Chapter 115 Life or Death Hangs in the Balance as Golden Elixir Condenses, Blade Qi Severing Head and Shaking the Entire Street

The Death Warrior leader's dual blades slashed down from above his head.

The blade wind tore through the air, emitting a sharp hiss, like two iron wings cutting down simultaneously, carrying the full power of a Tongmai Peak True Qi, scattering all the gravel within a radius of one zhang.

Zhou Tie's spear shaft was already broken; the half-length iron spear lay in front of him, unable to block the angle of this strike.

Zhao Gang was entangled by a white-banner assassin three steps away; he hadn't even drawn his blade back yet, but his eyes had already seen the trajectory of those two falling blade lights.

A roar squeezed out of his throat.

"Inspector!"

Everyone's hearts were in their throats.

The City Defense Battalion's spear formation couldn't close in time, Shen Yue's flying daggers couldn't reach this distance, and Sun Qi was still pinning down the Death Warrior on the ground, unable to free himself.

The dual blades were less than half a foot from Lin Chen's head.

The True Qi attached to the blade edge had already shredded the clothing on Lin Chen's shoulders, his hair blown backward by the blade wind, several broken strands drifting onto the shattered stone slabs.

At this very breath.

Deep within Lin Chen's Dantian, the bottle mouth that had been repeatedly struck by True Qi completely shattered under the pressure of life and death.

It wasn't a gentle, natural progression.

It was a step forced out in a desperate situation.

A surge of thick True Qi, far exceeding the Tongmai Realm, gushed out from the core of his Dantian.

Golden light radiated from Lin Chen's body, the gravel within a radius of two zhang was blown away by the airwave, and the stone slabs on the street cracked into a spiderweb shape from beneath his knees, the cracks extending to three zhang away before stopping.

The Death Warrior leader's dual blades were hit head-on by this airwave, the blade edges deflected by half an inch, the empty blade wind grazing past Lin Chen's ear, severing the clothing on his left shoulder but failing to touch his flesh.

The Death Warrior leader's eyes changed drastically.

His arms were numbed by the shock, the webs between his thumbs and forefingers split simultaneously, fresh blood gushing from between his fingers and dripping down the hilt.

Lin Chen's posture of kneeling on one knee did not change.

But the black abyss was drawn from the stone slab.

A slash swept up from below.

This strike was completely different from before.

What condensed on the blade was no longer a thin halo of True Qi, but a layer of thick, golden Dan Qi, clinging tightly to the surface of the blade edge, like iron water heated to the extreme and pressed into a blade.

Where the blade passed, the air emitted a sharp tearing sound, a visible Qi trail dragging from the tip of the blade, leaving a golden afterimage in the twilight.

The Death Warrior leader crossed his dual blades to block.

Gold and iron clashed.

The sound was like a large bell being struck head-on, the humming noise shattering the windows of the shops on both sides of the street simultaneously, glass shards and wood chips falling one after another.

The Death Warrior leader's dual blades only held on for one breath under Lin Chen's strike.

Cracks appeared on the blade, spreading from the edge all the way to the hilt, like a dried-up riverbed.

Then it broke from the middle.

Two broken pieces of the blade rolled and flew out, one piece nailing into the wall by the street, the other bouncing on the ground with a crisp, shattering sound.

Lin Chen's Blade Intent did not stop.

The black abyss cut in through the gap in the broken blades, the golden Dan Qi clinging to the blade edge, slashing diagonally down from the Death Warrior leader's left shoulder.

There was no obstruction.

The Tongmai Peak protective True Qi was torn apart like thin paper in front of the Ningdan Realm Dan Qi.

A wound deep enough to see bone extended from his left shoulder to his right rib, the sound of the sternum breaking clearly audible on the quiet street.

The Death Warrior leader's body fell backward, his feet leaving the ground, his whole person pushed two steps away by the remaining force of this strike, stopping only when his back hit a stone pier by the street.

Black blood gushed from the wound, soaking his black clothes and spreading into a pool on the shattered stone slabs.

