Being a dirty camper is simply the best.

With the battlefield currently in chaos, Lin Shan saw Ge Yan engaged in an evenly matched exchange of blows with a bald, burly man, but Mu Qing was nowhere to be seen.

After tending to her own injuries, Xiao Xiao walked over to Lin Shan and said, "Brother Lin, could you please go look for Senior Sister Mu? Just now, to protect us, she lured several enemies toward the east."

Lin Shan nodded and replied, "Mm... I understand."

With a deeply concerned look, Xiao Xiao pressed a vial of pills into Lin Shan's arms, saying, "Brother Lin, please take some energy-recovery pills."

Lin Shan accepted the vial and symbolically swallowed one, though he actually had no need for it, as the true qi in his dantian had already recovered to a large extent.

Earlier, through Xiao Xiao, Lin Shan had learned that cultivation techniques and martial arts were categorized into four major grades: Heaven, Earth, Mysterious, and Yellow, with each major grade further divided into upper, middle, and lower ranks.

His Little Jade Sun Fist was a middle-rank Yellow-grade martial art.

However, Lin Shan was unsure about the Evergreen Art.

Logically speaking, given Lu Yun's status, Lin Shan would have had to offer heavy thanks just to get a lower-rank Yellow-grade technique.

Yet over these past few days, Lin Shan had discovered that the Evergreen Art possessed numerous utilities. For instance, his recovery time was faster than that of Xiao Xiao and the others—something Lin Shan had noticed after sparring with Ge Yan and Xiao Xiao—and the Evergreen Art also featured many methods for healing injuries.

Additionally, the technique seemed exceptionally powerful when it came to concealing one's aura. This point had actually been brought up by Ge Yan, because on one occasion, when Lin Shan approached his courtyard while circulating the Evergreen Art, Ge Yan had completely failed to detect him.

The only real pity was that the Evergreen Art lacked any content for the Bone-Refining stage.

Lin Shan estimated that Lu Yun probably didn't possess it either; otherwise, given Lu Yun's character, there was no possibility he would have kept it hidden.

After swallowing the pill, Lin Shan slipped away toward the east.

Along the way, he spotted sporadic skirmishes breaking out, but with Mu Qing on his mind, he paid them no heed.

After walking a bit further, Lin Shan abruptly heard a lewd voice ahead.

"Mu Qing of the Profound Sword Sect, your reputation truly precedes you. You certainly know how to run, though I wonder if those legs of yours are just as enthralling when they wrap around a man."

Lin Shan quickly concealed himself to the side.

At a short distance from him, Mu Qing was wielding a long sword, exchanging blows with a brocade-robed man. The man also wielded a long sword, but they were not fighting alone; he had brought along three martial artists at the Blood-Consuming realm.

Lin Shan noticed two corpses on the ground; those Blood-Consuming realm martial artists had presumably already been killed by Mu Qing.

The gap between a Blood-Consuming realm martial artist and a Bone-Refining realm martial artist was not insurmountable. Generally speaking, ten Blood-Consuming realm martial artists could pose a grave threat to a Bone-Refining realm one. If they fought to the death without retreating, it was entirely possible to overwhelm and kill a Bone-Refining expert through sheer numbers.

By this point, Mu Qing had sustained numerous wounds all over her body. Facing the other's foul language, she cursed, "Zhao Ziyu, you will meet a wretched end! If this matter comes to light, your Zhao family will be utterly destroyed without a place to be buried!"

Lin Shan mentally cursed in shock.

This Zhao Ziyu was no ordinary person. Among the four great families of Sanwen County, the Zhao family was one of them, considered second in power only to the Xiao family.

Their young master, Zhao Ziyu, was a Bone-Refining realm martial artist.

He never expected this fellow to have defected.

Zhao Ziyu let out a hearty laugh and said, "That's precisely why I won't let you escape. Once I capture you alive, I'll lock you away in my family's secret chamber and properly train you..."

"Shameless!"

Furious, Mu Qing intensified her attacks.

Lin Shan could tell that Zhao Ziyu was no match for Mu Qing at all, but his subordinates shouldered a tremendous amount of pressure for him, even serving as cannon fodder when necessary.

