151: Chapter 151 Taking a Bath with Sword Qi? Thanks to my buddy for the physical resistance!

Sword City, at the foot of the Sword Control Sect.

This ancient city, built against the mountain, is the mandatory path to the Sword Control Sect. Normally, it gathers countless Cultivators who come to seek swords or apprenticeship, along with merchants and craftsmen who depend on the Sect for survival.

Qin Ji restrained his entire aura. That hideous god of slaughter mask fragment had already vanished beneath his skin, replaced by a plain, ordinary face. Although the Shadow Stealth (Elementary) he had plundered in the swamp earlier was not high in Rank, when combined with his insane Agility attribute, using it to fool the few Foundation Establishment Stage Disciples guarding the gate was a total walkover.

Like a drop of water merging into the ocean, he quietly blended into the bustling crowd.

"First, find a place to deal with this thing."

Qin Ji touched the blood-colored badge in his robe that had dropped from a Ghost Attendant. It felt ice-cold to the touch, exuding a sinister Evil Qi. The System prompt showed it was in a "Sealed State," requiring special means to identify or activate it.

His gaze swept across both sides of the street, finally stopping in front of a shop named "Broken Sword Pavilion."

The shop wasn't large, but a highly arrogant plaque hung at the entrance—[Only divine weapons repaired, only peerless ones forged].

"Quite the boastful tone."

Heat rolled within the shop. A short, stout middle-aged blacksmith with a beard that flared out like steel needles was bare-chested, holding a massive iron hammer and furiously striking a piece of red-hot refined iron.

"Get out! Can't you see I'm busy?"

Hearing footsteps, the blacksmith didn't even turn his head as he roared crudely, "If you want to fix some scrap metal, go to Wang Er Mazi's next door! Don't dirty my place!"

Qin Ji wasn't annoyed. He casually pulled over a chair and sat down, his fingers lightly tapping the table. "What if I say I have a killing Sharp Weapon in my hand that even you have never seen?"

"Huh?"

The blacksmith paused his movements and turned around, his fleshy face full of disdain. "Kid, do you know who I am? I, Tie Shan, have forged swords for forty years. What divine weapon or Sharp Weapon have I not seen? Even the 'Dragon Slayer' of the Sword Control Sect's Sect Master was sharpened by me back then! A brat like you who's barely..."

Clang.

A dark red badge was casually tossed onto the forging table by Qin Ji.

The badge collided with the surface, emitting a dull, low hum, like the low growl of some ancient Vicious Beast.

The moment Tie Shan's originally indifferent gaze touched the badge, his entire body froze in place as if struck by lightning. His hand, which was about to reach for a teacup, hung suspended in mid-air. His Adam's apple bobbed with difficulty, and his contemptuous eyes were instantly replaced by a shock bordering on fanaticism.

"This... this kind of pattern..."

Tie Shan's hand trembled as he reached out, wanting to touch it but not daring to, as if it weren't a badge but a heart that could explode at any moment. "This is a totem of the Ancient Slaughter Dao! Which pile of corpses did you dig this out from?!"

"That's none of your business," Qin Ji said indifferently. "Can you unseal it?"

"I can! Of course I can! This is simply a work of art!"

Tie Shan's attitude did a complete 180-degree turn. He carefully held the badge as if it were an ancestral tablet, his eyes flashing with fanatic light. "However, this thing has too much Evil Qi. It needs to be tempered with Extreme Yang Fire, and... it'll cost extra."

"Money is not an issue."

Qin Ji casually threw out a bag of gold coins he had looted from a corpse earlier. "I want the fastest speed."

"Understood! Just you watch!"

Tie Shan grabbed the gold coins and turned to plunge into the intense work.

Taking advantage of this gap, Qin Ji opened his personal panel. The wave of counter-kills in the swamp just now had brought another surge to his attributes.

[Host: Qin Ji]

[Rank: LV.69 (Experience pool has overflowed, requires completion of the Fourth Advancement Task to Breakthrough)]

[Strength: 8,920,000]

[Physique: 9,150,000]

[Agility: 7,800,000]

[Spirit: 8,500,000]

[Talent: Greedy Grasp (Unique)]

[Current State: god of slaughter mask (35% Charge)]

"Still haven't broken ten million? It seems I'm definitely having this 'buffet' at the Sword Control Sect." Qin Ji curled his lips in slight dissatisfaction as he looked at the dazzling string of numbers.

Just then, an excited roar came from Tie Shan's side.

"It's done!!"

A red light soared into the sky from the forging table, and a rich, extreme scent of blood instantly filled the entire shop. The originally dim badge now seemed to come alive; the rust on its surface fell away completely, revealing the main body beneath, which looked as if it were cast from fresh blood.

