I can equip strange items

Li Yuan's figure flickered continuously among the dark mass of barbarian ghosts.

Every swing of the lapis lazuli bamboo staff hit vital points with pinpoint accuracy, making the barbarian demons' tough skin as fragile as paper in front of the bamboo staff.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

The dull thuds of blows rang out one after another, accompanied by the savage ghost's mournful roar before its death.

Each savage that was hit burst into flames in mid-air, the golden flames blooming like fireworks.

The powerful individuals from the common people who had come to participate in the assessment were stunned.

They originally thought that Li Yuan would be in a tough fight against the siege of more than thirty barbarian ghosts, and might even need their help.

However, the reality is quite the opposite.

That wasn't a siege, but a one-sided massacre.

Li Yuan's movement speed was astonishing, and the barbarian demons' claw and bone spike attacks always missed by a hair's breadth.

Every strike with the bamboo stick in his hand was fatal, without any hesitation.

There are no techniques involved, only pure brute force and the protective properties of the bamboo stick.

"So strong!"

The woman in the sportswear murmured, her hand gripping the Tang sword unconsciously tightening.

"Indeed strong."

The bald, burly man's eyes were serious: "Although he probably can't compare to a Xiantian martial artist, the gap doesn't seem that big."

"Did you notice?"

Another man wielding two swords suddenly said, "He seems... to be practicing?"

Upon hearing this, everyone observed carefully and indeed discovered that Li Yuan's fighting style was subtly changing.

At first, he simply swung, chopped, and swept, but as time went on, his attacks became more agile and varied.

Poke, tap, flirt, collapse!

The bamboo stick seemed to come alive in his hands, sometimes thrusting straight like a spear, sometimes lashing like a whip, and sometimes smashing down like a heavy hammer.

Even more astonishing is the change in the sound of the bamboo stick cutting through the air.

At first, it was just the sound of wind breaking, but later it began to have a clear, melodious sound like the ringing of a blade.

That's the effect of the [Listen to Blade] skill taking effect.

Li Yuan can "hear" every slight change in the movement of the bamboo stick in the air.

The subtle differences in air resistance, the vibration of the stick caused by its own force, and the feedback sound when it hits the target.

This information entered his mind, allowing him to continuously improve his control over the weapons.

With each attack, he was able to predict the outcome more accurately.

With each dodge, he managed to avoid danger with minimal effort.

"He's using these barbarians to hone his martial arts skills."

The bald, burly man finally understood, a complex look flashing in his eyes.

Using over thirty strong barbarian demons as sparring partners?

What arrogance, and what self-confidence!

"Wait, he's almost killed all the barbarians!"

Suddenly, the bald, burly man realized what was happening and quickly ran over there, shouting, "Friend, save one for me..."

The others realized what was happening and their expressions changed slightly. They quickly rushed over as well.

They didn't dare to attack the thirty-odd barbarian demons before, but now they're almost all killed.

By this time, the last barbarian was terrified and prepared to flee. Clearly, these creatures were not entirely aggressive; they also experienced fear.

However, Li Yuan pushed off with his foot and rushed forward to deliver a blow with his stick.

"Leave one for me..." the bald, burly man shouted.

"Bang!"

However, no sooner had he finished speaking than the last barbarian's head split open, and its body was sent flying by the enormous force of the blow, before being burned to ashes in mid-air by the golden flames.

"You... Ugh!!"

The bald man sighed, realizing it was too late.

The others who had just caught up were also filled with regret and self-pity.

More than thirty barbarian demons failed to snatch a single one.

"Seventy-eight percent!"

Li Yuan looked at the progress of the [Equivalent Evolution] attribute on the equipment panel in his mind, his face full of smiles.

If all goes well, we might be able to reach the target progress this time.

At this moment, he saw the crowd of people who had come from behind, sighing and groaning, and suddenly an idea struck him.

Helping these guys kill the barbarians should be considered doing good deeds, right?

If I could also get some benefits along the way, that would be even better.

I just don't know if accepting a bribe can still be considered helping others?

Thinking of this, he immediately said, "Gentlemen, do you need any help?"

"help?"

Everyone was taken aback for a moment, then a look of surprise appeared on their faces.

The bald, burly man was the first to react, excitedly asking, "Friend, you...you're really willing to help us? How can you help?"

"It's very simple."

Li Yuan laughed and said, "I'll lure the barbarian ghosts over, or I'll take you there. You'll be responsible for holding them back and surrounding them, and I'll deliver the final blow. Of course, I guarantee that each of you will at least 'participate in killing' one barbarian ghost, which is enough to pass the test."

He deliberately emphasized "participating in kills" and "passing the assessment".

Everyone instantly understood what he meant—

Li Yuan was responsible for handling the most troublesome "kills," while they only needed to lend a hand and get some assists to easily pass the level.

It was pie in the sky.

"Great! Thanks, bro!"

"Boss, from now on you're like my brother!"

"Just tell us what you need us to do!"

Everyone immediately became excited and expressed their gratitude in a flurry of voices.

The man with the injured arm endured the pain and repeatedly expressed his gratitude.

"Don't thank me yet."

Li Yuan changed the subject: "Helping is one thing, but using this bamboo stick takes a lot of effort..."

These people are all seasoned ordinary folks; how could they not understand this?

"How can we let our friends bear this burden themselves?"

The bald, burly man immediately pulled out a jade box from his pocket: "I brought a 'wire grass' that I obtained by chance this time. It is said to be able to slightly strengthen muscles and bones, and I hope it can offset my friend's consumption."

"I have a piece of warm jade that I obtained by chance."

The woman in sportswear quickly took out a brocade pouch: "Carrying this with you will calm your mind and ward off evil spirits. Please accept it."

"I have a small bottle of hereditary wound medicine here, it's extremely effective..."

"I brought some compressed high-energy food and water..."

"This dagger of mine is made of a special alloy; it's extremely sharp..."

Although they weren't treasures, they represented the sentiment behind them, and they were indeed some of the more valuable things they possessed.

Having witnessed Li Yuan's abilities, they were not worried at all that he couldn't do it.

One of them, seeing that Li Yuan was difficult to carry, even gave him his own portable backpack as a gift.

Li Yuan accepted them all without hesitation, stuffing them into his not-so-large backpack.

Because it wasn't a reward he actively sought, but rather a gift of gratitude from these people—

Therefore, he felt that it could still be considered helping others.

After all, these people look so happy.

"Alright, let's not delay."

With his backpack slung over his shoulder, Li Yuan swung his bamboo stick and said, "Come with me, I'll take you through... well, I'll help you complete the assessment."

As soon as he finished speaking, he turned around and walked away into the distance.

The group quickly followed, remaining vigilant despite their excitement.

"This kid..."

Behind them, the observers from the Exorcist Association were speechless, but they did not stop it.

Because this is permissible, this kind of assessment truly tests one's courage.

Otherwise, if you just show your strength, why bother with this kind of assessment?

I don't know if it's because all the barbarian demons in the vicinity were killed, or if they were scared away—

This time, Li Yuan and his group walked for over a thousand meters without encountering a single barbarian ghost.

"It's not gone, is it?" The bald, muscular man frowned.

The others were also helpless. Li Yuan killed dozens of barbarian ghosts by himself, clearing out an entire area.

Now, Li Yuan is helping them hunt down barbarian ghosts, but he only symbolically accepted a small token of appreciation.

So much so that they couldn't even blame them.

Fortunately, there are still many barbarian demons in this world.

After they had traveled another 500 meters or so, they finally saw another group of barbarian demons.