Just like right now.

Mu Qing cleaved one of Zhao Ziyu's subordinates to death with a single sword strike, while Zhao Ziyu suddenly thrust forward like a venomous snake. Mu Qing had no way to evade this strike, taking a direct hit to the chest.

However, a flash of ruthlessness appeared in Mu Qing's eyes. Abandoning the sword in her hand, she slammed her palm directly against Zhao Ziyu's chest.

Only then did Lin Shan understand: Zhao Ziyu had used his subordinates as bait to deliver a fatal sword strike, but Mu Qing had also capitalized on the situation to heavily injure Zhao Ziyu in return.

"Bitch!"

Letting out a cry of agony, Zhao Ziyu crashed to the ground. Seeing this, his two remaining subordinates hurriedly rushed forward, hoping to seize the opportunity to kill Mu Qing. Yet Mu Qing was fiercely heroic; despite taking two slash wounds, she managed to cut down Zhao Ziyu's last two guards.

Deep terror surfaced in Zhao Ziyu's eyes, but by this time Mu Qing had also reached the end of her stamina. She slumped down onto the ground, glaring resentfully at Zhao Ziyu.

Seeing this, Zhao Ziyu's panic instantly vanished. He burst into laughter and said, "I thought you were truly invincible. What's wrong, can't move anymore?"

Struggling to his feet, Zhao Ziyu walked unsteadily toward Mu Qing.

Lin Shan sighed inwardly. If he had a choice, he truly didn't want to risk attacking a Bone-Refining realm martial artist—the risks were simply too high...

Still, since Zhao Ziyu was now at the end of his tether, it might be worth a try.

Circulating the Evergreen Art to his absolute limit, Lin Shan crept closer.

Just as he approached, Zhao Ziyu spoke. "Mu Qing, they all think I only excel at swordsmanship, but my true strength actually lies in my bare-handed combat. A few days ago, I acquired a Mysterious-grade martial art; today, I'll let you experience it!"

With that, he extended his right hand. Lin Shan saw a faint layer of yellow light gathering over Zhao Ziyu's right palm, his true qi condensing into a tangible substance.

Sensing that Zhao Ziyu had entered his strike zone, Lin Shan noted that the fellow seemed entirely immersed in the joy of his impending victory and hadn't noticed the slightest anomaly.

"Being a snake in the grass feels simply wonderful..."

Lin Shan silently marveled, deciding that he might just pursue a career as an assassin in the future.

At the exact moment when Zhao Ziyu's aura climbed to its peak and he was about to strike, Lin Shan made his move.

He employed the most powerful strike of the Little Jade Sun Fist: Mountain-Splitting Path Breaker.

"Who's there?!"

Zhao Ziyu retained some reflexes and didn't get ambushed to death instantly like Lin Ping had, but it was already too late for him. Before he could mount a counterattack, Lin Shan's twin fists had already slammed into his back.

"Pfft!"

A massive torrent of blood erupted from Zhao Ziyu's mouth. He flew a zhang away and crashed heavily onto the ground. As expected of a Bone-Refining realm martial artist, he wasn't quite dead yet. Raising his head, he glared at Lin Shan with eyes full of venomous hatred.

"You..."

Lin Shan didn't give him a chance to speak. Taking a few steps forward, he drew his saber and cleanly severed Zhao Ziyu's head.

Mu Qing stared blankly at the scene, only snapping back to reality when Lin Shan walked up to her carrying Zhao Ziyu's head.

"Lin Shan... thank you for saving my life!"

Tossing Zhao Ziyu's head aside, Lin Shan stepped forward to help Mu Qing up. "Don't mention it. It was Xiao Xiao who told me your whereabouts and urged me to come and provide reinforcements quickly."

Mu Qing was actually a rather decent person; she had given Lin Shan plenty of pointers before, and without the signal arrow she had provided earlier, reinforcements wouldn't have arrived so easily.

With a faint smile, Mu Qing glanced at Zhao Ziyu's corpse and said, "Brother Lin, search his body. You might just find something useful."