[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-devouring-evil-exterminating-demons-across-all-h":3,"chapter-devouring-evil-exterminating-demons-across-all-h-devouring-evil-exterminating-demons-across-all-h-chapter-27":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Devouring Evil, Exterminating Demons Across All Heavens",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2266972,4426,"Chapter 27: Money as Armor, Guanyin as Shield","devouring-evil-exterminating-demons-across-all-h-chapter-27",27,"\u003Cp>South of the small town, in a ditch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The yellow talisman stuck to Ma Zhanggu’s face suddenly shattered; his eyes bulged, mouth agape, nostrils flaring.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The circle of kerosene lamps around the ditch all went out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since learning the old eunuch’s secrets from Deputy Zhou, Ma Zhanggu and the others had devised this strategy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Using the connection between the coffin pit, the jade coffin, and the old eunuch, they employed Maoshan sorcery to suppress him from afar, forcing him into deep slumber.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu and Zhong Jinqiu took the opportunity to sever the old eunuch’s allies, eliminating the other skilled performers in the troupe.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The entire plan had gone mostly smoothly up to this point; now, it all came down to the final, most critical step.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This old bastard’s too fierce!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ma Zhanggu gasped twice, crawled out of the ditch, snatched up his bamboo basket, and ran toward town.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After exchanging glances, Meng Lianfa and the others gritted their teeth and followed after him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sun still hung in the east.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Brilliant white sunlight, glistening rain threads.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Raindrops gathered at the eaves; as they fell, they reflected a twisted old face inside the hall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Who fired that gun?!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old eunuch’s face twitched; the deformed bullet squeezed out from his skin and dropped to the ground. His eyeball trembled, locking onto two figures outside the hall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ahh!!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A shrill shriek pierced the eardrums; the two servants inside the hall winced, clutching their ears in pain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old eunuch sprang like a giant shrimp.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But while a shrimp springs backward, this man’s shoulder blades slammed into the wall for leverage, propelling his entire body forward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His upper body leaned forward so drastically that, if he’d been standing still, he would’ve smashed into the ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But since he was sprinting forward, the incoming rain and air current balanced perfectly against his forward tilt.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With a whoosh of wind, the old eunuch landed on the stage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu and Zhong Jinqiu were both startled by the sight of the enemy’s face blocking a bullet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet in that instant, neither hesitated—they sprang apart to left and right, dodging the old eunuch’s lunge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu dodged left, twisted his body, swung his arm right, and slashed with his knife.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhong Jinqiu dodged right, twisted his waist, spun back left, and thrust his broken bamboo staff straight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The knife struck the old eunuch’s back; the blade clanged and shattered, along with his brocade robe, sending shards of iron flying.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The broken bamboo pierced toward the old eunuch’s ear—he caught it with one hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhong Jinqiu’s explosive force became evident at this moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The tough green bamboo rod split cleanly into eight pieces, bent and twisted by opposing forces, resembling the skeleton of a giant lantern.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old eunuch turned his head left, judging this threat greater; he spun his waist and yanked his arm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The shattered bamboo slivers flew from his side, straightening out and shooting backward toward Chu Tianshu.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old eunuch himself punched like a cannon firing—aimed straight at Zhong Jinqiu.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In a flash, as the old eunuch’s upper garment shredded, Zhong Jinqiu saw the tattoo on his chest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The beast-head tattoo was entirely composed of coin patterns.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His eyebrows were knife-shaped coins; square-holed cash formed his pupils; gold and silver ingots made his nose bridge; dozens of small copper coins overlapped to form thick lips and a gaping mouth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Men die for wealth; birds die for food. The power of money buys life, redeems the dead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Chang Method: Money Body Armor!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To cultivate this method, one must possess sufficient wealth, set a trap to lure someone with a yang birth hour and day to gain unexpected fortune, then perform the ritual altar.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Within ten days to half a month, the one who gained the windfall would wither—his essence and qi stolen by the ill-gotten wealth, transferred to the cultivator of this dark art.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Another’s essence was incompatible with the cultivator’s own and could not be absorbed, but could be layered atop the body’s surface, forming an invisible armor through repeated stacking.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When perfected, this dark art granted nothing more than a layer of steel-like skin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It resisted ordinary sharp weapons, but if struck by blunt force, or if joints were twisted, death still followed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just like that gunshot.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A mere Wu Chang sorcerer, struck in the face by a bullet—even with minor flesh damage—would have his brain rattled into unconsciousness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But this old eunuch was one who had trained both fist arts and sorcery.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Deputy Zhou said the old eunuch had spent most of his life refining fist techniques; when the Forbidden City fell, he seized a hidden cache of “Jin Ping Treasure Medicine” from the Qing court’s secret vaults, ingested and refined it according to the method, and thus succeeded in dual cultivation of the Wu Chang dark art.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What kind of combat power he now possessed after merging fist and sorcery remained unknown.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu and Zhou had only estimated it; they had never actually tested it firsthand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now it seemed, at least in facial defense, he surpassed Zhou’s estimate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Boom boom boom boom boom!!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old eunuch’s punches left a string of afterimages.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhong Jinqiu retreated three steps, his arms blocking dozens of blows without pause.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His cloth robe tore apart; sleeves flew off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In that fleeting moment, Zhong Jinqiu’s arms swelled red and purple; he gritted his teeth, letting out a low growl.