Immortality by Merit and Sin Coins

’First, an Immortal Descendant sought to trap the city. So, they had that Overseas Dragon come here with a Magical Artifact, assuming the Cheng Family’s identity and staying in the hopes of obtaining something from within the city.’

’I’m not exactly sure what that something is.’

’But the reason Cheng Yi wanted to replace Mountain-Smashing Dragon is that the gang leader backed down instead of rising to the Government Office’s provocations.’

’This means the man’s goal is to plunge the city into total chaos.’

’Perhaps what the Immortal Descendant wants is related to the lives of the people in the city.’

’Coupled with the Awakening Pill residue Yan Jin found and Cheng Yi’s exhausted, constantly yawning state, it’s possible this Overseas Dragon can’t fully control the Magical Artifact and needs Elixirs to assist him.’

’If that’s really the case...’

’This weakness could very well be my chance to get out of the city!’

"Alright... But don’t you even think about trying to brute force your way through."

Gu Nanzhi guessed that the Secret Technique he’d just used must have come at a steep price. His coming all the way out here just to recover his energy was too obvious, so she couldn’t help but offer a word of caution.

With that said, she turned and headed for a denser part of the forest on higher ground. The view was wider there, allowing her to stand guard for him.

"..."

Once Gu Nanzhi was a good distance away,

Lin Shu’s expression grew calm, and he focused his mind.

’The Overseas Dragon is in East City, drawing the attention of the Government Office. This is one of my few chances to get close to the Magical Artifact.’

At the thought, his brow furrowed slightly as beads of sweat began to form on his forehead.

’Soul-Splitting Thousand Threads Guide!’

As he unleashed the Divine Technique unique to an Immortal Descendant,

a hazy figure only he could see separated from his body. It drifted leisurely toward the great river before silently plunging beneath the surface.

Lin Shu let out a long breath.

His split soul went into the water to find the flood dragon.

Lin Shu didn’t remain idle either.

With a thought, a string of a thousand pitch-black, heavy coins materialized, along with over a hundred scattered coins to the side.

Earlier, since Gu Nanzhi had been the main force, she had already used her Sword Qi to hack Mountain-Smashing Dragon into a bloody mess.

He had just found the right moment to come out and snatch the kill, so he hadn’t consumed much Magical Power.

He kept the loose coins for emergencies, while the remaining string of a thousand surged directly toward the Filthy Moon Wolf Lord in his heart.

"Awooo... Woof!"

Faced with such a huge quantity of Sin Coins,

the little wolf cub instinctively opened its eyes, even though it lacked any real consciousness.

It wagged its tail eagerly, a far cry from the menacing Immortal Descendant it had appeared to be earlier.

[Consumed one string of Sin Coins. Evil Immortal reaches Initial Success.]

The Filthy Moon Wolf Lord crouched low. Its fur grew even darker, its crimson eyes became unnervingly soul-stealing, and its limbs grew much sturdier than before.

Two small bumps slowly swelled on its forehead, and its fangs grew longer, protruding from its lips. As its appearance became more ferocious, the Magical Power emanating from its body grew substantially more abundant!

’No wonder it’s called an Evil Immortal. The more it grows, the uglier it gets...’

Though Lin Shu couldn’t resist complaining to himself, he felt a surge of confidence.

After all, the stronger the Filthy Moon Wolf Lord became, the more Magical Power he could borrow.

’Of course, borrowed power is never as good as your own.’

Watching the little wolf rapidly devour the Sin Coins, a flicker of anticipation appeared in Lin Shu’s eyes.

Soon, abstruse text began to float in his mind.

[Foundation Establishment Ninth Grade - Howling Moon Soul-Eroding Curse: Entry-level]

When he saw the two words "Foundation Establishment," Lin Shu’s heart suddenly skipped a beat.

’Just as I expected. The Filthy Moon Wolf Lord is already a young Immortal Descendant.’

’I no longer have to spend massive amounts of Sin Coins to evolve techniques at the Qi Cultivation Realm. Instead, I can directly comprehend the corresponding Foundation Establishment Immortal Technique.’

