sleeve Blade was yearning for a harvest of lives, thirsting for fresh blood.

Entering the stronghold, Luli beheaded Scarface, the scarred-faced bandit, with the Red Sleeve Blade, casually wrapping the head with a piece of cloth. This time, no blood essence entered the Red Sleeve Blade; Scarface had likely been drained of his life essence in a previous encounter with the blade.

"Chen Kang, you and Axiu take this to the Lord's residence!"

Luli spoke and tossed the severed head to Chen Kang.

Observing Chen Kang and his daughter depart, Luli checked their loyalty. Chen Kang's loyalty had surged to over sixty, a result of Luli's increasing cultivation and growth. On the other hand, Chen Axiu remained at zero, the same obstinate figure as before. To elevate her loyalty, it seemed Luli needed to devise a plan.

Initially, Chen Kang had joined him seeking revenge for his deceased wife. As Luli's cultivation ascended and his abilities advanced, Chen Kang's loyalty naturally increased, fostering greater confidence in Luli.

In contrast, Chen Axiu, despite having her neck pinched, held a persistent grudge, still at zero loyalty. It appeared that Luli needed to find a way to enhance her loyalty, or she would be of no use.

The servants he recruited could contribute Fierceness Value to him by committing murder. The amount of Fierceness Value provided was contingent on the servant's loyalty. If loyalty were zero, the Fierceness Value contributed would also be zero.

Therefore, the key was the loyalty of the servants. Luli, at this moment, had no clear plan on how to boost Chen Axiu's loyalty.

Several women approached from a distance, gazing at Luli with a mixture of fear and trepidation.

"You may leave; the mountain bandits of Tianfeng Stronghold have all been eradicated!"

"May I inquire about the honorable sir's name?"

"Take a guess!"

Luli glanced at the women; he had no intention of taking on more troubles. The last time he rescued a few women from Feihu Stronghold, he still hadn't figured out how to handle them.

If those women could save themselves, fine; otherwise, Luli had no intention of adding to his troubles.

"Hurry and leave; if you delay, I'll kill you all!"

The women had already turned pale with fear. In their eyes, Luli, who had exterminated all the bandits in Tianfeng Stronghold, was a merciless and ruthless figure. Hearing Luli's words, they quickly scattered like frightened birds and beasts.

Luli confiscated several carts, roving around Tianfeng Stronghold and managing to find some items, though the harvest was not substantial.

Escaping from Canglang City to Donglin City, it seemed Tianfeng Stronghold was genuinely impoverished—a group of destitute mountain bandits.

Heading towards the outskirts of the stronghold, Luli, while passing by the headless corpse of Scarface, suddenly noticed an odd movement in his remains.

"Even the deceased exhibit such actions; it seems he was attempting to retrieve something from his bosom."

Luli used his blade to open Scarface's chest clothing, discovering a booklet placed there, tightly held by Scarface's lifeless hand.

"Oh, the audacious bandit clutched onto this even in death; what could it be?"

Luli used his blade to lift the booklet and found it to be a manual on a certain blade technique—an initiatory level technique called the "Opening Mountain Blade Technique."

Luli briefly perused it before storing this initiatory-level blade technique into the system space.

"A foundational blade technique of the Profound Rank; not bad!"

Checking the Fierceness Value, which had now surged to two hundred and thirty points, Luli, who originally had eighty-five points, had acquired an additional one hundred and forty-five points for eradicating Tianfeng Stronghold.

"This harvest is satisfying. Although there's a slight reduction in gold and silver, the Red Sleeve Blade's ability to absorb the life essence of the deceased is indeed surprising. Additionally, this Opening Mountain Blade Technique is worth exploring!"

Previously, integrating the Breaking Wave Blade Intent into the Gale Blade Technique had significantly increased its power. Now, with the discovery of this Opening Mountain Blade Technique, Luli naturally harbored intentions of advancing the Gale Blade Technique further.

With the matters in Tianfeng Stronghold settled, Luli departed.

Upon returning to Donglin City, he coincidentally encountered the guards from the Lord's residence waiting at the city gate. They were there, anticipating Luli's arrival.

"The lord is greatly satisfied with the elimination of Tianfeng Stronghold. In three days, representatives from the Tianmang Twelve Strongholds will come to collect the annual tributes near Donglin City. The lord's mansion will dispatch people to ambush them on the way, and the lord hopes that Master Luli will participate."

"Understood. I will attend!"

"This is a token of the lord's commendation for Master Luli's annihilation of Tianfeng Strong

hold. Please accept it!"

The guard presented a porcelain bottle to Luli.

Taking it, Luli opened the bottle, revealing a full batch of Qi Condensing Pills.

Lord Long was indeed generous; the fifty pills in the bottle were each worth a hundred silver, making the entire bottle equivalent to five thousand silver.

For eliminating Tianfeng Stronghold, Luli had gained a Fierceness Value of one hundred and forty-five. The loot obtained from Tianfeng Stronghold also amounted to several thousand silver. In light of these achievements, Lord Long's reward, a bottle of fifty Qi Condensing Pills, was quite substantial.

This venture to annihilate Tianfeng Stronghold had proven to be incredibly rewarding for Luli.

Having concluded the test set by Lord Long with the annihilation of Tianfeng Stronghold, Luli proceeded towards the residence he had purchased.

Suddenly, Luli furrowed his brow. Something felt peculiar on this journey; it seemed that someone had been watching him constantly after entering the city.

As he entered the courtyard, a glint of cold light rushed towards him. Luli was well-prepared, and with the Red Sleeve Blade, he struck towards the assailant.

A dagger was shattered by the Red Sleeve Blade. A figure emerged to Luli's left—a black-clad assassin.

Seeing his shattered dagger, the assassin hastily evaded the blade's radiance. Once the blade had passed, the assassin couldn't help but frown.

"What's going on? Clearly just a Fourth Pulse Realm martial artist, yet so formidable."

"Could the information provided be false?"

The assassin frowned, and while Luli did not slow down with the Red Sleeve Blade, the assassin's agility was truly remarkable. Evading the blade several times, a palm strike was directed towards Luli.