He Met a Benefactor

That night, the great cultivator of Green Deer Mountain personally witnessed Chen Xuan's killing of Yellow Millet Dream.

And developed murderous intent.

But in the end, Qing Yazi did nothing and left dejectedly.

Chen Xuan believed that the rule forbidding great cultivators from the Chu Kingdom from setting foot in the Southern Wilderness could not possibly restrain a great cultivator consumed by rage.

Even the great cultivators of Hanging Temple dared to sneak across, and a lawless demonic giant like Qing Yazi would only be even less willing to follow the rules.

Chen Xuan's heart chilled, and he called out, "Senior, please enlighten me."

There had to be an existence on Qing Yazi's level, or even stronger, who had made him wary enough to retreat.

The key was that Chen Xuan knew nothing at all about any of this.

There was only one explanation.

He, Yellow Millet Dream, and Six Desires Heaven had surely all been schemed against by some kind of power!

"I've had one opportunity after another along the way, slaughtered my way across every direction, and seemed to have a halo around me. Everything has gone far too smoothly." Chen Xuan muttered to himself.

"With a Root Bone of eight thousand jin, I knew at a glance that you would achieve extraordinary things in the future. In the entire Red Crow City region, a genius like you wouldn't appear even once in a hundred years... Yet you became a wandering cultivator of the mountains and marshes. Isn't that absurd?"

The old white tortoise's brows fluttered in the wind as he let out a cold laugh.

People rushed to Yellow Millet Dream and Six Desires Heaven, such Heaven's Chosen, the instant they appeared in the world.

Though Chen Xuan was inferior to them, he was still a Qi Refiner with boundless prospects.

Yet no one had shown the slightest interest in him. This clearly made no sense...

The old white tortoise continued, "There are no accidents in this world. Whenever an accident occurs, something is certainly making mischief behind the scenes and secretly tampering with things."

Chen Xuan's breathing quickened. Thunderous waves surged through his heart, and his thoughts raced as he immediately recalled the accidents he had encountered along the way.

The Small Underworld?

No, that wasn't an accident. It was the Mystic Cat Goddess's duty to handle the deaths of Qi Refiners, and what happened in Willow Town was connected to Yellow Millet Dream. She would certainly arrive at once.

Further back, there was his meeting with the three members of the Chu family...

A flash of lightning streaked across Chen Xuan's mind. He had seized upon something.

He instinctively took the jade hairpin of unknown material from his robes and muttered, "The problem lies in the Underground Palace..."

Three years earlier, he had slept for one night in the abandoned Peach Town, and nothing had happened.

But when he returned this time, an Underground Palace buried deep beneath the earth had suddenly appeared.

By an incredible coincidence, Chen Xuan had obtained several things from it, and his battle prowess had soared as a result, giving him the capital to deal with Yellow Millet Dream...

"The timing was far too perfect. A day earlier or a day later wouldn't have worked."

Chen Xuan inexplicably thought of the hundreds or thousands of Mountain Demons in the Underground Palace, who had actually been driven back by him, a minor cultivator who had only just begun refining qi. Mountain Demons were violent by nature, born to drink human blood. Qi Refiners did not fear them, and they certainly would not fear Qi Refiners.

Then he thought of the overly "loyal" Bronze Horse and muttered, "Were they putting on a joint act...?"

At the time, while searching the golden-clad noble woman's body for treasures inside the Bronze Coffin, he had faintly sensed someone coldly watching him from afar.

The old white tortoise raised a tortoise fist toward Chen Xuan and praised him, "What a keen instinct. You probably guessed part of the truth... The material of the jade hairpin in your hand is called Jin Jade Paste."

The Western Mountains Scripture said: "This produces black jade; among jade, Jin and Yu are finest... The ghosts and gods of Heaven and Earth eat and feast upon it; gentlemen wear it to ward off misfortune..."

"What a divine treasure!"

Chen Xuan was startled when he heard this. He had seen records of it in ancient texts.

