You've already caught the embroidered ball, and you still say it's not my husband?

The fat catfish's enormous head was split in two; it was dead beyond any doubt.

Its eyes, as big as large bowls and without any whites, still held the boundless fear of Lu Xuan it had before its death!

It simply couldn't understand it.

How could Lu Xuan be so powerful?

With a wave of his hand, he could suppress it and pin it to the ground; with a toss of his spirit rope, he could easily pull it back; and with a single, effortless strike, he could kill it...

Such strength is terrifying; it's something that ordinary Qi Refining Realm cultivators could never possess!

Lu Xuan is a fourth-grade cultivator who possesses dozens of max-level cultivation techniques. He is virtually invincible below the Refining Spirit Realm. It would be strange if he wasn't strong!

but……

If this fat catfish had simply stayed hidden in the silt at the bottom of the Blackwater River, it would have been quite difficult for Lu Xuan to pull it out.

Unfortunately, it and the dark-skinned man, in their folly, staged this whole charade, only to be exposed by Lu Xuan. Seeing that they couldn't keep up the act any longer, it recklessly leaped out of the water, intending to devour Lu Xuan...

This is the fate of those who commit numerous evils and are insatiably greedy.

They deserved to die!

"And demon cores."

After the fat catfish's head was split open, a yellow demon core the size of an egg appeared.

A demon core is a "crystallization" formed by a demon beast during its cultivation. It contains abundant demonic power and is usually only formed by demon beasts at the Qi Refining Realm or above.

Because demonic power and the spiritual power in the human body have different attributes, they will repel each other. The human body's digestive capacity is also relatively limited, so people usually cannot directly swallow demon pills containing a large amount of demonic power!

If one were to ingest it rashly, not only would the human body be unable to absorb the demonic power of the demon core, but at best, it would cause a rapid heartbeat, fever, and unconsciousness; at worst, it would cause uncontrollable internal spiritual energy, reversed meridian flow, loss of consciousness, and even death...

You could say that a demon core is like a bottle of strong liquor.

If you only drink a small amount, the body can absorb a little and benefit from it; but if you drink a large amount directly, it will do more harm than good and will only damage your body.

(The digestive system of demonic beasts is usually much stronger than that of humans, and their demonic power is of the same origin, so they will not reject demonic cores.)

(When Lu Xuan encountered Bao Bulu before, he killed the first sixth-rank tiger demon. Bao Bulu had swallowed the tiger demon's demon core, which he had been slowly absorbing and refining in his body over the past few months. He was only a hair's breadth away from breaking through to the sixth rank.)

For humans, demon cores typically serve only two purposes.

One method is to soak the ingredients in alcohol and sip it slowly for gradual, minute absorption.

Secondly, it is used for refining medicine, supplemented with various medicinal materials and through multiple processes, to create all kinds of miraculous elixirs...

"Put it away first."

Lu Xuan put the sixth-grade demon core into his storage ring, thinking he might need it later.

Then, expressionless, he plunged the Jingluan Blade into the round, white, and supple belly of the fat catfish, slicing a long gash like unzipping a zipper.

Splash!

A pungent, fishy stench instantly filled the surroundings, and the filth and residue from the catfish's belly spilled out and rolled all over the ground.

Among these filthy remnants, one could vaguely see the remains of a dark-skinned man who had just been swallowed, as well as a large area of ​​remains that had been digested down to just bones... These were the remains of the fishermen who had been fishing a few days ago!

The proof is like a mountain!

The fat catfish was the man-eating monster of the Blackwater River, which Lu Xuan has already killed!

【Ding! 】

At the same time, a system notification sounded in Lu Xuan's mind.

[The "Slay the Blackwater River Monster (Purple)" quest for "Saving Yao" has been completed.]

[Host receives the following rewards: Cultivation Points +9999, Tidal Wave Technique (Perfect).]

