Strange Discovery

In Yuanshan City, at Yuanshan Tower.

An old man in a gray daoist robe walked into the tower.

"Senior Feng Xingzi," Tantai Qingrun greeted him, bowing respectfully. "We'll have to trouble you with the Illusion Array."

Feng Xingzi was a highly respected Fourth-grade Array Master within the tower. It wasn't just the Tower Master of Yuanshan Tower, but even the Tower Master of Zhenjiang Tower, who would have to show him courtesy.

Feng Xingzi waved his hand dismissively. "No need for formalities. I just happened to be passing through Yuanshan City. Those in charge heard that your Yuanshan Tower encountered an unsolvable high-grade Illusion Array and sent me a message to offer assistance."

"Quickly, take me to the location of the Illusion Array. I want to see what kind of Illusion Array these Demon Cultivators from the Underworld can set up!" Feng Xingzi didn't waste time with pleasantries with Tantai Qingrun, his eyes alight with fighting spirit as he urged her on.

Tantai Qingrun naturally didn't feel annoyed by Feng Xingzi's haste.

Array Masters like Feng Xingzi, who were passionate about arrays, were quite common. If they weren't driven by a thirst for discovery in the field of arrays, they wouldn't dedicate themselves to the dry and difficult path of array studies.

Tantai Qingrun nodded in agreement, preparing to lead Feng Xingzi to the Blood Pool outside Yuanshan City where the Illusion Array was located.

Just then, a ripple of green light flashed from the jade pendant at Tantai Qingrun's waist.

It was a spiritual message from Jiang Rong.

Tantai Qingrun submerged her Spiritual Sense into it, reading the contents of the message.

Afterward, Tantai Qingrun's expression turned a few degrees colder.

"Host Tantai, do you have something urgent to attend to?" Feng Xingzi, though engrossed in arrays, was not an inflexible person. Seeing Tantai Qingrun's reaction, he spoke, "If there's something important, you can just have a subordinate take me. Your matters are more pressing."

Tantai Qingrun's expression returned to calm. "It's nothing urgent. How could I dare to neglect Senior Feng Xingzi, who is willing to help my Yuanshan Tower?"

"Lu Qingshan left the city at noon today with the Lin Family's caravan. Destination: Zhenjiang City."

This was the spiritual message from Jiang Rong.

Zhenjiang City, you think you can escape my grasp?

Tantai Qingrun chuckled inwardly, a hint of smugness flashing in her eyes.

Outside Yuanshan City.

Three hours had passed since Lu Qingshan left. The Lin Family's caravan had departed without any delay, setting off the moment he left.

The beasts pulling the cargo carts were not horses, but Black Rhinos with a faint trace of Demonic Beast bloodline within them.

These Black Rhinos were entirely black, with incredibly thick limbs, appearing immensely powerful.

A single horn grew from the forehead of each Black Rhino, gleaming with a dark, lustrous sheen under the sunlight.

Despite their imposing appearance, these Black Rhinos were actually quite docile, showing no signs of ferocity.

Due to their faint Demonic Beast bloodline, these Black Rhinos were not only immensely strong but also possessed astonishing stamina and speed.

In just three hours, the caravan had covered a considerable distance.

The road had transformed from the wide, ten-meter-plus avenue they had started on just outside the city to a bumpy, uneven mountain path.

Lu Qingshan sat at the front of one of the caravan's cargo carts, his eyes slightly narrowed, appearing quite relaxed and at ease.

After accepting the task, Lu Qingshan had prudently gathered intelligence on his employer.

The Lin Family was a small cultivation family in Yuanshan City, controlling an Azure Stone mine.

Azure Stone was a First-grade ore. It wasn't particularly precious, but it was widely used in the refinement of Spirit Artifacts, making it a relatively popular ore.

Thus, with this Azure Stone mine, the Lin Family had developed quite well.

The head of the Lin Family was a Magic Cultivator at the early Foundation Establishment stage, but his lifespan was nearing its end.

If the Lin Family couldn't produce another Foundation Establishment cultivator before their patriarch's demise, their decline would be inevitable.

Without a Foundation Establishment cultivator, they couldn't hold onto the Azure Stone mine.

The Ma Family, located not far from the Lin Family, had long coveted the Lin Family's Azure Stone mine.

As for why the Lin Family needed to escort such a large quantity of goods to Zhenjiang City, a thousand miles away, it was related to the Lin Family's origins.

The Lin Family of Yuanshan City was a branch that separated from the main Lin Family of Zhenjiang City many years ago.

Although they had separated from the main family, they had maintained some subtle connections over the years.

For instance, every three years, the Lin Family of Yuanshan City had to pay tribute in the form of a large batch of Azure Stone to the main family in Zhenjiang City, in exchange for some support from the main family.

These more than ten carts of goods were all Azure Stones to be presented as tribute to the Lin Family of Zhenjiang City.

