"This is all just pure Merit!" Lin Haoming muttered excitedly as he looked at the Mountain Armored Beasts.
Now that he was a manager, he didn't have to be subtle. He addressed the workers: "Brothers, I've been entrusted by Senior Brother Situ to handle things here. I promised him I'd do a thorough job. So, from today on, I will be the one to personally kill every Mountain Armored Beast. You guys handle the processing afterward. Clear?"
The workers were stunned. "Huh?" But since he was the boss and they didn't have to do the messy part of the killing, no one complained.
"Li Shuntian," Lin Haoming said, turning to the fat former prince, "you'll arrange the specifics. If I'm not here on time, come to my cave and fetch me."
"Yes, Manager Lin!" Li Shuntian felt his chest puff out. He was now the de facto Second Manager. After years of being bullied, he finally felt like he was moving up in the world.
Lin Haoming grabbed a Blood Blade, muttered his last rites to a beast, and struck. Stab. Move. Mutter. Stab. He repeated this over and over.
He began to understand the Merit Beads better. When Merit was earned, the beads vibrated. The greater the deed, the stronger the reaction. Through his Divine Sense, he could see a third golden thread slowly forming on the first bead. However, after killing twenty beasts, he realized only about a third of them actually provided Merit. It seemed not every beast was seeking salvation.
A month passed. Lin Haoming had personally slaughtered over a thousand beasts. The third golden thread was thick, but it hadn't yet solidified. He was getting frustrated.
---
The "Butcher" Label
It was stipend day again. Since it was a Small Month, there were only medicinal pills to collect—no spirit stones.
As he approached Manager Ma's grotto, he heard Guo Xin's shrill voice mocking him. "Look, here comes 'Lin the Butcher'! Have you guys heard? To prepare for the duel, our Butcher has been killing over a thousand beasts a month. Talk about fierce!"
"A thousand high-grade spirit beasts a month? He certainly lives up to the name!" another disciple, Li Cang, laughed.
Tang Gaojun walked in, looking annoyed at the bickering. "Lin Haoming, what are you doing? Why waste time killing beasts instead of cultivating?"
"Maybe he's practicing some weird technique that needs baleful aura," Li Cang sneered.
"I've never heard of an aura-refining technique that works on drugged beasts," Guo Xin added. "If there is one, teach me, and I'll go kill some Fire Rhinos in my grotto!"
Lin Haoming looked at Guo Xin's mocking face and coldly snorted. "Senior Brother Guo, since you look down on me so much, why don't we raise the stakes for next month's duel?"
Guo Xin narrowed his eyes. "What do you mean?"
"I'll bet my entire net worth—thirty spirit stones. Do you dare to match it?"
"Heh, the kid's got guts. Fine! I just hope you don't end up a total beggar after the fight."
Tang Gaojun looked at Lin Haoming with newfound respect. In a Demonic Sect, ruthlessness—even toward oneself—was a virtue. "Good! Even if you lose, we won't blame you for lacking spirit."
"Don't worry, Junior Brother," Niu Wu said, slapping Lin Haoming's shoulder like they were best friends. "If you lose, old Niu here will win it back for you!"
---
The Failed Good Deed
As a manager, Lin Haoming's income had doubled. He received two Qi-Gathering Pills (worth six Qi-Circulating Pills) and one spirit stone per month.
He went to his old cave to distribute the pills to his twenty subordinates. Usually, a manager takes a cut of one pill from each person. Lin Haoming decided to be a good guy to farm Merit.
"Listen up," he told them, handing back their full rations. "I'm not like other managers. As long as I'm here, I won't take a single pill from your stipends!"
He waited for the flood of Merit. He waited... and nothing happened. The Merit Beads were silent.
Are you kidding me? Lin Haoming was fuming. He gave them a massive financial break, and these bastards weren't even grateful?
What he didn't realize was the Demonic Sect mindset: the workers were actually suspicious. In their minds, if a boss doesn't take his cut, it means he's either weak or planning something much worse. Why be grateful to someone who might be too weak to protect you?
---
The Accidental Jackpot
Frustrated, Lin Haoming went back to the slaughterhouse. He killed fifty beasts in a bad mood, still feeling nothing from the beads. He threw down his blade and headed for the exit.
Suddenly, someone ran up to him. It was Bao Wenliang, the guy who used to bully him alongside Li Haiying.
Bao Wenliang looked terrified. He shoved three spirit stones into Lin Haoming's hand. "Manager Lin... I was stupid before. I followed Li Haiying and did you wrong. You've been in power for a month and haven't crushed me yet—you truly are a great man. Please, take this as my apology."
Lin Haoming looked at the three stones—half a year's salary for the guy—and his mood instantly brightened. "Junior Brother Bao, I always thought you were a capable man. Tell you what—from now on, you and Li Shuntian can manage the workers together."
Bao Wenliang was overjoyed. "Thank you, Manager! I'll follow you to the ends of the earth!"
Ding!
A massive surge of Merit flooded the beads—just as much as he had gotten from saving the two transport disciples earlier. By giving a terrified enemy a way out and a promotion, he had earned genuine, deep-seated gratitude.
The third golden thread finally solidified.
Lin Haoming sprinted back to his room and activated the Spirit Accumulation Bead. As he drew energy from it, he gasped. The flow of Qi was no longer like a low-grade spirit stone. It was like an Intermediate-Grade Spirit Stone—worth a hundred times more and allowing for much faster cultivation.