Before he could bite through the poison sac in his mouth, Sun Qi had already pounced from the side, his knee pressing onto his chest, two fingers hooking his jaw and dislocating it.

Click.

The chin dislocated, and the black wax pill rolled out from the side of the gums, wrapped up by Sun Qi with a cloth.

Sun Qi looked down at the eyes behind the masked cloth that had already become unfocused, and tucked the wax pill into his bosom.

"This time, you won't even be able to die easily."

Zhao Gang finally cut down the last white-banner assassin in front of him, and when he turned to look at Lin Chen, the blade in his hand almost slipped.

He saw it.

The layer of golden light on Lin Chen's body was receding, converging from his limbs and Meridians toward his Dantian, as if being sucked into an invisible vortex.

The residual True Qi fluctuations in the air were still vibrating, and gravel on the ground was gently jumping.

Zhao Gang opened his mouth, and when the voice squeezed out of his throat, it carried a sense of unreality.

"Ning... Ningdan Realm?"

Zhou Tie stood in place, gripping the half-broken spear, blood still dripping from the web of his hand, but his whole person seemed to be nailed in place, his gaze fixed on the spot where the last wisp of golden light on Lin Chen's body submerged into his Dantian.

Shen Yue stood at the alley entrance, her flying dagger still maintaining the posture of the strike, but she had forgotten to retract it.

The City Defense Battalion officer supported his long spear, his lips moving twice without making a sound.

The street was quiet for a full three breaths.

Then, the voices of the onlookers gushed out like water from an opened sluice.

"That strike just now, the Saber Qi left the body!"

"Ningdan Realm, the Inspector is in the Ningdan Realm!"

"The Wang family's Death Warrior leader, a Tongmai Peak, was slashed down in one blow?"

"I saw it with my own eyes, there was golden light on the blade, the dual blades broke directly!"

The remaining two Death Warriors who could still Move saw their leader slashed down, and their Battle Intent instantly collapsed.

One turned and ran, bumping into the City Defense Battalion's spear formation, three long spears pressing against his chest simultaneously, forcing him to have nowhere to retreat.

He bit through the poison sac in his gums, black blood flowing from the corners of his mouth, his body convulsing as he fell in front of the spear formation.

The other had just turned around when Sun Qi pounced from behind, his knee pressing onto his lower back, ropes binding his hands, and cloth strips blocking his jaw.

"Don't be in a hurry to die, you haven't confessed about your master yet."

The battle was over.

The entire street was full of gravel, broken blades, bloodstains, and that black-lacquered coffin that had been pried open, lying crookedly in the middle of the road, white banners and paper money trampled into the mud, mixed with blood, a complete mess.

Lin Chen stood up.

The golden Dan Qi on the black abyss had completely receded, and the blade had returned to its original dark luster.

His face was still pale, the bloodstain at the corner of his mouth not yet dry, condensing into a dark red blood bead along his jawline, particularly eye-catching in the twilight light.

But his standing posture was steady without swaying.

Inside the Dantian, a golden pill the size of a thumb was slowly rotating, True Qi gushing out continuously from the pill, flowing along the twelve main meridians, repairing the meridian damage caused by the forced Breakthrough just now.

That feeling was very strange, like a long-dried riverbed being filled with water again, every meridian absorbing the True Qi released by the pill, soreness and comfort intertwined.

Zhao Gang rushed to him in two or three steps, looking him up and down several times, the bloodshot eyes in his eyes redder than the blood at the corner of Lin Chen's mouth.

"Inspector, are you alright?"

Lin Chen glanced at him.

"I'm fine."

Zhao Gang swallowed his saliva, his voice suppressed very low, but he couldn't suppress the excitement within it.

"Did you really break through? Ningdan?"

Lin Chen did not answer this question, only looking toward the cloth sedan chair.

"Where is Zhou Pingan?"

Zhao Gang turned back and shouted at the cloth sedan chair.

"Zhou Pingan, come out!"

The curtain of the cloth sedan chair was lifted from the inside, and Zhou Pingan's face appeared from the slit of the curtain, as pale as paper, his legs still shaking, the knuckles of his fingers gripping the sedan pole turning white.