Due to the large quantity, but the low value of each individual Azure Stone, these stones had to be transported using this ordinary cargo transport method to Zhenjiang City, rather than being transported via storage Spirit Artifacts.

The reasoning was simple: the storage Spirit Artifacts required to hold such a large amount of Azure Stone would be worth far more than the Azure Stones themselves.

In previous years, the Lin Family could escort these Azure Stones to Zhenjiang City using their own manpower.

However, with the patriarch's lifespan nearing its end, the Lin Family was eager to cultivate a second Foundation Establishment cultivator.

Not long ago, the Lin Family patriarch, along with the elders of the family, went out to hunt a Second-grade Demonic Beast to obtain some Foundation Establishment Pills.

Although they successfully killed the Second-grade Demonic Beast, the patriarch and several elders who held significant authority within the family were seriously injured and were currently recuperating in their residences.

Since the tribute matter was of great importance, and with no other choice, the patriarch's daughter, Lin Yao, who had never appeared in public, had to personally lead the escort of the Azure Stones to Zhenjiang City.

Due to insufficient manpower and the urgency of the situation, a hiring mission was posted to the Monster Hunter Alliance.

The rise and fall of families in small clans are very common and insignificant matters in the world of cultivators.

Lu Qingshan didn't care.

As long as they could take him to Zhenjiang City.

The caravan had been traveling for a day.

The journey had been so peaceful that Lu Qingshan felt a bit bored.

Judging by the situation, those thirty First-grade Spirit Stones would be easily earned.

Perhaps because of this, the other accompanying monster hunters in the caravan seemed to be in good spirits, chatting and laughing.

Lu Qingshan glanced back.

Behind them was a carriage, and inside was the daughter of the mysterious Lin family patriarch, Lin Yao.

Lin Yao hadn't shown her face all day; Lin He had been handling all matters.

Lu Qingshan occasionally saw Lin He whispering reports to Lin Yao through the carriage curtain.

Knock knock—

Someone knocked on the cargo box of the cart Lu Qingshan was in.

Lu Qingshan looked towards the sound and saw a middle-aged monster hunter named Mu Shan.

"What is it?" Lu Qingshan asked, frowning.

With such a forceful knock, it was clear Mu Shan was approaching with a hint of provocation.

But why?

"Kid, you've been silent all the way, looking so stuffy!" Mu Shan's voice was rough, and his tone was quite presumptuous.

As fellow Qi Refining cultivators, calling Lu Qingshan "kid" instead of "fellow cultivator" carried a dismissive tone.

Lu Qingshan cupped his hands towards Mu Shan: "I am naturally reserved. If I have disturbed you in any way, I hope you will forgive me."

While the words sounded polite, they essentially meant, "I'm not talking, what business is it of yours?"

Mu Shan was taken aback by Lu Qingshan's response and didn't know how to reply. Seeing the Lin family cultivators around snickering, he felt humiliated: "You little brat, how dare you associate with us? You're probably just a beginner Qi Refining cultivator who just learned a Cultivation Method, unaware of the immensity of heaven and earth."

Lu Qingshan smiled without speaking, calmly facing Mu Shan.

Seeing Lu Qingshan's unyielding demeanor and knowing he couldn't actually make a move, Mu Shan could only retreat dejectedly.

Lu Qingshan watched Mu Shan's retreating back, a hint of suspicion flashing in his eyes.

If it were an arrogant young master from a prominent family, it would be understandable. But Mu Shan, with his appearance and status as a monster hunter, was clearly a Rogue Cultivator.

Rogue Cultivators were always synonymous with careful planning and caution.

When had a Rogue Cultivator like Mu Shan provoked a stranger for some inexplicable reason?

How could a Rogue Cultivator with Mu Shan's personality have survived this long?

Something was very wrong.

With this thought, Lu Qingshan instinctively cast the Heavenly Eye Technique on Mu Shan.

Mu Shan (Human)

Occupation: Body Cultivator

Cultivation Method: [Evergreen Art] Lv7 (345/700) — [Spirit Power +70, Life Recovery +1]

Rank: Qi Refining

Personal Attributes: Strength 1, Agility 1, Mana 1, Spirit 1, Charisma 1, Stamina 4

Health: 48/48

Spirit Power: 70/70

Skills: Segment Intent lv3 (Single Target Attack Skill), Eight Extremes Collapse lv1 (Single Target Attack Skill, with control effect), ???, .

Looking at the data information before him, Lu Qingshan's gaze sharpened.

He seemed to have discovered something strange.

A thought surfaced in his mind.

Could it be?

Lu Qingshan cast the Heavenly Eye Technique on the other monster hunters in the caravan one by one, to verify his suspicions.

Afterward, Lu Qingshan couldn't help but let out a wry smile.

As expected, these thirty First-grade Spirit Stones wouldn't be easy to earn.