Installment Payments

"I'd originally thought that being forced to play the good Samaritan for once was no big deal, but the moment I saw your face, I suddenly regretted it."

"I've killed quite a few Whirlwind Tortoises lately. Thinking about it now, I actually feel a tiny bit guilty. How about I throw you into a pack of demon beasts and feed you to the Whirlwind Tortoises? What do you think of that proposal?" Bai Lan chuckled.

Le Qing's eyes widened. "I—I'm an Azure Sect disciple too! I'm also a disciple under True Person Qing Xuan, a member of the Le Clan! You dare kill me?!"

"Why wouldn't I? Out here in this godforsaken wilderness, with no village ahead and no inn behind, if I kill you, who would ever know?" Bai Lan sneered, applying a little more force to the spear in her hand. "You were so arrogant at the Bai Residence that day. Why are you such a coward now that a spear is pointed at you?"

"You!" Le Qing's neck turned red with rage.

"How about this? I'm not an unreasonable person. One life, exchanged for Spirit Stones. How does that sound?" Bai Lan tugged at the Spirit Binding Rope around Le Qing, then, under his incredulous gaze, bound it even tighter.

Le Qing stared at her dumbfoundedly. "I thought you were going to untie me!"

Bai Lan ignored him and merely raised one hand in an eight gesture.

At last, the dagger was laid bare.

The System let out a long sigh in her mind and lit a candle for Le Qing.

Le Qing swallowed. "Eight hundred Spirit Stones?"

"No, eight thousand Spirit Stones." Bai Lan smiled faintly. "I'm your lifesaver. It's perfectly reasonable to repay me with some Spirit Stones, isn't it?"

"Why don't you just rob me?!" Le Qing snapped furiously.

Bai Lan chuckled. "You can choose to refuse."

As she spoke, the spear in her hand edged a little closer.

Feeling the stabbing pain at his neck, Le Qing's heart jolted. A trace of fear entered his voice. "But I can't come up with that many Spirit Stones!"

Although Le Qing came from a great aristocratic family, he himself was not valued by the clan. Thus, he was not the sort of second-generation immortal who could casually spend thousands of Spirit Stones.

"How about installments?" Bai Lan asked with a beaming smile.

"In-installments? What does that mean?" Le Qing swallowed.

"Installments means repaying it in installments. Eight thousand Spirit Stones, paid over two years. That way, you only need to give me three hundred Spirit Stones each month, and it'll all be settled after two years."

Le Qing's mind plunged into a storm of thoughts.

Why did he suddenly feel like he had incurred an enormous debt?

"If you agree, then make a Heart Demon Vow."

Le Qing was shocked. "I have to make a Heart Demon Vow too?!"

"You can choose to refuse."

With that, the spear in Bai Lan's hand moved a little closer again.

"I swear! I swear!" Le Qing choked out.

With a spear pressed to his throat, Le Qing took on an enormous debt that would take two years to repay.

Once a Heart Demon Vow was formed, it was extremely difficult to go back on it.

"Not bad. A wise man submits to circumstances." Only then did Bai Lan nod and put away her spear.

She stepped forward and untied the Spirit Binding Rope around Le Qing, casually storing it inside her Void Stone.

She had no idea what material this rope was made from. Merely holding it for a moment had caused the circulation of spiritual energy within her body to stagnate briefly.

"After we return to the sect, remember to send over this month's three hundred Spirit Stones. I don't like going door to door to collect debts, so you'd better be conscious of your obligations."

A hint of resentment appeared on Le Qing's face, but he only dared to be angry without daring to speak.

Even with his Qi Refining level six cultivation, those three Rogue Cultivators had beaten him until he was utterly defeated.

But this woman before him had actually killed three Qi Refining stage cultivators all by herself? One of them had even reached the late Qi Refining stage!

Terrifying.

"I saved your life. Taking eight thousand Spirit Stones isn't excessive, is it? Or is your life not worth eight thousand?" Bai Lan's gaze swept over him, the chill in her eyes making Le Qing shrink his neck.

"It is. Of course it is."

"Speaking of which, why is a dignified disciple of True Person Qing Xuan so... useless?" Bai Lan clicked her tongue. "Even if you couldn't beat those three, you could have found an opportunity to escape. Don't tell me you don't even have the ability to run away?"

Le Qing's face flushed scarlet. "Don't spread this matter around!"

"Oh? You want me to keep it secret?" Bai Lan made an eight gesture. "That costs extra."

Le Qing gritted his teeth. "Spirit Stones every other word—Spirit Stones every sentence. You're both from the Bai Family, so why are you so mercenary? Junior Sister isn't like you at all!"

Bai Lan gave Le Qing an indifferent glance. "What are you barking about? Of course she and I are different. Her name is Bai Ling, and mine is Bai Lan. We're different people to begin with—why should we be the same?"

"You!" Le Qing fumed.

"Enough, shut up. Talking to you really was the biggest mistake I made today." Bai Lan shook her head, withdrew her gaze, and quickened her pace.

Le Qing gritted his teeth, but could only hurry a few steps to follow her.

The Hundred Thousand Mountains were far too dangerous. It was difficult for him to ensure his safety alone; if he ran into a few more cultivators blocking the road to rob him, he would be finished.

But... following Bai Lan seemed much safer.

Bai Lan glanced at the person trailing behind her.

Le Qing's grip tightened around his Storage Bag. He was only following her—surely this woman wasn't going to make him pay some kind of protection fee too?

Bai Lan withdrew her gaze and took out the mission wooden plaque from her Storage Bag, sending several threads of spiritual power into it.

"The deadline for the 'Hunt Whirlwind Tortoises' mission you accepted is in eight hours. Please complete the mission as soon as possible to avoid exceeding the time limit."

A notification sounded from within the wooden plaque.

The cultivation world truly was the cultivation world. The design of this Sound Transmission Token rivaled modern technology.

"My mission is complete. Should I go to Iron Refining Peak to find you?" Bai Lan transmitted her voice to Wu Gang.

The wooden plaque remained silent for a long while. Only after some time did Wu Gang's stunned voice come through: "Y-you're still alive???"

"?" Bai Lan fell silent for a moment. "Of course I'm still alive."

"Ah! Oh, oh, right, right. If you can transmit your voice to me, then naturally you're still alive." Wu Gang let out a deep breath. "You hadn't sent any news for over half a month. I thought you..."

"You thought I died in the Hundred Thousand Mountains?" Bai Lan raised a brow.

"Ahaha." Wu Gang sounded rather awkward.

"Don't worry, I'm alive, and the mission has already been completed. Fifty-seven Whirlwind Tortoises in total, plus two Iron Horned Rhinos. How should I hand them over to you?"

The string of numbers calmly spoken in that faint voice successfully plunged the other two present into silence.

Following silently behind Bai Lan, Le Qing nearly bit his own tongue.

Qi Refining level two, fifty-seven Whirlwind Tortoises?

Was that even a number a human could accomplish? This woman's cultivation was only at Qi Refining level two! Plenty of outer sect disciples at that level were still diligently farming in the sect!

Clearly, Wu Gang on the other side of the wooden plaque had also been stunned by that number.

After a long while, he finally gave a light cough. "Sorry, perhaps I misheard. You said five Whirlwind Tortoises... right?"

"Fifty-seven." Bai Lan added.

"..."

"How many???" Wu Gang's voice had gone numb.

Bai Lan fell silent.