Starting from his vigorous old age, he began to conquer Liaozhai.

Cao Xiong shivered involuntarily, and goosebumps rose all over his body.

The softness on the lips was fleeting, a touch that vanished in an instant.

Cao Xiong could clearly feel his body becoming tired and weak. At the same time, the fragrance emanating from Nie Xiaoqian and the contact of their skin made him feel dizzy and disoriented.

It was a bittersweet experience.

When Cao Xiong opened his eyes again, Nie Xiaoqian had already floated to a distance of two meters from him.

Compared to before, Nie Xiaoqian's face is now more beautiful.

"Hehe~, my lord has helped me again."

Cao Xiong was furious. "Why did Miss Xiaoqian have to play tricks on me? She could clearly do it from a distance..."

"My lord is still not happy? It's my first time, so it's inevitable that I'm a bit inexperienced. Besides, I can't just take advantage of you for nothing."

Cao Xiong shook his head; he certainly hadn't lost out.

"Very well, Miss Xiaoqian, now that we're even, I'll take my leave."

"Waaah~"

Nie Xiaoqian seemed to have suffered a great injustice, covering her face as if about to weep, which aroused pity in people.

"Miss Xiaoqian, please speak your mind. There's no need for this formality."

Nie Xiaoqian raised her head again, her eyes suddenly misty.

"My lord seemed quite intoxicated when you were being intimate with me. Men are indeed heartless."

Cao Xiong didn't want to get entangled with Nie Xiaoqian anymore and just wanted to leave as soon as possible. "Thank you for the information, Miss Xiaoqian, but I'm feeling weak right now."

After saying that, Cao Xiong turned and walked towards the ancient tomb.

"Wait a minute!"

Cao Xiong stopped and waited for what was to come.

"From now on, I will be troubling you once a month."

"You wouldn't want me to be intimate with other men, would you?"

"Besides, you're not at a loss either."

Nie Xiaoqian took out a secret manual from her bosom, wrapped it in a light gauze, and tossed it into Cao Xiong's arms.

Cao Xiong quickly caught it. The manual was ancient and simple, with the four characters "Maha Knife Technique" written on the cover in a vigorous and powerful style.

"Whether you come or not is up to you, sir. I'll be waiting for you here in the middle of next month."

Nie Xiaoqian's voice became ethereal.

When Cao Xiong turned around, he only saw a white figure in mid-air.

After putting the manual into his pocket, Cao Xiong lost all interest in hunting.

After returning to the ancient tomb, he quickly fell into a deep sleep and slept until dawn.

Around noon, Yu Tong led his men and five horse-drawn carriages to the ancient tomb, where they hauled the weapons and the bodies of the soldiers back to Guobei County.

Having lived two lives, Cao Xiong had long since become indifferent to life and death.

However, Cao Xiong was still somewhat saddened when the families of the fallen soldiers came to the garrison to claim their compensation and the bodies.

He was even ashamed to face the families of these officers and soldiers. In any case, as the commander, he had an inescapable responsibility.

But demons and ghosts wreak havoc in the world; this has always been the case.

Perhaps one day, Cao Xiong will also lose his life at the hands of demons and ghosts.

Two days later, after handling the follow-up matters, Cao Xiong returned home from the garrison.

The jujube tree in the yard was still green, and Cao Xiong's tense nerves were able to relax at this moment.

Cao Xiong placed the longsword, iron bow, and the "Maha Knife Technique" given to him by Nie Xiaoqian, which he obtained from the ancient tomb, on the stone table under the jujube tree.

Cao Xiong did not hand over the longsword and iron bow to the garrison.

In Cao Xiong's view, neither of these weapons was simple.

First, let's talk about the iron bow. After hundreds of years, there are no signs of damage to the bow body, and the surface is still smooth. The bowstring is made of the sinew of some kind of animal, which is both hard and tough.

However, although Cao Xiong had practiced archery, his skill level was average, and he didn't know much about bows.

In a couple of days, he planned to take his longsword and iron bow to the blacksmith's shop.

Cao Xiong put down the iron bow and then picked up the long knife.

"Whoosh~"

The blade of this long sword is covered in rust and shows no signs of its magic. In terms of material alone, it is inferior to an iron bow.

