The great blade rogue cultivator's roar echoed through the main hall as Wild Dog cowered on the ground, too terrified to even activate his Gu worms.
Lin Mu didn't spare the large man a second glance. As a proper demonic cultivator, he never wasted words on dead men.
The Primeval Essence within his body completed its ultimate compression in an instant, all of it pouring into the dusty little worm at his sleeve.
Dust Escape Gu—activate!
"Poof!"
A muffled sound exploded in the silence, drowning out Wild Dog's sobbing.
The great blade rogue cultivator's wild laughter hadn't even had time to fade before he noticed the black-robed figure in the bamboo hat ahead had suddenly burst apart on its own, transforming into a dense, heavy cloud of grayish-brown dust that obscured all vision.
"Cheap tricks!"
The rogue cultivator's heart jolted as he instinctively sensed an extremely dangerous aura.
He had roamed the jianghu for many years. Though lacking superior heritage, he possessed a ruthless determination to fight for his life. With a fierce shout, he channeled all his Primeval Essence into his right arm, sweeping his great ring-blade in an impenetrable net before him, attempting to block any assault from that dust cloud.
However, he had ultimately underestimated Lin Mu.
This was the perfect combination of Earth Ring Body·Speed and Dust Escape Gu. Under cover of that dust cloud, Lin Mu didn't charge in a straight line but glided silently along the stone floor in an arc that defied common sense.
"Swish!"
A gust of bloody wind accompanied by a faint rustling sound brushed past the rogue cultivator's rear flank.
The great blade rogue cultivator's powerful slash cut through empty air. His formidable Primeval Essence dispersed half the dust cloud, yet he felt no solid impact whatsoever.
Alarm bells screamed in his mind. He was about to change his stance to defend, but the momentary rigidity of a Rank 1 Peak body after such an explosive movement became an insurmountable chasm he would never cross in this lifetime.
In that instant when old strength had just departed and new strength hadn't yet emerged, a dark, deep gleam of green light that seemed capable of swallowing moonlight quietly emerged from the still-lingering dust.
This was Iron Leaf Gu, activated by Primeval Essence repeatedly refined by the Liquor Worm until its quality approached infinitely close to Rank 2.
It was no longer a fragile leaf but had transformed under the infusion of Primeval Essence into an extremely thin, extremely resilient curved blade. Its edge even emitted a faint hum from high-frequency vibrations.
"Shhk."
A sound as soft as tearing silk rang out.
Lin Mu's figure slowly solidified three steps behind the great blade rogue cultivator. Before his heels had even touched the ground, the iron leaf pinched between two fingers of his right hand had already silently slipped back into his sleeve.
"Gurgle... you..."
The great blade rogue cultivator's massive body froze like a wooden stake. He still maintained his post-swing posture, his right hand gripping the blade handle tightly, but his left hand was already trembling, trying to clutch his neck.
Blood spurted from his thick, fleshy neck like a severed water pipe.
That gleam of green light had not only severed his windpipe but had also, at an extremely cunning angle, instantly shredded his cervical nerves.
The arrogance, madness, and ferocity in his eyes were completely replaced by endless emptiness and terror in less than a second.
"Thud."
The burly corpse slammed heavily onto the dust-covered stone floor, eyes still open in death. To the crisp sound of that iron great ring-blade clattering to the ground, this Rank 1 Peak rogue cultivator who had roamed the mountains met his end.
Both were Rank 1 Peak, yet one relied entirely on brute courage and fighting spirit, his Primeval Essence mottled and unrefined. The other had systematic killing techniques, extraordinarily high Primeval Essence quality, and every ounce of combat power precisely calculated.
This gap was not merely a generational difference in strength but a crushing disparity in survival logic.
Inside the ruined temple, suffocating silence descended once more.
Lin Mu's expression remained calm, as if he had merely crushed an insignificant flying insect. He slowly turned around, looking down from above at Wild Dog, who sat paralyzed on the ground, shaking like a sieve, completely stupefied.
"Your problem has been resolved."
Lin Mu's voice was flat without a single fluctuation, as though he had just casually squashed a worthless bug. "Now, it's time to settle the account."
Hearing this bland urging, Wild Dog's entire body shuddered violently.
He glanced at the corpse on the ground—the enemy who had hunted him for half a month, leaving him with nowhere to run in heaven or earth. Then he looked up at the black-robed figure before him, unfathomable as an abyss.
The fear in his heart instantly sublimated into extreme reverence at this moment—even faith!
"Yes! Yes! Please calm your anger, my lord! I'll settle up right away! Right away!"
Like a true dog, Wild Dog scrambled forward on all fours, raising the money pouch filled with Primeval Stones high above his head with both hands at the fastest speed of his life.
"My lord! This is the agreed payment! And these Primeval Stones... I've added thirty extra! Consider it a token of appreciation for your trouble! If my lord ever has any orders in the future, Wild Dog will come at your call, through fire and water!"
Lin Mu accepted the money pouch and bone slip without ceremony.
He didn't even count the Primeval Stones, merely confirming that the bone slip indeed contained certain special information recorded on it before tucking it away. Then his cold gaze swept toward the still-warm corpse on the ground.
He didn't immediately search the other party's aperture. After all, in the world of Gu Masters, "killing to seize Gu" was never a straightforward matter.
"What a pity. This fellow wielded that great ring-blade with impressive vigor, and his physique was robust. His aperture probably contained one or two decent Strength Path Gu worms." Lin Mu calculated silently but made no move to reach in.
Because he knew all too well that Gu Masters and their Gu worms shared a tight connection of will. As long as the original owner retained even a wisp of remaining consciousness before death, a single thought could instantly reduce the Gu worms in their aperture to worthless fragments.
That "instant kill" just now, though executed with ultimate speed—so fast the opponent couldn't even cry out—a peak rogue cultivator who had spent years licking blood from knife edges would often summon that desperate survival instinct and that ruthless determination to take everything down together, even before the body's death.
In this man-eating Southern Border, self-destruction rather than aiding the enemy was an instinct carved into every Gu Master's bones.
His previous successful Gu seizures had mostly been against opponents who hadn't realized they were about to face lethal danger, allowing Lin Mu repeated success. But now, these opponents were no longer greenhorns new to the jianghu, so he naturally didn't hold much hope.
"Unless one possesses Soul Path methods that can instantly suppress another's will, or Wisdom Path secret techniques that can forcibly erase imprints before the target realizes, forcibly seizing Gu worms from someone resolved to die is nothing but wasted effort."
Lin Mu shook his head with a self-deprecating air. His current foundation couldn't yet support such high-level plundering.
He withdrew his gaze and spoke coldly to Wild Dog, who lay trembling on the ground:
"Clean this up thoroughly. Leave no traces of aura. If more troublesome characters are drawn here, I won't intervene a second time."
"Yes! Yes! Rest assured, my lord. Wild Dog understands—I'll dispose of everything completely!"
Leaving these cold words behind, Lin Mu stirred his thoughts. His figure slid backward like a ghost, instantly vanishing into the vast night beyond the ruined temple, leaving not a single trace behind.
Inside the ruined temple, the cold wind continued to blow.
Wild Dog knelt alone on the ground, facing the direction Lin Mu had departed, and made three deep, prolonged bows.
He silently swore in his heart that from now on, within Grey Street's territory, whatever goods this master escorted—even if he had to sell everything he owned—he would never dare haggle over a single copper coin again!