It was a five-colored black jade born in the Mountains and Seas Era, once treated as food by ancient perfected immortals and sages.

Ever since the end of the Mountains and Seas Era, this treasure had vanished. The jade paste that remained in the world was one piece fewer with every piece used.

The old white tortoise pointed at the jade hairpin and said with a smile:

"As for the style of this jade hairpin, I've seen a monster friend in the mountains use one before... You must have won her favor."

Chen Xuan asked, "Senior, please enlighten me. What does that friend of yours intend to do?"

He could not understand what she wanted by secretly helping him.

Had she taken a fancy to his outstanding talent and wanted to accept him as a disciple? But she was a monster. It was impossible for her to favor a human.

"I shouldn't say too much, but what she seeks is no secret in the Southern Wilderness."

The old white tortoise paused, then continued, "When she was young, she entered Peach Blossom Garden. There were some things she failed to obtain, so she probably wants to entrust you with retrieving them."

Peach Blossom Garden was unstable and could not accommodate the descent of a great cultivator. Only Qi Refiners at the Feather Transformation level could enter.

Chen Xuan was exceptionally skilled in spell combat and had few opponents among those of the same level. He was precisely the ideal candidate for this task.

"Yellow Millet Dream posed a great threat, and too many people were watching him. He might ruin things. Given my monster friend's temperament, she must have used some means to forcibly lure him to the Southern Wilderness, giving you a chance to eliminate him from the board ahead of time."

Wang Chan had not come to the Southern Wilderness willingly. No wonder he had acted so arrogantly and wildly back then, giving people an intensely unreasonable feeling!

The old white tortoise's face was full of smiles. Rising onto his tiptoes, he patted Chen Xuan's shoulder with his seaweed-like palm:

"Little friend, she will surely come looking for you within a few days... Don't worry, she won't let you suffer."

Chen Xuan wore a helpless expression when he heard this and sighed, "I never wanted to encounter such 'good fortune.'"

But what could he do?

The White Ganoderma Jade Herb had already been eaten, and he had also taken the Jade Hairpin as a weapon...

The old white tortoise narrowed his eyes and said:

"Little friend, you must understand: useless people don't even qualify to be used."

Chen Xuan was speechless for a moment.

He recalled some information about Peach Blossom Garden from Wang Chan's memories of his previous life.

"Chen Xuan, he met a benefactor..."

The people of Green Deer Mountain had once expressed this very sentiment.

So it turned out it referred to this.

The mountain wind howled, and several more days flashed by.

The outskirts of the Southern Wilderness grew livelier by the day.

The main forces of Green Deer Mountain had already reached the Southern Wilderness. Led by Shen Lingfeng, some of the younger disciples shouted all day about hunting down a Qi Refiner named "Chen Xuan."

They made quite a commotion, but strangely, Shen Lingfeng did not set foot in the Southern Wilderness Mountains even once.

Someone from the sect asked in confusion, "Senior Brother Shen, what exactly are you planning? I heard there was someone named 'Wang Chan,' also from Willow Town, who caused an uproar at Hanging Temple a few days ago. There are many suspicious points."

Shen Lingfeng answered coldly, "I have my arrangements. Just handle your own affairs. Don't meddle in anything else!"

The disciple wanted to speak but stopped himself, thinking, Aren't our affairs simply hunting down Chen Xuan? It seems Senior Brother Shen has been scared witless by Chen Xuan...

People from several Qi Refining aristocratic clans in Red Crow City also arrived in Small River Village one after another.

While cultivating near Small Stone Lake, Chen Xuan saw several young Qi Refiners in splendid robes with extraordinary bearing. He observed them from afar but did not approach.

"There isn't a single treasure fish left in Small Stone Lake."

Those aristocratic disciples ran to Small Stone Lake to seek opportunities, but found nothing. After sighing several times, they left one after another. Before long, no one came here anymore.

The old white tortoise had said, "Treasure fish without ability don't qualify to enter my belly."

Yet that very night, he turned around and ran to Small Stone Lake, scooping up the entire nest of treasure fish and raising them elsewhere.

