"Simple."
"Isn't there evil energy inside this little beggar? He just escaped from that evil cultivator's hands, so he himself must be an evil cultivator."
"Rather than go to all that trouble and risk our lives killing a whole nest of evil cultivators, we might as well capture this little beggar and take him back. We'll receive the same reward, and it'll come without any effort!"
The Woman surnamed Zhou spoke with complete calm.
As soon as she offered this idea, the Girl surnamed Hu immediately slapped the table and applauded.
"Senior sister really has thought this through."
"This little beggar can indeed be considered an evil cultivator. Capturing him would be a great achievement, and we wouldn't have to take any risks at all. This is practically merit falling into our laps!"
"Senior sister truly lives up to the title of senior sister. I'm impressed!"
The two girls were extremely excited.
Ye Cheng, however, frowned slightly, feeling that this was rather inhumane.
"But senior sisters, he doesn't look like an evil cultivator. He only has the cultivation of the Qi Refining Realm First Layer, and he's covered in wounds. It's obvious that an evil cultivator captured him as a Medicinal Seed."
"It would be one thing if we didn't help him, but to capture him as well—isn't that a little inappropriate?"
"Hmph, junior brother, this is your first time coming down the mountain. You're far too naive!" the Woman surnamed Zhou said coldly. "Don't forget what Master told you before you descended the mountain: never trust outsiders lightly, and even less so let pity for someone's plight stir compassion in your heart."
"How do you know whether this little beggar was sent by an evil cultivator to deliberately lure us into a trap? To be safe, capturing him and taking him back is the simplest option!"
The Girl surnamed Hu reminded him, "Junior Brother Ye, don't forget why we came down the mountain this time. If unexpected complications arise, how will we find the Earth Spirit Pearl that can help us break through to the Foundation Establishment Realm?"
The two girls took turns bombarding him, and in the end, they brought Ye Cheng around.
"All right, then we'll do as you two senior sisters say."
"But can we not capture him outright? We can simply trick him into returning to the sect with us."
"All right, all right. It's only because you, Junior Brother Ye, are kindhearted. We'll do as you say." The two girls waved their hands impatiently, unwilling to bother with Qin Yang, who reeked from head to toe.
Thus, Ye Cheng walked up to Qin Yang.
It was his first time lying, after all, so he was inevitably somewhat nervous as he said, "I—I just discussed it with my two senior sisters. We can help you deal with that evil cultivator, but you have to come with us first."
"All right, thank you, senior brother!"
Qin Yang immediately let out a long breath of relief inwardly.
It was good to run into disciples of the righteous path. He could get their help.
He believed that with these three assisting him, even if Xuan Chengzi appeared before him, there was no way he could do anything to him!
Afterward, he followed the three of them into an inn. Of course, he couldn't possibly have a room to stay in, so he could only make do for the night in the stable.
Early the next morning, Qin Yang had already begun waiting.
Yet even when the sun had risen high in the sky, Ye Cheng still hadn't come to find him, let alone set out to deal with Xuan Chengzi.
"What's going on? Could it be they haven't gotten up yet?"
Puzzled, Qin Yang decided to ask again.
However, he had barely taken two steps when he happened to run into Ye Cheng and the other two. Upon hearing their conversation, he immediately abandoned the thought of stepping out to meet them directly and temporarily hid inside a crude shack.
"Junior brother, the Earth Spirit Pearl is only a dozen or so li from this town. If we hurry over now, we'll make it in time."
"The Earth Spirit Pearl is a natural spiritual treasure containing extremely pure Spiritual Power. It can help someone rapidly raise their cultivation, and it's also a crucial key to breaking through from the Qi Refining Realm to the Foundation Establishment Realm."
"This item is something one can encounter but not seek. We obtained this information only with great difficulty, so you should understand how important the Earth Spirit Pearl is!"
"Thank you for reminding me, senior sisters. I understand. But what should we do about that little beggar? What if he runs away?"
"Runs? Where could he run to? Even if he did, so what? He isn't important anyway."
"Forget about him. What matters most is what we have to do right now!"
"..."
The three left the inn, and Qin Yang watched everything from beginning to end.
Turning over their conversation from moments ago in his mind, Qin Yang's brows drew tightly together. From the looks of it, they had never intended to help him at all?
If that was the case, why had they agreed?
"They mentioned an Earth Spirit Pearl. It sounds like quite a good spiritual treasure. This is a great opportunity."
"If I start over in the next life, I can come here to look for it and raise my cultivation!"
With that thought, Qin Yang temporarily stopped caring whether they truly intended to help him and followed far behind them.
However, the three cultivators' stamina was truly astonishing.
Qin Yang nearly ran his legs off just to barely keep up for a stretch. By the time he finally reached the place, he was already exhausted to the point of losing consciousness!
It was a marshland.
Beneath the rotting dead branches and scattered leaves lay patches of swampland. The slightest carelessness would send someone sinking into it.
Qin Yang followed the three people's footprints, which kept him safe.
"We're here. This is the place."
"Be careful. Places that give birth to natural spiritual treasures are usually guarded by demonic beasts!"
The moment the Woman surnamed Zhou finished speaking, a huge crocodile burst out of the swamp. It was extremely fierce, opening its bloody maw and lunging down for a bite!
"It's an Azure Blood Crocodile!"
"Our luck is incredible. This Azure Blood Crocodile hasn't reached adulthood, and its strength is low too—only the Qi Refining Realm First Layer. If we had come a month later, this Azure Blood Crocodile wouldn't have been at this level. It would have been at least the Qi Refining Realm Fifth Layer. By then, even the three of us working together wouldn't have been its match!"
"Then let's attack directly."
As soon as she finished speaking, Qin Yang watched the three of them strike.
Each of them wore a spirit sword at their side. Once drawn, its sword light was chilling and astonishing.
In just a few swift moves, they easily severed the Azure Blood Crocodile's head.
At once, emerald demonic blood flowed out, staining the entire patch of swamp a different color!
"A demonic beast of the Qi Refining Realm First Layer. With my strength, I should barely be able to deal with it... right?"
Qin Yang pondered inwardly.
This was a treasure trove, and it might even be the first bucket of gold that would allow him to rise in the future!
With only a demonic beast of the Qi Refining Realm First Layer guarding this place, he truly had a chance of dealing with it.
He immediately engraved the matter in his mind.
Once he started over in his next life, he absolutely had to come here and take the Earth Spirit Pearl first thing!
By this time, the three of them had already successfully found the Earth Spirit Pearl beneath the waters where the Azure Blood Crocodile had been hiding.
The Earth Spirit Pearl was an overall earthy brown. It looked plain and unremarkable, yet it radiated a faint Spiritual Power that was extremely astonishing!
"Wonderful! We have the Earth Spirit Pearl. The mission is accomplished."
"There's finally a path toward reaching the Foundation Establishment Realm in the future!"
The two girls were overjoyed, and Ye Cheng revealed a smile as well.
"Moreover, we didn't just obtain this Earth Spirit Pearl. We also have that little beggar who delivered himself to our door waiting for us."
"We gained such a tremendous opportunity without lifting a finger on this trip down the mountain, and we'll be bringing back an evil cultivator to complete the mission. Master will definitely give us plenty of rewards!"
Before you continue