My cultivation method shines upon all heavens.

When Lu Ming staggered back to the camp, he found it in complete chaos.

Torches darted through the camp rooms, illuminating panicked faces.

"Lord Wei is dead..."

"Seal off the training ground!"

"Go and report this to Centurion Chen immediately!"

Armor clanged and clattered, footsteps echoed in disarray.

As soon as Lu Ming entered the training ground, he was stopped and subdued by two Yin Tiger Guards.

"Quickly, report to Centurion Chen! Lord Shi Lei... along with five hundred Yin Tiger Guards... the entire army has been wiped out!"

Lu Ming was panting heavily, his face was filled with grief, and his voice was hoarse.

The two Yin Tiger Guards exchanged a glance, their expressions changing drastically.

The Guardian Commander was just found dead in his tent, and now the Acting Guardian Commander, along with five hundred elite soldiers, has been almost completely wiped out... Is the fate of the Yin Tiger Guard about to change?

Without saying a word, they immediately sent someone to report to Chen Xuan, and then took Lu Ming to a tent and put him under strict guard.

After the two left, Lu Ming's tense shoulders finally relaxed.

He sat cross-legged on the ground, the intense pain that had been suppressed within him finally bursting forth like a tidal wave.

Every muscle and bone was screaming, and the internal organs felt like they were being repeatedly poured with molten iron.

He had no choice but to take out the wine gourd from his waist, uncork it, and tilt his head back to gulp down a mouthful of blood wine.

The intense medicinal power flowed down my throat, forcefully suppressing some of the excruciating pain.

"Although we managed to capture Shi Lei and his group, the cost was far too high."

He felt his bones on the verge of shattering, and his face turned extremely pale.

If it weren't for the extraordinary mystery of the Moon Toad Scripture, which continuously allowed the moonlight to enter his body and repair his injuries, he would probably be a cripple by now.

Even with the warmth of the moonlight, without the aid of precious pills to treat such severe injuries, not only will his recovery be a long way off, but he will probably only be able to reach the Bone Forging Realm in the future.

Pills for those at the Bone Forging Realm and above are extremely rare, and he had no way of obtaining them.

"Why……"

He sighed deeply, "Thousand-Eyed Bodhisattva, truly worthy of being a top-tier demon of the Great Zhao. Even in his dying moments, he almost dragged me down with him."

He slowly closed his eyes and began to circulate his qi and blood to heal his injuries.

At the same time, those deliberately ignored fragments of memory resurfaced in my mind—

After her father passed away, her mother fell seriously ill due to excessive grief.

Wang An not only embezzled the pension money, but also forcibly seized all of his family's savings, leaving only a letter of recommendation for military examination.

To ensure his younger brother received a spot as a martial arts prodigy, Zhang Yuheng constantly humiliated and coerced him...

With nowhere else to turn, an old Taoist priest appeared with a sinister-looking young man;

He worshipped the Yellow Heaven and joined the Way of Great Peace. The other party bestowed upon him talismans and talismanic water, which saved his mother's life.

Late at night, Zhang Yuheng was lured out, and the sinister young man set an ambush to kill him;

An old man with a powerful aura appeared, and amidst the angry roar of the sinister youth, he ignited the talisman;

In a daze, an unknown consciousness entered his body, and an immense sense of power filled his entire being. He fought fiercely with the old man and managed to kill him with great difficulty, then collapsed to the ground.

The sinister young man killed Zhang Yuheng, casually threw him into a stinking ditch, and left...

A series of images flashed by, and Lu Ming suddenly opened his eyes:

"So, Zhang Yuheng really was killed by my scheme. And what about that old Taoist priest, and the one who possessed me... the Grand Master of the Way of Peace?"

He murmured softly.

In my memory, the old man from the Zhang family had an exceptionally powerful aura, yet the Grand Master of the Taiping Dao was able to kill him simply by possessing his body, which shows his strength.

In fact, looking back now, he realized that the other party had used him to lure out Zhang Yuheng, and their real target was probably that old man.

"It is said that the Zhang family's pillar of strength, the patriarch Zhang Wuyai, went into seclusion several months ago... Could it be that this is the man who died?"

Of the four powerful families in Yinhu County, the Wang family has the deepest foundation, while the Zhang family is the most powerful.

It is rumored that Zhang Wuyai's cultivation level is the most profound among the four patriarchs.

However, given the Zhang family's sudden low profile these days, and the subtle rejection from the other three powerful families, his guess is likely true.

The reason the old Taoist priest went to such lengths was clearly to get rid of Zhang Wuyai.

"Powerful clans... Liu Zhiyuan and the Taiping Dao are their common enemies."

In an instant, he finally understood the basis for their cooperation.

Liu Zhiyuan wanted to completely control Yinhu County, while the Taiping Dao wanted to eliminate powerful and influential families. The two hit it off immediately, and thus began their honeymoon period.

But what happens after the honeymoon period?

What will become of them?

What will become of Lu Ming?

He knew that once the sinister young man discovered he was still alive, he would never let go of such a valuable asset.

Liu Zhiyuan would never let this free laborer go to waste.

Caught in the vortex of their power struggle, he was destined to be unable to escape.

With a hint of helplessness and apprehension, he closed his eyes again.

Time passed slowly, and the noise outside the tent, which had lasted for a long time, gradually subsided.

An hour later, the curtain was lifted.