An ancient and hideous character for "Slaughter" flickered on the surface of the badge.

With a wave of Qin Ji's hand, the badge automatically flew into his palm.

[mythic rank Item · man-slayer imprint (Unsealed)]

[Part: Accessory/Special Slot]

[Attributes:]

[1. Attack Power/Spell Intensity +50%]

[2. Critical Rate +100% (Overflowing portion converts to Critical Damage)]

[3. Feast of Slaughter (Passive): For every target killed whose Rank is not lower than your own, all attributes increase by 1% for 120 seconds. Can stack infinitely!]

[4. Domain of the Human Butcher (Active): Upon activation, releases materialized Killing Intent to suppress surrounding enemies. All attributes double, and attacks carry an "Instant Death" judgment (one-hit kill for targets with HP below 20%).]

[Evaluation: Kill one man and you're a criminal; slaughter ten thousand and you're a hero. Wear it, and you are a walking disaster.]

"Infinite stacks?"

Qin Ji's eyes instantly lit up.

This attribute was practically tailor-made for him! As long as there were enough monsters, he could even stack his attributes to the point where even the System couldn't calculate them!

"Good stuff." Qin Ji satisfactorily wore the [man-slayer imprint] on his chest.

BOOM—!!!

Just then, a massive explosion suddenly echoed from outside the shop. Immediately after, a piercing alarm resounded throughout the sky over Sword City.

"Enemy attack! Demonic Path villains have infiltrated the city!!"

"City Protection Array activated! Everyone, stand by where you are. Violators will be executed without mercy!!"

Tie Shan's face changed, and the iron hammer in his hand almost dropped onto his foot. "What's happening? Why is the Sword Control Sect's protection array open? Has the demonic cult launched an attack?"

Qin Ji, however, as if he had long expected this, slowly stood up and patted his hem.

"Don't panic, it's not the demonic cult."

He walked to the door, looking at the densely packed white-clad Disciples flying on swords in the sky, a cruel arc curling at the corner of his mouth. "It's your nightmare that has arrived."

...

Sword City Plaza.

Thousands of Sword Control Sect Outer Sect Disciples had already formed a massive sword formation. Countless Flying Swords hovered in mid-air, their tips pointed directly at the streets below.

Leading them was a Law Enforcement Elder dressed in purple robes, holding a compass, his eyes gloomily locked onto the direction of the "Broken Sword Pavilion."

"Urgent news from the Star Kingdom: the murderer of the three Ghost Attendants is right here! The compass just detected that bloody Evil Qi inside that blacksmith shop!"

The purple-robed Elder shouted sternly, "Devil Head inside, listen up! Surrender, and perhaps we can leave you an intact corpse. Otherwise..."

Bang!

The door exploded.

A slender figure slowly walked out from the dust.

Qin Ji had his hands in his pockets, his purple-gold pupils lazily scanning the thousands of Flying Swords in the sky, as if what he saw wasn't a lethal killing formation, but a pile of flying experience packs.

"Otherwise what?"

Qin Ji tilted his head and asked with sincere curiosity, "Are you going to give me a scratch?"

"Arrogant!!"

The purple-robed Elder flew into a rage. "All Disciples, hear my command! Ten Thousand Swords Return to the Ancestor Formation, kill!!"

Swish swish swish swish—!!

With his order, a rain of swords instantly fell from the sky. Thousands of Flying Swords, carrying sharp Sword Qi, poured down like a silver waterfall, completely submerging Qin Ji's position.

Every Flying Sword was enough to pierce metal and stone. With thousands launched at once, even a great Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator would have to temporarily retreat.

However, Qin Ji not only didn't dodge but instead opened his arms wide.

Clang clang clang clang clang...

The dense sound of impacts rang out like heavy rain hitting banana leaves, sparks flying everywhere.

[Subjected to physical attack (Unable to break defense), Physical Defense +50!]

[Subjected to Sword Qi erosion (Immune), Sword Dao Resistance +20!]

[Subjected to Gold Element Law damage (Weak), Gold Element Affinity +10!]

...

That string of pleasant System prompts sounded like heavenly music in Qin Ji's ears.

After the sword rain passed, the dust cleared.

All the Sword Control Sect Disciples widened their eyes, looking at the center of the field as if they had seen a ghost.

The man was still standing in the same spot, not even a strand of his hair out of place. The ground beneath his feet had been shaved down by a full three feet by the Sword Qi, yet only the small patch where he stood remained perfectly intact.

"That's it?"

Qin Ji patted away non-existent dust from his shoulder and shook his head in disappointment. "It seems the food at your Sword Control Sect isn't good enough. This strength... it's too light even for a pedicure."