"It's better without anyone disturbing me."

Chen Xuan cultivated the Yellow Millet True Scripture alone beside Small Stone Lake.

Over the past few days, he had completely digested the medicinal effects of the Buddha Heart Treasure Tree and the treasure fish. His strength had reached more than sixteen thousand jin.

The Second Ascension path had ended, and his physique had once again reached its limit.

One night.

The old white tortoise found Chen Xuan and immediately began complaining: "Ai! I truly shouldn't have said so much that day. Now the matter has landed on my head."

Chen Xuan blinked, not understanding what he meant.

The old white tortoise stared at Chen Xuan with a strange look and smacked his lips. "Good boy, I underestimated you. Be honest—did you offend my monster friend? She actually refuses to meet you in person."

"???"

Chen Xuan froze and opened his mouth. Somewhat guiltily, he said, "Not really... I respected her very much."

In the Underground Palace, his actions had indeed been somewhat frivolous at the time, but he dared swear that he had treated her entirely as a cold corpse, no differently from grass, wood, or stone. He had harbored no improper thoughts.

"Hmph!"

The old white tortoise snorted and did not press him. Then he got straight to the point: "She asked me to tell you two things."

Chen Xuan sat upright and said, "Please, go ahead."

The old white tortoise tossed him a letter and said, "The first thing: after entering Peach Blossom Garden, give this letter to the Heaven's Chosen hidden within Peach Blossom Garden. He will give you some things then... If he refuses, kill him and take them yourself."

"Heaven's Chosen?"

Chen Xuan's heart jolted. There was actually a Heaven's Chosen in Peach Blossom Garden as well.

This would be his third encounter with a Heaven's Chosen. He wondered what kind of strange ability this one possessed.

"Mhm, a wretched man driven into a dead end."

The old white tortoise casually replied, then his expression turned solemn. "The second thing: she asked me to remind you... What happened at the Hanging Temple camp was not an accident."

"Not an accident?"

Chen Xuan's expression darkened, and a surge of anger rose in his heart.

He had wondered about it. Those three old monks had attacked him without hesitation based on the slightest suspicion, acting utterly without rhyme or reason... Later, when the other Ascetic Monks launched a blocking attack, some of their killing intent had been unmistakable. His instincts had told him something was wrong, but he could no longer stop and could only fight with all his might.

At the time, he had thought he had underestimated everyone under Heaven and had reflected on it for a long while. He had never expected there truly to be hidden circumstances!

The old white tortoise watched Chen Xuan's ugly expression and explained:

"It is the same old principle. Whenever you encounter an accident, if you sense even the slightest thing that doesn't make sense, don't doubt it. Someone is certainly scheming behind the scenes."

"The great cultivators of Hanging Temple are watching the Southern Wilderness at all times."

"Every Ascetic Monk who refines White Qi is their eyes and ears."

"When you asked about the ancient seal script, they must have stirred the White Qi of their disciples and seen it while observing the situation in the Southern Wilderness. That was why they couldn't resist probing you."

"But their minds aren't flexible. They handle things crudely, leaving far too many flaws."

"..."

The old white tortoise paused, then smiled. "You don't need to concern yourself with what happened afterward. You are the person she chose. She is furious now and will demand justice for you."

Chen Xuan had no desire for anyone to demand justice on his behalf. His heart held only silence after learning all this, along with a trace of... helplessness.

He was completely powerless to control these matters now.

Chen Xuan asked in a low voice, "Are you great cultivators truly omnipotent and omniscient?"

The old white tortoise fell silent for a long while before slowly speaking:

"If I hadn't opened my mouth, you would never have had the chance to learn about any of this in your entire life."

"You have talent, and once you encounter these things, they cannot be avoided... Not only you—no one can resist them."

"People like Yellow Millet Dream and Six Desires Heaven, such Heaven's Chosen, have it even harder than you. Since ancient times, only a few have ever met a good end. They can only become a flash of fire across the sky."