After my Daoist partners broke off their engagement, they pledged their loyalty to me!

The members of the patrol team from Black Knife Stronghold were all yawning.

They teased each other, talking about how impressive their success in seducing women had been this time.

"Hehe, you have no idea how exciting that woman was last time, but unfortunately she was too weak and ran out of steam quickly."

"What's this? I want two at once!"

"Hehe, I'm looking forward to when the next event will be."

Hearing his team members chatting and joking, the captain, a ninth-level Qi Gathering Realm expert, sternly reprimanded them: "Keep a close watch! Don't miss any movement outside the village. If you want to chat, wait until after your patrol!"

However, these people did not heed the captain's warning.

Instead, they chuckled and looked at their captain: "Captain, our Black Knife Stronghold has risen to fame thanks to our chieftain's fearsome reputation. People in many nearby towns are afraid of us. What foolish thief would dare to cause us trouble?"

"Yeah, Captain, what's the point of patrolling? Drinking from big bowls, eating big chunks of meat, and chatting about women is much more fun!"

Hearing his teammates say this, a flicker of interest flashed in the captain's eyes, but he still shook his head, looked back at the depths of Black Knife Stronghold, and whispered, "Alright, you guys better behave yourselves. Don't let the chieftain catch you doing something wrong, or you'll be in for it."

Cao Pi, the leader of Black Knife Stronghold, wields the "Raging Wind Knife Technique," a mid-level mortal-grade skill. He is ruthless and cruel by nature, killing people without hesitation.

The moment Cao Pi's name was mentioned, the team members stopped smiling. They exchanged glances, indicating that they would talk about it again after the patrol.

Seeing that the team members had calmed down, the captain nodded in satisfaction.

Suddenly, a thick fog rose up around them.

At first, no one paid attention, but as the fog grew thicker, one of the team members couldn't help but exclaim, "My God, where did this fog come from? It shouldn't be like this at this time of day!"

"Dense fog?" The captain turned his head in confusion.

Thick fog rushed towards them, instantly surging over the walls of Black Knife Stronghold and flowing deeper into the stronghold.

They had never seen such dense fog before, and for a moment they were a little panicked. The captain's spiritual power surged, and he roared, "What the hell are you all panicking about? The chieftain is inside!"

"Is that so?"

An untimely voice rang out softly.

"Whoosh!"

Jiang Lin, wielding the Cloud Edge Sword, appeared on the city wall at some unknown time. With a casual swing of his sword, his restrained lightning spiritual power suddenly erupted.

Before the captain could even raise his weapon to block, his head shot into the sky, blood gushing out like a pillar, the stench of blood making people nauseous!

"Damn, someone's come up here!"

"The captain is dead! Counterattack! Counterattack!"

The panicked patrols reacted too slowly; in the thick fog, they couldn't even see their teammates' condition.

Jiang Lin shook his head slightly and casually took their lives with a single sword strike.

Soon, the dense fog of the Bewitching Array startled the members of Black Knife Stronghold. Chaotic footsteps rose and fell, rushing towards the stronghold wall from all directions.

Clearly, they all believed that Black Knife Stronghold was being targeted by other bandits and that they needed to come to the stronghold wall to provide support as soon as possible.

"Perfect timing!" Jiang Lin smiled coldly.

This saved him the trouble of chasing after them one by one.

With the Cloud Edge Sword, a mid-grade mortal-level spiritual treasure, in hand, and the lightning spiritual power channeled onto it, Jiang Lin didn't need to put much thought into dealing with these Qi Gathering Realm minions.

With a single sword strike, they were all wiped out!

Screams and the smell of blood quickly filled the air.

The Black Knife Stronghold members, sensing something was wrong, tried to run away.

However, they soon discovered that those who dared to run died even faster.

Soon, a cultivator at the Meridian Opening Realm emerged from Black Knife Stronghold.

"Who came from, daring to cause trouble at Black Knife Stronghold!"

Those at the Meridian Opening Realm who possess spiritual awareness can naturally see Jiang Lin.

Just as the newcomer was about to unleash his martial arts, he felt a sharp pain in his neck and then fell into permanent darkness.

A rogue cultivator is just a rogue cultivator; the vast majority of them are no match for disciples of holy lands.

In a short while, under the influence of the Bewitching Array, all the members of Black Knife Stronghold fell into pools of blood.

Rapid footsteps came from deep within the village!

It turned out that the chieftain Cao Pi, wielding his mid-grade mortal-level longsword, led several other captains of the Black Knife Stronghold who were at the Meridian Opening Realm to rush over. With a sweep of his spiritual sense, he saw the corpses of his fellow villagers lying haphazardly, a truly tragic sight.

"Damn it! I'll kill you!"