"Unfortunately, while it’s a high-level technique, it still only targets the Divine Soul."

Despite his pleasant surprise, Lin Shu still wasn’t completely satisfied.

After watching the Magical Combat between Gu Nanzhi and Mountain-Smashing Dragon, he felt more and more that his own methods were too one-dimensional.

Black Water City was, after all, just a small place.

Here, with the lack of sufficient resources and Immortal Techniques, Cultivators had no way to specifically prepare items to protect their Divine Souls, which was why they were at such a great disadvantage.

That was why he seemed to be invincible.

But once he got to the outside world, the situation would be completely different.

The Divine Soul was so important, yet so fragile and vulnerable to fatal attacks.

Lin Shu refused to believe that those Immortal Families would be lax in this regard. They would surely have developed numerous countermeasures.

When that time came, he would be the one at a disadvantage.

[Foundation Establishment Ninth Grade - Howling Moon Soul-Eroding Curse: Minor Success]

The Filthy Moon Wolf Lord devoured the entire thousand copper coins, advancing its proficiency with the Immortal Technique another level, before finally lying back down in satisfaction.

Now that this Immortal Descendant had matured, the Sin Coins had once again become as potent as before.

Previously, it had taken six or seven hundred Sin Coins just to obtain the Qi Cultivation First Grade technique, Burial of Bones and Soul. To break through another major realm, there was no telling how much more he would have had to pour in.

Now, a single string of a thousand coins could get him a Foundation Establishment technique, and without having to endure that agitating feeling that nearly drove him mad. It was an incredible bargain.

Lin Shu immersed his mind, contemplating this Howling Moon Immortal Technique.

Compared to his previous Magic, this was no longer about simply creating illusions to temporarily trap someone in a fearful trance.

Instead, it was a tangible Spiritual Soul Attack, like a sharp arrow piercing the brain. The slightest carelessness from an opponent would result in their consciousness being shattered, leading to death.

"Hiss!"

The very moment Lin Shu was reflecting on the insidious nature of this Magic, his own Divine Soul suddenly shuddered.

The color drained from his already fair face.

His pupils dilated, and it took him a long moment to come to his senses.

His split soul had found the flood dragon, and as expected, it contained a sliver of Divine Thought.

The reason for this sudden change was that the sliver of Divine Thought had also discovered his split soul and had immediately pounced on it.

The two were entangled for about four or five breaths of time before the split soul was torn to shreds.

"Terrifying."

Lin Shu’s breathing was rapid.

He had guessed the owner of this Magical Artifact was strong.

But that had been just a wisp of Divine Thought.

It was the equivalent of a single hair plucked from an ox, yet it had been enough to crush half of his soul.

As a price, that Divine Thought had only been diminished by less than twenty percent.

If it had been anyone else, having half their soul shattered would have turned them into a raving lunatic, if it didn’t kill them outright.

But as an Immortal Descendant’s Divine Technique, the greatest strength of the Soul-Splitting Thousand Threads Guide was that even if the split soul was shattered, it could quickly return to the main body.

This was also why he had dared to come and test the waters after learning that the object trapping the city might be a Magical Artifact.

"..."

Lin Shu watched as formless wisps floated up from the water’s surface and merged back into his mind.

Some color returned to his pale face.

There were certainly losses, but he only felt a slight fatigue.

’So you’re getting cocky, are you?’

Lin Shu’s eyes narrowed, a dangerous glint appearing within them.

’If the Divine Thought had been able to crush my soul without taking any damage itself, I would have turned and left immediately, without a single look back.’

’I would have gone back to being the Gang Leader of the Black Water Gang, or even gone to work as a subordinate for the County Captain.’

’But since it took damage, that means it has a health bar.’

Lin Shu had already practiced this Divine Technique repeatedly in Xia Laohu’s residence and was thoroughly familiar with it.

Now, after only a moment of regulating his breath, another human-shaped silhouette separated from his body and plunged headfirst into the Black River.

’This isn’t just about the Magical Artifact. It’s about my ten thousand Merit Coins, too.’

’I’ve already come this far, so why the hell would I hesitate now!’