67: The Spirit's Beloved

The clamor of the battlefield gradually subsided, leaving only the river whimpering restlessly, washing away the traces of battle and the thinning poisonous blood.

The "River Suppressing Ship," serving as a temporary base, slowly approached, its massive hull steady as a rock amidst the turbulent currents.

Thick ropes and winches were lowered from the ship. Under the command of Shi Poyue and the others, everyone worked together, exerting immense effort to finally drag the Jade Water Toad's mountain-like corpse onto the warship's broad deck.

"Boom!"

As the corpse settled, the entire hull sank lower, letting out a tooth-aching creak.

The deck was instantly stained with stinking mucus and dark green blood. Its massive size and hideous appearance still radiated a heart-palpitating, ferocious aura even in death.

Several old butchers from the Water Patrol Division, who had been waiting on the ship, stepped forward with burning eyes, rubbing their hands together.

In their hands were no ordinary butcher knives, but specially made, thick-backed cleavers and hook-sickles with serrated edges and blood grooves. The blades glinted coldly under the dim sky.

These old butchers had slaughtered countless livestock and even Vicious Beasts in their lives, but butchering a Essence Spirit was a first for them. It was both a challenge and a great honor.

"Damn, being able to personally dismantle a Essence Spirit in this lifetime makes it all worth it!"

An old butcher with a face full of scars spoke with excitement, cautiously testing the toughness of the toad's skin with the tip of his knife.

"Be careful! The skin is thick, the meat is tough, and it's poisonous. Don't ruin the Materials!"

Another more experienced Master butcher reminded him, directing his assistants to first handle the pustules that were still slightly oozing poison.

The butchering work began methodically. The specialized tools cut into the tough skin, making a tooth-aching "creak" sound.

A thicker stench of blood filled the deck, but it was accompanied by the excitement of a harvest.

Chen Linsheng had changed into clean clothes and stood to the side, watching the behemoth being gradually dismantled.

His face was slightly pale, a normal result of intense mental concentration and heavy blood-qi consumption, but his eyes were as bright as stars.

Thinking back on the thrilling underwater fight and that decisive arrow now, his heart still surged with emotion.

"Good lad!" Senior Brother Shi Poyue walked over and punched Chen Linsheng's shoulder heavily, his bronze face filled with undisguised admiration. "Underwater containment, and then a decisive arrow at the critical moment! A Sheng, your courage and archery have truly impressed me! The top credit for this mission belongs to you!"

"Senior Brother, you flatter me. If Master and Martial Uncle Chen Chuan hadn't pinned it down from the front and drawn most of its attention, I would never have succeeded."

Chen Linsheng spoke humbly, but a warm current flowed through his heart from the recognition.

Second Senior Brother Di Moyu also revealed a rare smile and nodded. "Staying calm in danger and seizing the opportunity—A Sheng, you did very well."

Third Martial Sister Liu Ruyan was even more direct, stepping forward to hook her arm around Chen Linsheng's neck. She laughed heartily, "Not bad, Junior Brother! You were hiding your light under a bushel! My heart was in my throat watching that just now! Beautifully done!"

Just then, Fourth Martial Sister Zhao Linger came bouncing over. Her big eyes sparkled as she stared at the "fierce wind" bow on Chen Linsheng's back. Tugging at his sleeve, she spoke with blatant envy and a coquettish tone:

"Junior Brother! Junior Brother! That arrow just now was so cool! How did you practice it? Won't you teach me? I want to learn archery that can hit a Essence Spirit's vital points too!"

Seeing her longing gaze, Chen Linsheng couldn't help but smile.

This Fourth Martial Sister had a simple and straightforward personality, saying whatever was on her mind, which made it impossible to dislike her.

After a brief hesitation, he nodded and agreed. "If Fourth Martial Sister wants to learn, I will naturally teach you everything I know. However, the path of archery requires constant practice and has extremely high requirements for eyesight, arm strength, and Heart-Nature. You must be prepared to endure hardship, Sister."

"No problem! I can endure hardship!"

Zhao Linger see Chen Linsheng agree, immediately beamed with joy and patted her chest in guarantee. Her charmingly naive manner drew a round of good-natured laughter from everyone.

At that moment, Martial Uncle Chen Chuan and Master Zhao Zheng walked over side by side.

Chen Chuan's gaze fell on Chen Linsheng, the appreciation in his eyes growing even stronger. He clapped his hands and laughed:

"Linsheng, you have achieved the top merit today and deserve the highest honor! If you hadn't accurately pointed out that beast's hiding place and broken its defense with your extraordinary arrow, your Master and I would likely have had to go through much more trouble to take it down, or it might have even escaped."

As he spoke, he flicked his wrist, and a neatly folded soft armor, shimmering with a soft dark-silver luster, appeared in his hand.