He looked at the gravel, broken blades, and corpses on the street, then looked at Lin Chen standing in the middle of the shattered stone slabs, his lips moving a few times.

"Inspector Lin, you..."

Lin Chen glanced at him.

"Let's go."

Zhou Pingan swallowed the rest of his words, nodded, and did not ask again.

Shen Yue walked to Lin Chen's side, her footsteps half a point lighter than usual, her gaze sweeping over the bloodstain at the corner of his mouth that hadn't dried yet, and then looking at his right hand gripping the blade.

The veins on the back of his hand had not completely subsided.

She lowered her voice, the sound only audible to the two of them.

"Inspector, did you force your Breakthrough just now?"

Lin Chen did not deny it.

"My Meridians are damaged, but the Dan is formed."

Shen Yue looked at his profile, her lips pursed.

"You must regulate your breathing after returning."

Lin Chen nodded, but his footsteps did not stop, already walking toward the escort team.

"Let's deliver the person first."

Shen Yue followed him without saying more, just walking half a step closer than usual, her hand constantly pressing on the hilt of her short blade.

The escort team reorganized.

This time no one dared to block the road again.

The City Defense Battalion officer personally led the team to clear the way, the long spear formation sealing the front, back, left, and right like an iron bucket, the spear tips connecting into a cold radiance in the twilight.

The shop doors along the way were all closed, but behind the door cracks were full of eyes, staring at the straight-backed young man in the middle of the team.

When Zhou Pingan was settled in the side courtyard of the Governors Mansion, all three parties arrived at the same time.

The Governor's personal guards guarded the main gate, the Criminal Division bailiffs guarded the side gate, and the Patrol Division's men guarded the back courtyard wall.

Zhao Gang personally checked the latches of every window and asked the Patrol Officers to cut down all the vines on the courtyard wall before coming out of the courtyard, letting out a long breath.

"This time, let's see who dares to reach out."

When Commander Liu Chong arrived, he saw the gravel and broken blades on the street that hadn't been cleaned up yet, and his expression changed again and again.

He walked to Lin Chen, his gaze pausing on him for a moment.

"Inspector Lin, have you broken through?"

Lin Chen put the black abyss back into its sheath, the sound of the blade entering the sheath very light.

"Commander Liu, please have the Criminal Division inspect the corpse of the Death Warrior leader."

Commander Liu Chong looked at him and nodded.

"Good."

He didn't ask much, turned around and ordered the Criminal Division bailiffs to collect the corpse, but after walking two steps, he turned his head back, the look in his eyes when he looked at Lin Chen carrying an extra layer of re-evaluation.

Ningdan Realm.

In Nanyang Prefecture, Commander Liu Chong knew better than anyone what this Realm meant.

High-level combat power at the Prefecture level, hard power that can gain a foothold in any city.

From today on, Lin Chen was no longer a pawn that anyone could manipulate at will.

When Sun Qi escorted the two captured Death Warriors and the rooftop archer back to the Main Courtyard, the sky had completely darkened.

Zhao Gang walked beside Lin Chen, lowering his voice, his tone carrying a gnashing-of-teeth satisfaction.

"Inspector, Second Young Master Wang Pei said this morning that you would die in the Prefecture City, and in the afternoon he sent a coffin."

Lin Chen looked at the record about Second Young Master Wang Pei, his gaze steady.

"That's why it must be recorded in the archives."

Zhao Gang grinned, revealing a row of teeth.

"This time he can't run."

He paused and added another sentence.

"Threatened in the morning, acted in the afternoon, written in black and white in the archives, Commander Liu Chong was there, the City Defense Battalion was there, and the people on the whole street saw it."

Liu Buyu followed behind holding the record book, the tip of his brush still stained with ink, writing as he walked.

"After the joint trial, Second Young Master Wang Pei threatened first, and that afternoon sent Death Warriors to ambush the escort team, coffin hiding crossbows, white banners hiding blades, the target being the witness Zhou Pingan."