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Guanyin Armor!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old eunuch’s fist art had reached the realm of “Guanyin Bones.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A fist master who achieved this state distributed impact across his entire body when clashing with opponents—where others suffered localized damage, he absorbed force universally, allowing him to strike with reckless, ferocious power.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Added to that, the old eunuch wore Money Body Armor—perfect synergy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was the true power of fused fist art and dark sorcery.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That leopard-cat warrior was nowhere near comparable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even Chu Tianshu’s spirit communication sorcery lacked sufficient offensive power to merge with fist art to such effect.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But after dodging the bamboo slivers, Chu Tianshu lunged forward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He’d intended to kick the old eunuch’s groin—but remembered the old man’s groin likely had extraordinary defense.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So this lunge, his long arm shot out, grabbing the white hair fluttering behind the old eunuch’s head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old eunuch had just exposed Zhong Jinqiu’s opening, ready to strike—when his head suddenly jerked back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Insolent!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He gritted his teeth and yanked forward—the white hair snapped clean in the middle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment, Zhong Jinqiu spat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A fist master who had cultivated “Food as Immortal” could expel breath from his mouth and strike a man’s eyes as if struck by a stick—causing unbearable stinging pain within half a meter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But what Zhong Jinqiu spat was not breath—it was a fishbone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was the fishbone he’d held in his mouth that morning while cooking.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Usually, hiding needles or blade shards in the mouth was obvious to seasoned veterans.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But this single fishbone was nearly impossible to detect.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In his youth, Zhong Jinqiu had trained this trick specifically—he’d held the fishbone in his mouth, and after hours of eating and speaking, not a single sign of abnormality showed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The fishbone flashed—embedded in the old eunuch’s left eyelid.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old bastard closed his eye fast—his eyelid seemed even protected—but still far weaker than elsewhere; he grunted in pain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhong Jinqiu’s palms struck his chest the instant he closed his eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These palms moved so swiftly, not a whisper of wind preceded them; when they hit his chest, the sound was dull and low—as if striking a thick sack.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Taiji Immortal Force: Pushing the Moon Through the Window!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But at the same moment, the old eunuch’s fists slammed into Zhong Jinqiu’s shoulders, launching him five meters into the air.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Behind the old eunuch, Chu Tianshu watched clearly: two faint palm prints protruded from the old man’s back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He frowned fiercely, exhaled sharply, stomped his foot, and thrust both palms—right onto those two palm prints.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old eunuch crashed backward with a thud, flying farther than Zhong Jinqiu, smashing into the courtyard wall, his head cracking through the bricks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ha!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The moment the old eunuch’s feet touched ground, he yanked his head free from the wall, whirled around, and fixed his gaze on his enemies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhong Jinqiu rose to his feet, but his arms hung limp like dead snakes; shoulder pain rendered him unable to raise his arms.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu stepped beside him, swept his right hand across Zhong Jinqiu’s back—four needles dropped onto his shoulders and upper back, unblocking meridians and relieving pain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But where the needles pierced, purple-red blood seeped out—this injury wouldn’t heal quickly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Heh, hehe!!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old eunuch’s eyes darted, thick blood dripping from his mouth: “Immortal Force—after penetrating my armor—left only two-tenths residual power.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That brat had both penetrating force and brute strength—perfect timing—he truly damaged my lungs.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In fist arts, there were subtle elemental counterrelationships: Guanyin Bones countered Dragon-Wrapping Body; Food as Immortal countered Guanyin Bones.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old eunuch overrode these counterrelationships with Money Body Armor and instantly crippled Zhong Jinqiu.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Chu Tianshu was unusual—he carried nine-tenths Dragon-Wrapping Body and four-tenths Food as Immortal, catching the old eunuch completely off guard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re townsfolk, aren’t you? Two masters, plus one who casts spells from afar—your level’s unlike anything I’ve heard. There’s a traitor among you, colluding with outsiders!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even now, the old eunuch’s tone was vicious, yet brimming with confidence; he patted his neck.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My neck has withstood decades of sun and storm in the Forbidden City; I’ve captured countless corrupt officials and rebels; heads rolled beneath my blade. I’ve always outlived them. Let’s see if you mud-footed peasants can do anything to me today?!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu said nothing, only stared.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just now, when the old eunuch fought both of them, the key wasn’t just Money Body Armor—it was his insight and control over the rhythm of battle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu was brave enough, but he felt he hadn’t performed well in the earlier assault—his own rhythm had been disrupted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Experience? No, experience alone isn’t enough—Zhong Shu has that too, so why doesn’t he have that same flavor?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu’s mind flashed urgently; he raised his left hand, fingers extended like a sword, held vertically before his body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It’s dual cultivation!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The instant switch from inward to outward in the Open Meridian state.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Tianshu’s eyes gleamed softly; beneath his feet, a faint, almost imperceptible mist stirred.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Forming a perfect circle five meters in radius—though it had no true substance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old eunuch’s expression darkened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1754,"2026-06-19T20:45:51.976Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","853f760592e7673a2d1c7c7598bb9af16c03aa6fda707b45fe9229f82b19e5fc","devouring-evil-exterminating-demons-across-all-h-chapter-28","devouring-evil-exterminating-demons-across-all-h-chapter-26",155,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fdevouring-evil-exterminating-demons-across-all-h-cover.jpg"]