It was unclear what material the soft armor was woven from; it was as thin as silk yet faintly exuded a sense of toughness. Its surface had fine scale-like patterns, and Spiritual Qi was contained within.

"This is the 'Consonance Armor,' ranked Low Grade Spirit Rank. It is woven from 'Water Cloud Silk' mixed with 'Cold Iron Spider Silk.' It is light and breathable, yet its defensive power is quite remarkable. It can withstand a full-force blow from a Flesh Refining Realm Peak Martial Artist and has a good weakening effect against piercing force." Chen Chuan handed the soft armor to Chen Linsheng. "This armor is an additional reward for you. I hope you continue to cultivate diligently and soon become a pillar of our Human Race!"

A Spirit Rank armor!

Chen Linsheng's heart jolted. Mortal, Spirit, Treasure, Divine—Cultivation Techniques and weapons were all classified this way.

Spirit Rank items were already treasures beyond the reach of ordinary Martial Artists, let alone a protective soft armor with such strong life-saving capabilities!

Its value far exceeded the four-dan powerful bow he had purchased previously.

He didn't take it immediately, instead instinctively looking toward his Master, Zhao Zheng.

Zhao Zheng had a gratified smile on his face and nodded slightly, signaling him to accept it.

Only then did Chen Linsheng take it with both hands. It felt cool and smooth to the touch, with almost no weight. He was overjoyed and bowed respectfully. "Thank you for the generous gift, Martial Uncle! This Disciple will certainly not fail your expectations!"

"Haha, good!" Chen Chuan nodded with satisfaction.

After clearing the battlefield and confirming nothing was missed, the "River Suppressing Ship" raised its sails, turned its bow, and sailed back toward the Qinghe County town pier.

When the warship slowly docked and the Jade Water Toad's corpse, which covered nearly half the deck, was exposed to the people on the pier, it instantly caused a massive sensation!

"My god! What... what kind of monster is that?!"

"It's a monster from the river! I heard the elders talk about them before, but I didn't think they actually existed!"

"Hall Master Zhao and the others from the Yangwei Martial Arts Hall... they actually killed this bane!"

"Wonderful! Now that this great menace is gone, sailing will be much safer in the future!"

On the pier, the soldiers of the Water Patrol Division, passing merchants, boatmen, and laborers were all dumbfounded and buzzing with discussion, their faces filled with shock, awe, and heartfelt joy.

For ordinary people, such a terrifying Essence Spirit lurking in the river was undoubtedly a sword hanging over their heads.

Now that the hidden danger was removed, how could they not be overjoyed? The news spread like it had wings, quickly covering the entire pier and spreading into the county town.

Under countless gazes of awe and gratitude, the Jade Water Toad's massive corpse was carefully transported to a designated area within the Water Patrol Division Yamen, where those old butchers continued to oversee the dismantling.

Such precious Essence Spirit Materials were worth a fortune for every inch; they had to be handled by professionals to preserve their spiritual efficacy to the greatest extent.

By the afternoon, the butchering work was finally completed.

According to prior agreement and custom, about ten percent of the Jade Water Toad's Materials—including parts of the tough outer skin, some non-core bones, and ordinary flesh—were left for the Water Patrol Division.

This was both a reward for providing the warship and manpower, and a necessary move to maintain the good relationship between the two parties.

Head Constable Wang looked at those Materials, grinning from ear to ear. These resources were enough to slightly boost the Water Patrol Division's strength and were a solid achievement on his record.

The remaining ninety percent of the Materials were distributed by the Yangwei Martial Arts Hall itself. As the leaders and absolute main force of this operation, Zhao Zheng and Chen Chuan held unquestionable distribution rights.

The most important item, the Beast Core—which emitted a hazy green light and contained vast water-attribute energy—naturally went to Master Zhao Zheng. This was the core ingredient for him to refine Realm-breaking Medicinal Pills.

Additionally, the top-tier Materials like the toughest back skin and the thick, jade-like leg bones mostly went to the two elders.

And Chen Linsheng, as the acknowledged top contributor of this battle, also received a very bountiful harvest.

He received a large amount of high-quality, pre-processed "Toad Venom."

This Toad Venom was taken from the largest poison glands on the Jade Water Toad's back. After the violent toxicity was removed through special techniques, it became a precious auxiliary ingredient for refining various high-level detoxification pills and even certain special pills, worth a fortune.

More importantly, he obtained a large piece of "Spirit Monster Heart Meat" weighing about twenty catties!

This meat was bright red with a fine, marble-like texture, containing incomparably pure blood-qi essence and a faint water-spiritual power. For him, currently in the Flesh Refining Realm, it was a supreme tonic, far superior to ordinary Vicious Beast meat.

"Spirit Monster Heart Meat... Perhaps with this, I can push Python Dragon Strength to Major Achievement in one go, and even try to charge toward the Realm of Python-Dragon Unity?"

A thought rose in his mind, and a glimmer of anticipation flashed in his eyes.