He looked up at Zhao Gang.

"Head Zhao, this chain of evidence is enough to make Second Young Master Wang Pei drink three pots."

Zhao Gang patted his shoulder, with such force that Liu Buyu staggered a step.

"Old Liu, this pen of yours is more useful than my blade."

Inside the Main Courtyard's Archives Room, the lamps were relit.

Lin Chen sat before the desk, closing his eyes to regulate his breathing.

The Golden Core within the Dantian rotated slowly, and with every rotation, a warm True Qi was stripped from the surface of the core, flowing along the Meridians like a fine stream pouring into a dried-up riverbed.

The meridian damage caused by the forced Breakthrough just now was being repaired bit by bit, the burning, stinging pain having mostly subsided, replaced by an unprecedented feeling of fullness.

The quality of the True Qi was completely different.

In the Tongmai Realm, True Qi was like flowing water, light but thin.

After Ningdan, True Qi was like mercury, heavy and dense, every wisp carrying power far exceeding the past.

In his mind, the System's notification sound rang out.

[Detected that the Host has broken through to the Early Stage of the Ningdan Realm.]

[Escorted the witness to arrive safely during the battle, killed the Tongmai Peak Death Warrior leader, protected all members of the escort team to survive, related achievements have been recorded.]

[Achievement points will be settled at the Zi hour today.]

[Current available points: 8500 points.]

Lin Chen opened his eyes, his gaze falling on the System panel in his mind.

8500 points.

This was all the wealth he had accumulated from the time he was a Patrol Officer in Qingxi County to today.

Several lines of prompt text appeared on the System panel.

[Suggestion: Consume 5000 points to deduce the Ningdan Realm adaptation version of the Shadowless Thunder Blade, which can significantly improve the power of the blade technique and the efficiency of Dan Qi usage.]

[Suggestion: Consume 1000 points to accelerate meridian repair, expected to recover to Peak state within two hours.]

Lin Chen looked at those two lines of words, his fingers tapping lightly on the desk.

5000 points to deduce the blade technique, 1000 points to repair the Meridians, leaving 2500 points in reserve.

The Wang family would not give him too much time to catch his breath.

When the events on the street today spread back to the Wang family, Wang Chongyuan would know that he was no longer in the Tongmai Realm.

A Ningdan Realm Inspector and a Tongmai Realm Inspector were two completely different concepts in the eyes of the Wang family.

The Tongmai Realm could be piled up with Death Warriors, worn down by assassinations, and suppressed by numbers.

For the Ningdan Realm, the Wang family would have to use their true trump cards.

Lin Chen closed his eyes.

"Deduce."

In his mind, the System panel lit up with golden light, and the Move diagrams of the Shadowless Thunder Blade unfolded in his consciousness, every Move and every style being dismantled, reorganized, and injected with the brand-new path of Ningdan Realm True Qi circulation.

Footsteps came from outside the door.

Zhao Gang's voice came in from the door crack, very low.

"Inspector, there is movement from the Wang family's side."

Lin Chen did not open his eyes.

"What movement?"

Zhao Gang's voice carried tension.

"Sun Qi's secret agents reported that the Wang family's main residence lit all the lamps overnight, and Wang Chongyuan called Second Young Master Wang Pei and three guest consultants into the inner hall."

Lin Chen's mouth moved.

"Let them discuss."

Zhao Gang hesitated for a breath.

"Inspector, are you not worried?"

Lin Chen opened his eyes, golden light spots flashing deep in his pupils.

"They lost a Tongmai Peak Death Warrior leader today, lost a team of elites, and the coffin, crossbows, and white-banner assassins were all exposed before the eyes of the people on the whole street."

He looked toward the night outside the door.

"What Wang Chongyuan wants to think about now is not how to kill me."

Zhao Gang frowned.

"Then what is he thinking about?"

Lin Chen placed the black abyss across his knees, the scabbard reflecting the warm light of the lamp.

"He is thinking about how many people will open their mouths like Deputy Chief Meng Huaian after today."