"How is that possible?!"

The purple-robed Elder's eyes were about to pop out. "This was an attack on the level of a protection array! Is he... a Body Cultivator?! Even a Body Cultivator couldn't be completely unharmed!!"

"I don't believe it! Again!!"

The purple-robed Elder roared, his hand signs changing. "Ice Soul Sword Formation! Rise!"

The temperature in the air dropped sharply. Countless Flying Swords were instantly covered in a thick layer of Frost, transforming into a massive Frost sword dragon that roared as it charged at Qin Ji.

"Oh? Switched to attribute attacks?"

Qin Ji's eyes lit up. "This is good. I haven't maxed out my ice resistance yet."

Boom!!

The Frost sword dragon slammed violently into Qin Ji, and the terrifying cold air instantly froze everything within a hundred meters into an ice sculpture.

"Let's see if you die this time!" The purple-robed Elder sneered.

Crack.

A crisp cracking sound rang out.

A crack appeared on the surface of the massive ice sculpture, which then shattered with a bang.

Qin Ji walked out completely unharmed, even letting out a burp and exhaling a breath of cold air.

[Subjected to Ice attribute rule attack (Absorbed), Ice Element Resistance +500!]

"The taste is a bit bland." Qin Ji smacked his lips and looked up at the purple-robed Elder in mid-air, who had completely lost his sense of reality. "It's only polite to return the favor. Since you've been so hospitable, I'll give you all a meeting gift as well."

He slowly raised his right hand. In his palm, the [man-slayer imprint] suddenly glowed with a crimson light.

"Domain of the Human Butcher, Open."

Hum—!!

A materialized blood-colored shockwave centered on Qin Ji and spread outward in a ring like crazy.

The originally clear sky instantly turned dark red, and the air was filled with a nauseating smell of blood. All the Sword Control Sect Disciples within the Domain's range felt their hearts suddenly contract, as if gripped tightly by an invisible giant hand.

[Domain of the Human Butcher activated!]

[All attributes doubled!]

[Current Strength: 17,840,000!]

"Now..."

The ground beneath Qin Ji's feet shattered as he appeared in mid-air like he had teleported, crashing directly into the densely packed sword formation.

"It's my turn."

There were no fancy Moves, just the simplest, most unadorned punch.

BOOM—!!!

The air was blasted apart by this punch, the terrifying wind forming a visible vacuum channel that crushed everything in its path—Flying Swords, shields, and even the purple-robed Elder's protective Magic Treasure—into powder!

"Ahhhh!!"

Screams rose one after another.

Those usually high-and-mighty Sword Cultivators were now like lambs scattered by a pack of wolves, with no power to fight back.

[Killed LV.45 Inner Sect Disciple, Strength +45, man-slayer imprint stacked 1 layer!]

[Killed LV.50 Law Enforcement Deacon, Agility +50, man-slayer imprint stacked 2 layers!]

...

Qin Ji's figure flickered through the crowd. Every time he struck, a large mist of blood exploded. He was like a heartless harvester, crazily reaping these mobile attribute points.

The purple-robed Elder was now scared out of his wits. He desperately urged his Flying Sword to flee this Hell, only to find that the surrounding space seemed locked by some terrifying aura, making it difficult to even Move a finger.

"You... who on earth are you?!"

The purple-robed Elder shrieked in despair, "My Sword Control Sect is the leader of the Righteous Path! If you slaughter us like this, aren't you afraid of heaven's punishment?!"

"Heaven's punishment?"

Qin Ji's figure instantly appeared before him, the smile on his ordinary face bright and cold.

He reached out and gently squeezed the purple-robed Elder's neck, like grabbing a weak chicken waiting to be slaughtered.

"If the heavens dare to show a health bar..."

Qin Ji's fingers slowly tightened, his purple-gold pupils reflecting the sky full of blood rain. "I'll kill them for you to see."

Snap.

The purple-robed Elder's neck snapped instantly.

Qin Ji casually threw the corpse toward the towering mountain gate below. The massive force carried the corpse like a cannonball, slamming it hard against the Sword Control Sect's gold-lettered plaque that read "Number One Sword in the World."

BOOM!!

The plaque that had been passed down for a thousand years instantly exploded into a cloud of gold powder.

The sun was setting, and the evening glow was as red as blood.

Qin Ji stood upon the ruins of the shattered mountain gate, with broken swords and wails all around his feet, and gold powder and blood mist drifting behind him. He slowly raised his head, his gaze piercing through the layers of clouds to look directly at the main hall on the mountain Peak that symbolized the Peak of the Sword Dao. He casually flicked away a drop of blood from his fingertip that didn't belong to him, the light in his eyes sharper than the dying sun.