Returning the Deed

On a small path, the fat man asked the thin man, "Brother, what should we do about this job?"

"What job? Our lives are on the line, what job are you talking about!" the thin man said with disappointment, as if he wished the fat man could be made of sterner stuff.

"What do you mean?" The fat man scratched his head, looking confused.

"I know that kid. A few months ago, he was just a mortal who hadn't even trained in a single martial art," the thin man said. "But now, he can kill cultivators in the Third Layer. Do you think he has someone backing him?"

"Even if he doesn't, do you know how terrifying that talent is, or the external forces required to support it?"

The fat man also realized the seriousness of the situation. "What should we do?"

"Run!" the thin man said impatiently. "That kid has a grudge against the Xiang Family. If we stay here, we'll definitely get dragged down. Do you want to die?"

"No," the fat man shook his head.

"Then that's settled," the thin man said. "Let's go to another county. We can't stay in this one."

He also sensed that the Imperial Qi was slow to gather, as if more external factors were influencing it.

"But our savings with the Xiang Family?" the fat man said, reluctant to leave them behind.

"Savings?!" the thin man directly smacked the fat man's head. "That kid even said the Xiang Family is involved with the Demon Race. If they fail, who knows if we'll be fed to the demons? Do you want wealth or your life!"

"My life!" the fat man clutched his head.

"Right, if the green hills remain, there'll always be wood to burn. It's just a few hundred taels of silver, look at how stingy you are." The thin man pulled the fat man away.

In the small courtyard, Lin Le looked at the Human Dao lotus seed in his inner vision and couldn't help but stroke his chin. Although the scale of purification was different each time, every person he killed and then purified yielded a total of ten points of Earthly Dao merit.

'Is there a limit?' Lin Le thought.

First killing, then creating ghosts, then purifying them. The Heavenly Dao would definitely not leave such an obvious loophole for people to exploit. Otherwise, those demonic cultivators who walked the ghost path would likely be showered with merit.

'So, can I only gain full merit by purifying the sins of others?' Lin Le recalled purifying the Lu Family members. Although it was thirteen points, he guessed it also included the contribution from the mass grave.

As the Human Dao lotus seed volatilized, a thought taking a year, Lin Le meticulously practiced the Golden Light Divine Mantra.

When he came back to his senses, he saw Qingli gracefully bend over and whisper into his ear:

"Lin Le, it's time to hand over today's Yang Qi."

"Got it," Lin Le said, placing his hand on Qingli's chin and stripping the true Yang Qi from the Huangting Secret Realm to transfer it into Qingli's body.

The Yang Qi before could only be considered internal energy, possessing Yang Qi properties. The Yang Qi he could now extract was the true Yang Qi.

The input of Yang Qi was like raging fire meeting cold ice, rapidly dissolving the Yin Qi accumulated within Qingli's body.

Through the tempering of Yin and Yang, Qingli felt its bloodline power make a slight improvement.

The cultivation paths of the Demon Race and the Human Race were slightly different. Although the direction was the same, for the Demon Race in the Qi Refining Realm, the foundation was laid not only with True Qi but also with their bloodline power.

Qingli was already at the Twelve-Storied stage, and its Dao Foundation had been completed long ago. However, it was unwilling to enter the Foundation Establishment Realm just like that.

Although it possessed a Spirit Grade bloodline, it was merely a low-grade Profound Water Yin Python.

To strengthen or evolve its bloodline, it either needed the Essence Blood of higher-grade demons or Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures with targeted effects.

However, Qingli knew that in the Qi Refining Realm, there was an opportunity for low-grade demons to ascend to the heavens in one step: Star Picking.

Standing on the Twelfth Layer, leaping into the air, breaking through the limits of the secret realm, and seizing that incredible fortune.

Many outstanding individuals and Great Demons began their rise from this very step.

Originally, Qingli's confidence in Star Picking was only thirty percent, but with his words...

Qingli looked at the young man before him, its confidence now at eighty percent.

"Why are you looking at me?" Lin Le noticed the change in Qingli's gaze and asked curiously.

"You're good-looking," Qingli said casually. "At least among the humans I've seen, you're among the top."

"Thank you for the compliment," Lin Le coughed dryly, feeling a little embarrassed.

After transferring the Yang Qi, Lin Le released his hand. "Alright, that's the balance."

"Here's your Yin Qi," Qingli said, spitting out a pill. Compared to the usual gray one, this one was a pure black.

Lin Le swallowed it in one gulp.

"Don't you store it in a jade bottle?" Qingli couldn't help but ask in confusion.

Ever since Lin Le broke through, it had seen Lin Le swallow the Yin Qi directly, not storing it. Logically, he should be storing it to use when building the Seventh Layer.

"No," Lin Le shook his head. "I have my own way of storing it."

"Alright then," Qingli didn't ask further. "I'm going to rest now."

"Okay," Lin Le nodded. After watching Qingli sink back into the well, he sat down again.

