Chapter 40: Generous Rewards

"Another lonely night; is there really no one willing to come and keep me company tonight?"

Under the dim lamplight, a slender figure cast a long, drawn-out shadow; the lonely silhouette appeared somewhat desolate. Yet, no one dared to underestimate this silhouette, for its owner was not only capable of seducing people but also of devouring them.

Once targeted, one was like a fish that had taken the bait, never able to break free; she was a notorious femme fatale.

At this moment, the Third Chief was wallowing in self-pity before the mirror, as if she were a young bride who had been wronged. Yet, the deeply hidden fear in her eyes could not be shaken off no matter what.

She wanted to find someone to vent upon to dispel the fear in her heart, but everyone stayed far away.

A bunch of unromantic trash—don't they know the beauty of dying under the peony flower? If it weren't for the fact that the quota for medicine slaves was used up today, it wouldn't be your turn. You don't even know how to take advantage of such a great bargain; and you call yourselves bandits? You're all as timid as mice.

Just then, the light of the candle flickered slightly, as if another breeze had blown through. And in the room where she was, without her knowing when, an extra figure had appeared.

"Who are you?" Seeming to sense someone nearby, the Third Chief stood up abruptly. Despite being full of vigilance toward the suddenly appearing Shen Yu, she wore a smile as bright as a flower on her face.

Every smile and every movement seemed to exude an irresistible temptation. Coupled with that soft, tingling voice and the fragrance emanating from her entire body, it was enough to make anyone lose control.

"Little gentleman, the night is long; have you come to find this slave to spend a wonderful night together?" Slowly walking toward Shen Yu, the smile on the Third Chief's face grew even wider; she was most proud of this peak-level Charm Technique of hers.

Over these years, she didn't know how many people had fallen at her feet, obsessed with her, crazy for her, and willing to abandon everything for her. It was precisely by this that she had sat in the position of Third Chief, so she was quite confident in her own charm.

Let alone a young man full of vigor, even a seventy or eighty-year-old grandfather would be guaranteed to be infatuated. As long as she had her eyes on someone, no one had ever been able to run away.

The only thing that made the Third Chief somewhat uneasy was that Shen Yu, opposite her, seemed completely unaffected, not at all lost in the drunken, dream-like state she had imagined, unable to extricate himself.

No, this brat is not only closing his eyes, he's even holding his breath and covering his ears. No wonder he's unaffected; this is a ruthless person! But with all my charm, don't you even know to look up?

Just at this moment, Shen Yu opposite her gave a light smile, as if filled with endless mockery. With his eyes tightly shut, he had already raised the sword in his hand, not giving the Third Chief opposite him the slightest chance.

"I am not interested in your person, and I have no desire for such damaged goods. However, I am very interested in taking your life. How about you give your lives to me?"

"You don't know what's good for you!" Being able to become the Third Chief, besides that Charm Technique, she naturally had some real ability. But when she tried to circulate her True Qi throughout her body, she suddenly felt tears streaming down like rain and her whole body convulsing, as if she couldn't muster a shred of strength.

"You, you poisoned me!" Tremblingly pointing her finger at Shen Yu, she didn't even know when she had been poisoned; by the time she discovered it, it was already too late. Now she only felt that she couldn't muster half a shred of strength, and her whole person was as powerless as a lamb waiting to be slaughtered.

Young man, you don't follow the martial code; weren't we going to have a duel? Why are you playing with poison!

"So what if I used poison? For you bandits, is there any need to speak of martial arts rules? Is this your first day in the Jianghu!" As the words fell, the sword was drawn, and that brilliant light suddenly bloomed, like a flying swan crossing the sky.

"Uh, uh... such a fast sword, such a beautiful sword!" Clutching her own neck, where fresh blood flowed incessantly, the Third Chief felt her consciousness rapidly blurring and dissipating. In her eyes, only that exquisitely beautiful sword strike remained.

"Another one!" Retracting the sword in his hand, Shen Yu turned and left without hesitation, while faintly calling out, "System, sign in!"

"Sign-in successful, obtained Yuanhong Sword!"

Following a flash of fluorescent light, a simple and unadorned long sword appeared in Shen Yu's hand. Drawing the sword from its scabbard, a chill immediately rushed toward his face. The mirror-like blade shimmered with wisps of sharp energy, and a cold light flickered in and out as if it were constantly flowing.

The other long sword in his hand could barely be considered a good sword, but it broke into two pieces after just a light touch with the Yuanhong Sword. Cutting iron like mud—it was exactly that!

"A good sword, truly a good sword!" Stroking the Yuanhong Sword in his hand, Shen Yu couldn't put it down. He had long wanted a precious sword. Although the long sword he had before was good, it couldn't be counted as a precious sword, and now he had finally waited for it.

"Since that's the case, then the next one; let the blood of these scumbags sharpen the precious sword!" Following the direction of the lamplight, Shen Yu continued forward. In the middle of the night, the rooms that could be lit up were mostly those of these chiefs of the Zhangnan Bandits.

Poisoning first and then acting to ensure nothing goes wrong was also to prevent them from struggling and attracting attention. If the entire Zhangnan Bandits were alerted, it would be a headache.

Shen Yu was already very proficient in this set of actions. Sadness Breeze was colorless and odorless; when used, it was like a gentle breeze brushing the body, making it impossible for people to detect. By the time they discovered the abnormality as tears streamed down like rain, Shen Yu's sword had already arrived.

Shuttle-cocking through the mountain stronghold of the Zhangnan Bandits, Shen Yu wantonly harvested everyone. The whole process was quite smooth—so smooth that it even made him suspicious. They were, after all, hanging onto the title of "Chief," so why did it feel like one was more mediocre than the next?

Of course, it wasn't that these people were too weak, but that the current Shen Yu was already too strong—strong enough to be destructive when facing these ordinary experts!

"System, sign in!"

"Sign-in successful, obtained Ten Years of Internal Energy!"

"System, sign in!"

"Sign-in successful, obtained one Great Returning Pill!"

"System, sign in!"

"Sign-in successful, obtained Rain of Pears Blossom Needles!"

"Hoo!" Taking a deep breath, Shen Yu had been running for a long time. Solving all the chiefs of the Zhangnan Bandits not only vented his anger, but most importantly, the whole process was full of rewards.

After becoming a Xiantian Expert, these few sign-ins had yielded two instances of Ten Years of Internal Energy, adding up to a full twenty years of internal energy, which also allowed Shen Yu's realm to improve again; he was now at the level of Xiantian Third Layer.

Others, such as the Great Returning Pill, Rain of Pears Blossom Needles, Black Jade Intermittent Ointment, etc., were all quite generous sign-in rewards. Although this group of bastards was all extremely evil, they still made some contributions before they died.

Next, the entire Zhangnan Bandits had only one threat left: the Great Chief. With Shen Yu's current strength, combined with his colorless and odorless Sadness Breeze, calculating against the unprepared, he believed that taking down this Great Chief would be a matter of course.

However, this Great Chief was different from the others; this person was not only unfathomable in strength but also cautious in his conduct. Dealing with such a person, one could never be too careful. Precisely because of this, Shen Yu had left him for last, and with even more caution than for the others.

"The Great Chief, is it? Let me send you on your way to reunite with your brothers early. This place should have been destroyed long ago!"