Lord Shenxiu

The next day.

"Mr. Huang, Mr. Xue, how did you sleep last night? Did you hear any noises?"

Zhong Shenxiu hurriedly asked when he saw Huang Xie and the others.

"Very badly..."

Xue San's severed arm had been bandaged, but that hand could never be reattached: "I suffered through the night, but I didn't hear anything unusual."

"Er Ha kept watch last night, and nothing happened."

Er Ha quickly added.

"Never mind, we should head back early today... Strange, I clearly sent out a document yesterday, why has there been no response?"

Huang Xie muttered to himself, somewhat puzzled.

He didn't know that the plea for help, along with Tian Bufen, had already... disappeared!

"Since that's the case, let's set off after breakfast."

Zhong Shenxiu nodded his head.

Unwittingly, this small group had already started to regard him as their leader.

Xue San looked at his bandaged wound and said miserably, "I need to return to the mainland to recuperate from this injury. I plan to recommend you, Mr. Su, as the squad leader..."

Su Daoshi's martial skills were evident to all.

Besides, who else could be the squad leader if not him? Those two dogs?

Xue San had no choice but knew that it was difficult for the Fufeng Protectorate to replenish its soldiers. His recommendation would surely be accepted by the higher-ups; it only needed to get past Tian Bufen.

Zhong Shenxiu remained silent. As a criminal, he could not be pardoned without significant merit.

Significant merit here would at least have to be something that shocked the entire Fufeng Protectorate; killing a few monsters counted for nothing.

And until he could clear his name, he remained restricted, unable to leave the Fufeng Protectorate to travel inland or be promoted to a ranked official.

"The entire Fufeng Protectorate, with the grand commander at the highest respect, divided into civil and military roles. Not to mention the civil officials, the military ranks from the general, colonel, Wei Zheng, and down..."

The Yan Han military structure had five men per squad, ten squads made a unit, and five units made a battalion led by a battalion leader, which was a Ninth Grade position.

'As a convicted man, the highest military rank I could attain would be squad leader and, for a civil role, only a minor clerk. And then I never could rise any higher... A mere squad leader is frankly meaningless, not to mention that squad leader Tian Bufen might not agree...'

'Wait a moment, did I forget something last night... Was I cultivating the remaining chapters of Profound Yin Soul and accidentally released that resentful spirit?'

This path of Dao was originally about harnessing Yin souls to serve me.

However, if the spirit is too strong, it could become uncontrollable.

Zhong Shenxiu feared that a mishap during his cultivation would accidentally harm someone, which would be a big problem.

Luckily.

Based on the feedback received since morning, nothing unusual had happened in the entire village last night.

However, although Zhong Shenxiu was not keen on the squad leader position, he did not refuse it.

He thought to himself, 'I've always been cautious. I don't feel like showing off... With Su Daoshi's identity, it's better not to flee if I can avoid it. Taking shelter under the protection of the Fufeng Protectorate isn't too bad, after all. There are still many dangers in this world that I do not know... As for Heavenly Show Points, I just need another identity to pretend to be impressive.'

Xue San, despite having a broken arm, could still walk. The four people, along with the corpse of the unfortunate nameless man killed by the monstrous dogs, set off in the early morning and only returned to the military camp by midday.

Black Mountain Castle was responsible for patrolling this region, originally fraught with danger. Casualties among patrol teams were not unusual.

A single injury and one death were merely matters of reporting to the squad leader, who would then forward the report to Xu Wenling, the battalion leader stationed at Black Mountain Castle, who would sign the document.

But it was at this very step that things got stuck.

Xue San and the others waited for several days, yet they never saw squad leader Tian Bufen, which made them realize the gravity of the situation, alarming Battalion Leader Xu Wenling.

Military camps are different from other places—failing to return at night is a grave offense. Tian Bufen, an experienced veteran, would certainly not commit such an act without cause; most likely, he had met with some misfortune.

Unfortunately, despite Xu Wenling sending out search parties, they failed to find even a trace of Tian Bufen.

He had left to seek revenge, naturally covering his tracks, which inadvertently increased the difficulty of the search.

Outside was in complete disarray, but Zhong Shenxiu was quite at ease.

Their squad had suffered heavy casualties and needed to recuperate, sparing them further troubles.

Moreover, with Tian Bufen, who bore hostility towards Su Daoshi, gone missing, Zhong Shenxiu's life had become even more pleasant.

Taking advantage of this period, Zhong Shenxiu continuously sat in meditation to practice Qi Refinement in his room, gradually gaining insight into Primordial Qigong.

…

Several days passed.

For everyone in Black Mountain Castle, it was a very calm day.

But for Zhong Shenxiu, it was a matter of life and death.

The half-month period had arrived, with a double full moon!

Inside a wooden hut.

Zhong Shenxiu sat cross-legged, his expression solemn.

The double full moon was his crux, the earlier Su Daoshi had failed to withstand the vengeful spirit's backlash and pain, ultimately being tormented to death.

He felt neither sadness nor joy, only calmness, as he slowly awaited the onset of the malevolent ghost.

In the sky, the double moons gradually became full, their radiance bursting forth.

Suddenly, Zhong Shenxiu grunted, feeling intense pain within his body.

It was as if… a malevolent ghost was gnawing at his bones and viscera.

"Ow!"

Zhong Shenxiu's facial muscles twisted as he let out a low cry of pain, "No wonder Su Daoshi was tortured to death. But, although my spirit is stronger than his, my body seems to be barely holding up..."

Using the moonlight, he looked at his arm, noticing his skin had become even paler, seeming to lose all its warmth.

Not only that, but his figure was gradually thinning, his cheeks sunken, resembling a skeleton.

It was as if the Headless Earl inside him was freely devouring all his flesh and energy.

After all, a vengeful spirit is a vengeful spirit, craving flesh and requiring… nourishment!

Su Daoshi's body might not survive several full moons, let alone the rampage on the night Blood Moon.

In this bizarre moment, however, Zhong Shenxiu's expression subtly changed.

His spirit was dispersing, part of it seeming to become that legendary Earl, battling bloodily on the battlefield.

Another part seemed to turn into some bizarre, solipsistic existence, wandering in a small village and seeing a terrified face—that was… Tian Bufen!

'So, Tian Bufen had entered the village at night with ill intentions, but was unintentionally killed by the vengeful spirit of the Headless Earl that I was controlling?'

Zhong Shenxiu's eyes turned cold, seizing this fleeting thought in a flash, "If I continue like this, this body will be ruined! The only chance for survival lies in Primordial Qigong!"

He forcefully meditated, beginning his Qi Refinement.

This cultivation technique was created in his previous world, incorporating the strengths of various martial arts schools, but was hindered by the world's energy limits, unable to break through.

Since arriving in this world, he pondered it constantly.

After several days of quiet cultivation, he finally reached a certain peak, just a step away from mastery.

At this moment, on the brink of life and death, that constraint was finally fiercely broken!