[Tidal Wave Technique: Earth-level water-based cultivation method. After cultivation, it grants the practitioner a water affinity, allowing them to breathe and move freely in various types of water without any water obstruction; it also allows the practitioner to manipulate water currents to create tidal waves for combat, with the higher the user's cultivation level, the stronger the tidal waves created.]

Lu Xuan could clearly feel that his cultivation had become stronger, and he was one step closer to the third-grade Refining Spirit Realm!

He also automatically and completely mastered the Earth-level water system technique, the Tidal Water Technique!

Just now, he was thinking about how to catch and kill the catfish if it didn't jump out of the water on its own.

Now that he has mastered the Tidal Wave Technique to the maximum level, it will be much simpler if he encounters a similar situation again!

He is water-friendly and can breathe and swim freely in the water like a fish, moving unimpeded and as if walking on flat ground!

His actions in the water, even if he uses any martial arts technique such as sword control or thunderbolt fist...

It works exactly the same as when used on land, with no reduction in power!

If there are other lurking water monsters in the Blackwater River, then Lu Xuan can simply and directly jump into the river and scan the area thoroughly. Even if the water monsters are hiding in the deep water, he can still find them!

In addition to being able to breathe and move freely in the water, Lu Xuan can also control water flow and create tides!

For example, right now, with just a thought, he could easily cast a spell to make the river overflow and flood the entire ferry crossing!

This Tidal Water Technique is incredibly practical and powerful!

Lu Xuan gained a great deal from this trip!

……

at this time.

The dozens of villagers around gradually recovered from their shock.

Call ~

Many people were still stunned, unable to believe that Awei, a man who was always kind and respected by many, actually kept a fat catfish and was the owner of the water monster!

If Lu Xuan hadn't appeared and exposed them, they would probably still be in the dark, and might even be swallowed by catfish while fishing in the river without even knowing it!

Some villagers were so terrified by the sight of the fat catfish devouring its owner that they collapsed to the ground. Others, upon seeing the catfish's exposed carcass, rushed over to dig up the remains and broke down in tears.

My condolences.

Lu Xuan sighed softly and turned to leave.

hum~

Suddenly, the captain's command badge hanging at his waist rang.

He took the token off.

Without even thinking, he knew it was his superior, Nangong Yourong, the Demon Suppression Commander, calling.

"Captain Lu, how have you been lately? There's something I need to tell you."

As expected of Nangong Yourong, she spoke very frankly, getting straight to the point and saying that she had something to discuss with Lu Xuan.

Lu Xuan vaguely remembered that when this captain was recruiting him at Huangshi Mountain a few days ago, he made a lot of promises to him, saying that he would be given the greatest freedom and that he would not be notified or disturbed unless it was an emergency.

But he called again after only a few days? Is there an urgent task to assign him?

It was definitely a scam!

A woman's promises should never be trusted!

"Speak," Lu Xuan said, already mentally prepared.

"Here's the thing, we received a request for help from the Qingyang County government today. A water monster has been spotted in the Heishui River area of ​​Shuize Township in your county..."

Oh dear.

Lu Xuan slapped his forehead.

He thought it was some extremely urgent matter, something that required him to risk his life!

So that's what it was all about!

"I have already slain the water monster."

Not wanting to waste either side's time, Lu Xuan interrupted Nangong Yourong, stating directly that he had already dealt with the water monster.

Ok?

Nangong Yourong, sitting opposite, was taken aback. She hadn't expected Lu Xuan to suddenly interrupt her; she had just started reading from her prepared text!

She didn't hear what Lu Xuan said.

He had no choice but to ask, "Lieutenant Lu, what did you just say? Please repeat it."

Lu Xuan shrugged and had no choice but to slow down his speech and repeat in detail: "Commander, what I mean is, I am currently in the Water Marsh Village. The water monster was a sixth-rank catfish demon. When I cut open its belly, it was full of corpses. It was confirmed to be a man-eating water monster. I have already killed it. Commander, you don't need to assign me this task anymore."

W-what?!