But on the night he met Nie Xiaoqian, just as he was about to lose his mind, it was the sound of this long sword vibrating that made him suppress the burning desire in his heart.

He had never heard of any weapon in the world that could do that, not even the finest, most refined weapon.

Only the magical artifacts of immortal cultivators in legends possess this kind of supernatural power.

Cao Xiong gripped the longsword tightly, carefully sensing its power, and surprisingly had the illusion that wielding this sword made him invincible.

This is the perception of knives that the entry describes about him.

He got up and walked to the corner where he practiced martial arts, and made a light stroke.

The wooden dummy was cleaved in two, even more smoothly than when using a ten-times-refined sword.

"It's incredibly sharp!"

Cao Xiong's fingers brushed across the blade, the grainy texture of the rust mingling with the coolness of the metal.

"Follow me, and I will ensure you are never disgraced."

"From now on, your name will be Sniff Evil!"

"Clang~"

The blade trembled and sang, as if it were leaping with joy.

"Haha, okay, I'll repair the scabbard for you another day."

Cao Xiong was so fond of it that he practiced the "Eighteen Forms of Wind Slaying" with the Evil-Sniffing Blade.

This sword technique has reached a state of perfection; the moves are fluid and unpredictable.

In Cao Xiong's hands, the "Eighteen Forms of Wind Slash" has broken away from its original routine and reached a level of complete freedom.

Cao Xiong finally picked up the "Mahayana Knife Technique" that Nie Xiaoqian had given him.

The first page is an introduction to this sword technique. The person who created this sword technique is named Sha Xu Seng, a Buddhist monk.

The name of the sword technique is derived from the Sanskrit word "Maha," meaning infinite, compassionate, and powerful. It emphasizes using the sword to prove principles and using killing to stop killing.

The sword technique consists of only seven moves, combined with the Seven Steps Lotus Footwork, one move after another, with the power constantly increasing.

Cao Xiong only glanced at all the moves once, but he remembered the general idea.

"Ha~"

Cao Xiong drew out the Sniffing Demon and began practicing it in the courtyard.

The first time, the footwork was clumsy and the moves were a bit stiff. The second time, the footwork was precise and the moves were smooth. The third time, the footwork shifted and the moves changed freely.

[Technique] Maha Saber (Minor Success) 1/200

The prompts on the panel shocked Cao Xiong.

He reached the minor mastery level after only practicing three times; that's terrifying.

"So this is what it feels like to be a genius."

Cao Xiong felt a mix of emotions, thinking back on the past few decades, he felt he had truly wasted his life.

Now, he has a new sword, the Scent of Evil, and has mastered a new sword technique.

With the two small goals easily achieved, the next step is to find a way to obtain the entry again. According to the information provided by Nie Xiaoqian, the cultivator familiar to Yaksha Ghost will finish his seclusion in two months.

He must reach the Tendon Refining Realm within two months to have the ability to protect himself.

[Fragments: 2.8-3]

"Just 0.2 more fragments and I'll be able to awaken the affix again."

For some reason, he suddenly remembered that when Fang Zheng passed by him in the ancient tomb, he had an aura that was the same as that of the Corpse King.

"I hope it's just my imagination."

Cao Xiong murmured softly, "When I see Nie Xiaoqian next month, I might be able to find out more about that Corpse King."

After reading "The Maha Sword Technique," he decided to go see Nie Xiaoqian. As the saying goes, the layman sees the moves, the expert sees the technique.

Although this book, "Maha Knife Technique," has fewer moves, it is several levels higher than the "Eighteen Styles of Wind Slash" that the imperial court gave to the garrisons.

If he wants to acquire new martial arts manuals later, he might still find a way through Nie Xiaoqian.

After all, there were no other secret manuals in the garrison, and the martial arts in the martial arts schools and escort agencies in Guobei County were things that couldn't be shown off, which he looked down on with his current standards.

After resting at home for three days, Cao Xiong returned to the garrison to prepare for recruiting soldiers.

The extermination of the corpse monster was just the beginning. In the future, the garrison would need to deal with more evil spirits. After returning to Guobei County from the ancient tomb, the garrison posted a recruitment notice.