Cao Pi was both shocked and furious. He gripped his long sword tightly and roared at Jiang Lin through gritted teeth, "Give me your life!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Cao Pi leaped into the air.

He slashed down with his long sword.

The sound of the blade cutting through the wind.

The sound of the knife seemingly accompanied by flames seemed to ignite.

This was the mid-level mortal-grade "Gale Blade Technique" that he had been practicing. When the technique was activated, the powerful, scorching wind could blow the opponent so hard that they couldn't open their eyes, making them afraid to get close.

However, before Cao Pi could see Jiang Lin, Jiang Lin's spiritual sense had already seen him.

Facing the enraged Cao Pi, Jiang Lin, whose eyes remained unchanged, shifted his feet and dodged the fierce wind blade with ease, his figure as light as a willow catkin.

The other captains at the Meridian Opening Realm beside Cao Pi seized the opportunity to launch a surprise attack.

In a short time, all sorts of sword and knife techniques emerged.

Jiang Lin snorted coldly.

The first stage of the Thunder Heart Sutra.

He stomped down hard!

"Thump!"

That's how domineering a fourth-grade lightning-attribute cultivation technique is. When activated, it can even affect others. The captains of the Meridian Opening Realm who were besieging Jiang Lin felt as if a thunderbolt was exploding in their hearts.

Their martial arts were interrupted, and even their spiritual power was cut off.

Jiang Lin, of course, showed no mercy.

A sword flashed!

"Pfft!"

A bloody mark appeared on the necks of these cultivators at the Meridian Opening Realm. Their eyes widened, weapons fell from their hands, and they clutched their necks, unable to believe they were dead...

Still unaware of the disparity in strength between himself and his foe, Cao Pi's anger intensified, and he stubbornly activated the Gale Blade Technique once more.

Jiang Lin stomped his foot again!

The thunderous sound reverberated in Cao Pi's heart.

Jiang Lin instantly rushed towards Cao Pi, the Cloud Edge Sword in his hand had been put away at some point, and he quickly formed a hand seal with his right hand, blue-purple lightning gathering into a palm-sized mark in his palm.

"Senra Rai Seal!"

Jiang Lin gave a low shout.

The Senluo Thunder Seal was released from his hand.

Caught amidst blue-purple lightning, it crashed into Cao Pi's blade energy.

Cao Pi's pupils suddenly contracted, and he quickly raised his knife to block.

With a crack, the longsword was shattered by the lightning, and the remaining lightning energy slammed into his chest!

A mouthful of blood spurted out, and Cao Pi flew backward several feet, crashing heavily into the gate of the stronghold. His chest was charred black, a bloody mess, and one could even smell the aroma of flesh...

Cao Pi was beaten to a pulp by Jiang Lin in one move, and the rest was simple. After some questioning, Jiang Lin held Yunfeng Sword to Cao Pi's neck and ordered Cao Pi to take him to the group of the abducted women who had not yet been dealt with.

There were seventeen or eighteen women left. They weren't particularly beautiful, but they were all very young.

Jiang Lin kicked the door open, and with a flash of sword light, the ropes binding the women snapped.

He then casually grabbed a wisp of spiritual energy, which transformed into a point of light and flew outwards. He turned back to the women and said, "Go, follow this point of spiritual energy and you can get out."

The women didn't believe it at first, but when they saw Cao Pi, who had captured them, being beaten to a pulp by Jiang Lin, they suddenly realized that they had actually been saved!

After hurriedly kneeling and thanking Jiang Lin, they quickly followed the spiritual light spots to catch up.

But there were two exceptions.

The two women did not run away immediately. Instead, they looked at Jiang Lin, as if they had found an outlet for their emotions, and started cursing loudly.

"Why didn't you come sooner? If you had arrived sooner, how could my nascent soul have been taken? How could my friends have been captured and tortured to death?!"

"Yeah, why!"

"It's all your fault!"

"Say something!"

The two spoke sharply, their words full of accusations.

Good guy.

Are you all smiles and nods to outsiders, but fiercely attacking your own people?

I saved your life and you still curse at me?

However, the surprise in Jiang Lin's eyes only lasted for a moment.

Then, his lightning spiritual power surged from his fingertips, and two beams of lightning spiritual power shot out, piercing straight through the foreheads of the two women.

The two women collapsed to the ground, their eyes wide with disbelief. They seemed unable to comprehend what this man had done. He had saved them and then killed them? Shouldn't he feel guilty towards them and offer them substantial compensation?

Jiang Lin glanced at her briefly before looking away, muttering to himself, "Such disrespectful behavior towards one's savior must mean she's a remnant of the Black Knife Stronghold disguised as an innocent woman. She cannot be allowed to live!"