Enemies Meet on a Narrow Road

After making all these preparations, Lin Xuan entered meditation to restore his spiritual power. For cultivators, sitting in meditation for three hours was perfectly ordinary.

Several groups of cultivators came by during that time. None of them were good people; all of them coveted the treasures on Lin Xuan.

However, the Invisibility Talisman contained a sealed high-level spell. Even Foundation Establishment Realm cultivators would find it difficult to detect, let alone them.

They all wore puzzled expressions. They had clearly seen the youth enter the valley, so how had he suddenly vanished? They searched the area for half a day, and some who refused to give up even cast tracking spells, yet still found nothing.

Left with no choice, they departed unwillingly.

Three hours later, a strange cloud of white mist suddenly rose in the previously empty valley. At first, the mist was scattered, then it slowly gathered together before gradually drifting apart again, revealing a human figure.

Lin Xuan's expression was indifferent, betraying neither joy nor anger. Rising to his feet, he swept his gaze around. There were no cultivators nearby anymore. Though he had successfully shaken off those ill-intentioned fellows, he had also used up a high-level Invisibility Talisman.

Still, overall, his trip to the Lingyun Sect had yielded abundant rewards. Not only had he successfully purchased the Spirit Control Technique, but the Lingyun Art was also now in his hands.

One had to know that even among low-level cultivation arts used at the Spirit Movement Stage, there were trash and treasures. The one he had learned at Floating Cloud Valley was merely an ordinary product. That was why, despite having a large supply of spiritual herbs to assist him and cultivating diligently, he had still failed to break through to the fifth layer for so long.

The Lingyun Art, however, was a rare treasure. Once he practiced it, the speed of his cultivation would surely increase greatly.

Besides that, he had bought two Water-attribute Spirit Stones and one hundred and eight Talismans. Though they were all low-level, their strength lay in their sheer numbers. If he hurled them out in a rain that blotted out the sky, even Foundation Establishment Realm cultivators would be left flustered and unable to defend themselves.

Although he had paid quite a few pills, it was nothing to Lin Xuan. With his purification ability, he only needed to toil for a few days before he could purify the Waste Pills again.

In short, compared to his gains, his losses were insignificant. After briefly sorting through the items in his Storage Bracelet, Lin Xuan ate some dried provisions and continued on his journey.

This time, no one followed him. Lin Xuan did not linger and headed straight back to Floating Cloud Valley.

Around dusk, he stopped in a small forest. There was not a trace of human habitation within dozens of miles. It seemed he would have no choice but to sleep in the wilderness tonight.

He caught a wild rabbit and had just roasted it half-cooked when Lin Xuan's expression shifted. With a sweep of his sleeve, a cold wind blew through and extinguished the fire. He then covered the traces of the roasting with dirt and dead branches, disguising the place as though no one had ever come.

Then Lin Xuan tapped the ground with the tip of his foot. As he cast the Wind Control Technique, he easily soared more than ten meters into the air and landed atop a towering tree. Concealed by the leaves, he remained utterly motionless, restraining his spiritual aura. Even his heartbeat and pulse slowed to an extreme, making his entire body seem like a withered branch.

The Concealment Technique from the Wood-attribute arts.

Just as he finished all this, a ball of yellow light descended into the forest from afar. When the glow faded, two people stepped out.

Lin Xuan remained outwardly calm, but inwardly he was secretly astonished. He had spent four years in Floating Cloud Valley. Though he was a low-ranking disciple, what he had seen and heard had given him a discerning eye.

That yellow light had not come from riding a Spirit Tool through the clouds and mist, but from a rare Flight Talisman. It was a high-level Talisman on par with an Invisibility Talisman. Those who possessed such a treasure could never be ordinary cultivators.

"Father, let's rest here tonight."

"Mm."

Lin Xuan froze. That voice sounded so familiar. After a moment's thought, he remembered. It belonged to the young heir who had once competed with him to buy a mid-level cultivation art, someone from a cultivator family surnamed Yan.

Could they be here to hunt me down? Lin Xuan was startled, but he quickly calmed himself and began to analyze the situation. No, he had used an Invisibility Talisman and clearly shaken off every follower. Besides, if they wanted to make a move, they would not have waited until now.

They did not know he was returning to Floating Cloud Valley. They could not possibly have happened to pursue him along this very route. The most likely explanation was coincidence—they had simply crossed paths.

After figuring out the whole matter, Lin Xuan cursed the heavens inwardly for granting him such rotten luck while carefully concealing his aura and remaining perfectly still, afraid that the other side might notice him.

"Please, hurry and leave!" Lin Xuan prayed to the Gods and Devils across the heavens for protection. It would be best if the two had urgent business and were only stopping briefly to eat something before leaving.

Yet things went against his wishes. The two also planned to spend the night here. They lit a fire, took out their provisions, and roasted them over it.

"Father, do you think our ambush on the Wang Family disciples will be discovered?"

Yan Ming's voice carried a trace of unease. Sitting beside him was an old man around fifty years old. At those words, the old man's face darkened. After a long while, he said, "Hmph, it was because you useless beast failed even at buying a mid-level cultivation art. Otherwise, why would I have needed to resort to such a desperate measure and take such a heaven-sized risk?"

"Father, you can't blame your son for this." Yan Ming sounded unconvinced. "Who would have thought that a Rogue Cultivator would possess several hundred pills, even rare Mid-Grade Pills?"

"Was what you said true?"

"Father, how would I dare lie to you? Besides, many cultivators saw what happened then."

The old man fell silent. The matter was indeed strange. Two hundred low-grade pills would have been one thing, but he had even brought out Mid-Grade Pills. Not even sects such as Floating Cloud Valley, Daofu Mountain, and Fire Spirit Sect could afford such extravagance—a Rogue Cultivator...

As the Yan Family's clan chief, Yan Tianheng could be considered well-traveled and knowledgeable, yet he could not make head nor tail of this matter.

"Forget it. There is no need to dwell on this. We killed those Wang Family juniors anyway, and the mid-level cultivation art is now ours, along with other treasures." A trace of smugness appeared on Yan Tianheng's face. "Who told those old bastards of the Wang Family to be at a critical juncture of secluded cultivation, unable to spare themselves? They had no choice but to send a few juniors to attend such a grand event. As for being discovered, Ming'er, you need not worry. Your father has already destroyed the corpses and erased all traces."