Using his Inner Vision Divine Ability, he focused on the second lotus leaf. Since the Sun Moon Spirit Nectar had transformed into the Yin-Yang Sword, no more Sun Moon Spirit Nectar had been produced here. All the essence of the sun and moon absorbed was used to supply the growth of the Yin-Yang Sword.

However, even without the Sun Moon Spirit Nectar, after Lin Le entered the Qi Refining Realm, a new type of spirit nectar appeared here, called Primordial Spirit Nectar, which was formed by absorbing the Qi of Heaven and Earth.

With a single thought from Lin Le, the Primordial Spirit Nectar was divided into seven equal portions. Each portion was further divided into Yin, Yang, and Five Elements Qi, all of which were Top-grade.

He remixed them into Primordial Spirit Nectar and stopped, planning to save it for building layers later.

From the Second Layer to the Eighth Layer, all require refining Qi and True Qi into one, to forge the most solid foundation, one must use the best Qi.

Where the best Qi comes from is something the cultivator must refine, and the situations for refining in the Huangting and Spiritual Platform are different.

The Huangting path emphasizes the mutual generation and restraint of the Five Elements; the best Qi to refine is determined by one's Spiritual Root attribute.

For example, a Wood Spiritual Root is most suitable for refining Wood Qi. A low-grade Wood Spiritual Root can easily refine mid-grade Wood Qi, and with Minor Accomplishment in Qi Refining Technique, one can refine high-grade or even top-grade Wood Qi. However, a low-grade Fire Spiritual Root trying to refine low-grade Wood Qi faces immense difficulty, and even Great Accomplishment might not yield mid-grade Wood Qi.

The Spiritual Platform path, lacking the amplification of a Spiritual Root, follows a more straightforward progression in Qi Refining Technique: Entry refines low-grade, Minor Accomplishment refines mid-grade, Great Accomplishment refines high-grade, and Perfection refines top-grade. As for Grand Perfection, it's rumored that some have achieved it, seemingly able to refine top-grade Qi with 100% certainty.

However, Lin Le doesn't need to concern himself with learning this, as the Lotus divine ability has already refined it for him.

As for special Five Elements Qi, Lin Le doesn't seek it out. The Dao Induction Qi Refining Chapter states that using top-grade Yin-Yang Five Elements Qi to build the layers is already optimal, capable of stimulating a person's potential to the fullest.

Using special Five Elements Qi, such as converting a Nine-Segment Wood Spiritual Root into a Nine-Segment Lightning Spiritual Root, specializes potential in one aspect while damaging others. Although both are Nine-Segment Spiritual Roots, the acquired Lightning Spiritual Root's cultivation efficiency is inferior to an Innate Lightning Spiritual Root or even the original Wood Spiritual Root; it merely offers an advantage in combat.

Another example is replacing the balanced Yin-Yang Five Elements Qi with Yin-Drying Five Elements Qi for building layers. While beneficial for cultivating Yin-attributed techniques, it shortens one's lifespan compared to ordinary cultivators.

Shifting his focus to the lotus, Lin Le consumed two One-Patterned Human Dao Lotus Seeds, experiencing one thought as six years, dedicating himself to cultivating the Dao Induction technique.

Snapping back to reality, Lin Le exhaled. The Dao Induction Qi Refining Chapter had reached Great Accomplishment.

He felt that reaching Perfection would require another ten years of diligent effort.

The next day, greeting the rising sun, Lin Le went out. The golden light within his body grew stronger, and the Universe Ring had developed a fourth minor restriction.

He took out a stack of thick papers, which were deeds.

Holding a deed, Lin Le found a small courtyard according to the address written on it and called out, "Li Dashan."

A woman, supporting her frail body, came out. "Dashan went to chop wood. Young Master, is there something you need?"

Seeing Lin Le's appearance, which was like that of an immortal banished from paradise, the woman couldn't help but address him with respect.

"Are you Madam Zhang?" Lin Le glanced at the deed, which read:

"Deed of Sale: Seller, Li Dashan, whose wife Madam Zhang is ill and in need of funds, willingly sells one mu of ancestral fertile land for five taels of silver."

"Yes," Madam Zhang nodded.

"Here you go." Lin Le flicked his finger, and the paper, like a sword, pierced the soil in front of Madam Zhang. "Tear it up."

Madam Zhang was stunned. She bent down, pulled out the paper, and looked closely. It was indeed the deed her husband had used to sell their land.

Tear it up? Madam Zhang's heart skipped a beat. If it were gone, it would mean no proof, especially since the buyer, Gentry Cai, was already dead. No one would know that his family had sold land.

Wait, Madam Zhang suddenly realized a terrifying fact: wasn't it this Young Master before her who had annihilated the Cai family?!

She looked up, only to see that Lin Le had already departed.

"Thank you, Young Master, for your immense kindness! Thank you, Young Master, for your immense kindness!" Madam Zhang bowed her head towards the direction Lin Le had gone.

Scenes like this continued to unfold.

Of course, there were also scenes that were not like this.