Chen Xuan walked in looking exhausted, followed by Chen Rui and another middle-aged man.

"Greetings, Lord Chen."

Lu Ming opened his eyes, stood up and bowed.

Chen Rui moved a chair into the tent, and Chen Xuan sat down, rubbing his temples, and slowly began to speak:

"Tell me, what happened?"

The death of Lin Hongying in his tent had already caused him a great deal of trouble, and the news of the annihilation of Shi Lei and his five hundred elite Yin Tiger Guards was like a bolt from the blue.

He had already sent people out to inspect the scene, and now he just wanted to hear an explanation from Lu Ming.

If Lu Ming hadn't already become a Bone Forging Realm expert, he probably wouldn't have been so polite.

Lu Ming's expression turned solemn. He quickly organized his thoughts and slowly recounted the entire process:

"After Lord Shi Lei led us away from the camp, we split into three groups to sweep away the surrounding demons and set up nodes for the demon-locking array..."

"Tonight, Lord Shi Lei intends to launch a full-scale attack, saying he wants to grant me the 'first strike'..."

As he said this, his expression became somewhat unnatural.

Chen Xuan and the other two raised an eyebrow, and seeing his blood-soaked state, they immediately understood Shi Lei's scheme.

First, they let this kid sweep away the demons alone, and then they made him the vanguard in the demon-slaying campaign. It's clear they didn't intend for him to come back alive.

Such tricks are second nature to those in power; they can easily destroy someone with a single word.

For Shi Lei, this was just an everyday occurrence.

"After I broke through the temple door, I was determined to die as I bombarded the shrine. However, I heard a tiger's roar come from inside the shrine and then I completely lost consciousness."

Lu Ming paused for a moment, then continued:

"When I regained consciousness, there were no other people around me, only rows of armor and spears... and a golden pillar of light shooting into the sky, where a giant tiger was fighting against the crimson lightning that was falling from the sky."

"When I came to my senses, the crimson lightning dissipated, and the golden light flashed and disappeared. I ran towards the node of the Demon-Sealing Array... and found that my comrades had all turned to ashes."

By the end, his voice was hoarse.

Chen Xuan and the other two listened quietly, their eyes scanning Lu Ming's face, not missing any subtle changes in his expression.

However, no abnormalities were found.

Lu Ming's statement was airtight and without any flaws.

As a centurion, Chen Xuan knew more about demons and monsters, and quickly deduced the details on his own:

The demons knocked Lu Ming unconscious to preserve their strength, while simultaneously luring Shi Lei and the others into a trap;

Only by absorbing enough human essence can demons have a chance to break free from the seal of the Way of Peace.

"This Shi Lei..."

He cursed inwardly, "Useless and incompetent! He wastes all his energy on Lin Hongying, can't he even see through this?"

But then he looked at Lu Ming with suspicion.

Shi Lei was scheming against this kid and wanted him dead, so he knew it all too well.

Previously, he hadn't felt the need to turn against a small-time brewer.

And given how smart this kid is, he must have guessed that as well.

Is it possible that he colluded with demons?

He narrowed his eyes, moved swiftly, and suddenly appeared in front of Lu Ming.

Lu Ming was startled, but then looked at the other person calmly.

Chen Xuan stared straight into his eyes, then suddenly reached out and touched his wrist.

Lu Ming suppressed his instinctive urge to retaliate and allowed the other party to seize his pulse.

"Internal organs trembled, bones shattered..."

Chen Xuan examined Lu Ming's injuries, a hint of surprise in his eyes:

"The person who made the move showed no mercy; it was almost a matter of taking his life."

He comes from a family of doctors and can distinguish between real and fake injuries.

Words can be faked, but physical injuries cannot.

He could sense the traces left by that murderous intent with just a single probe.

Clearly, the other party didn't not want to kill Lu Ming, but rather this kid was exceptionally talented, managing to withstand such a severe injury.

It's estimated that if the demons hadn't been so eager to escape and unwilling to cause any further trouble, and hadn't casually added another attack, Lu Ming would already be a corpse by now.

His expression relaxed slightly, and he stood up and patted Lu Ming on the shoulder:

"You've had a hard time. I understand what happened. Take good care of yourself at the brewery these next few days to recover. We will definitely avenge you and your comrades."

After saying that, he turned and left with Chen Rui and the other man. Although he already had a general idea in mind, he still needed to verify it.

As Lu Ming watched the three leave, a barely perceptible smile appeared on his lips, and he walked straight toward the brewery.

He seemed oblivious to the two Yin Tiger Guards who were always following him.

He slept soundly through the night, oblivious to the unusual noise outside, and drifted off to sleep.

The next morning, just after he finished washing up, a series of hurried footsteps came from outside the door.

"Lu Ming... are you alright?"

Zhou Changfa, his back hunched, rushed in first, grabbed his hand, and the wrinkles on his old face were all squeezed together.

Zhao Hongyuan followed closely behind, his face also full of concern, and said indignantly:

"That Shi Lei is a real scoundrel! He not only died out there, but he almost dragged you down with him!"

Lu Ming smiled and comforted the two elderly people, chatting with them for a while until he finally calmed them down.

In any case, in this chaotic world where people devour each other without spitting out the bones, there are still people who genuinely care about him.

Looking at his pale face, the two men's worries deepened. After exchanging a glance, they each took out half a piece of cloth from their robes—

The surface was covered with all sorts of grotesque patterns drawn in dark red blood.