Excessive Request

In the hut, Feng Ling took off her night clothes and changed into a Menial Disciple's uniform.

Looking at the bloodstained note in her hand, Feng Ling's eyes reddened, and her heart was filled with grief.

She murmured softly, "Senior Sister, I won't let you sacrifice yourself in vain."

"One day, sooner or later, I'll avenge you."

Two trails of clear tears slowly slid down her cheeks.

Only after a while did her emotions finally settle.

Feng Ling recalled what had happened earlier. If not for the sudden pebble that blocked the flying needle for her, she might not have escaped either.

"Someone helped me tonight."

"But who could it have been? Could the sect have arranged for someone else to infiltrate the demonic sect besides Senior Sister and me?"

But Feng Ling quickly shook her head, dismissing the speculation.

The sect had already paid a considerable price to help her and Senior Sister infiltrate the demonic sect. It was unlikely they would send anyone else. Even if they had, they would have notified her in secret.

The next day, early in the morning.

Lin Fan had just pushed open the door when he saw quite a few Menial Disciples gathered not far away.

"Brother Lin, what happened over there?"

Zhou Wanqing was somewhat curious.

She had slept especially deeply the previous night. If Lin Fan had not called her that morning, she might not have woken up at all.

"Let's go take a look."

Lin Fan brought Zhou Wanqing over.

The next second, Zhou Wanqing's pretty face turned deathly pale, and her stomach churned so violently that she could not help retching.

A headless female corpse hung beneath the roof beam, its stench of decay drawing countless flies that crawled all over its body.

Lin Fan's heart jolted. If he had not seen wrongly, this corpse belonged to the delicate girl called Qiao'er.

The surrounding Menial Disciples were all whispering among themselves. Some guessed that the corpse had been left behind after she was attacked and killed by Bloodthirsty Demonic Insects the previous night.

Most people knew nothing about what had happened the previous night, so they could only make wild guesses.

Lin Fan knew the truth. Moreover, for the corpse to be hung here so brazenly, it was probably the work of a Formal Disciple of the demonic sect. The purpose was likely to kill a chicken to scare the monkeys.

"Infiltrating the demonic sect as spies... Their fates really are more tragic than the last."

Lin Fan sighed softly and turned to leave with Zhou Wanqing.

Just after he left, Feng Ling also came over. Looking at the miserable headless female corpse, she appeared neither happy nor sad on the surface, but inwardly she was consumed by grief.

Not far away, a Formal Disciple dressed in a Dark Robe was sizing up the many Menial Disciples gathered around the headless corpse.

He was watching everyone's reactions. Anyone who revealed even the slightest grief would be seized without hesitation.

The lives of Menial Disciples were cheap as grass. Apart from Lin Fan, who knew the truth, and Feng Ling, who had been involved, the rest were practically unmoved by the delicate girl's gruesome death.

In the Hidden Scripture Pavilion, Lin Fan silently copied books.

You copied "Wandering Chronicles" and were rewarded with 5 years of lifespan.

You copied "Bronze Mountain Record" and were rewarded with 8 years of lifespan.

You copied "Mystic Treasures Chapter" and were rewarded with 10 years of lifespan.

After another day of copying books, Lin Fan gained another thirty-two years of lifespan. Added to the lifespan he had obtained from copying the previous day, the figure in his lifespan column had already reached 443.

Would you like to consume forty years of lifespan to advance Intermediate Demonic Arts to mastery?

At that moment, a line of text that only Lin Fan could see appeared before his eyes.

Lin Fan immediately said, "I agree to advance it."

Soon, even more insights into Intermediate Demonic Arts surged into Lin Fan's mind.

The next second, another scene appeared. It was still the youth who resembled Lin Fan, practicing leg techniques. Compared with the last time, his moves were even smoother and more fluid.

His movements were so fast that they left afterimages. In the end, when he kicked out, the astonishing sound of force tearing through the air rang out.

"Use leg techniques to refine leg force, making each kick roar through the air like thunder!"

Lin Fan froze. Leg techniques could actually be practiced like this!

His heart stirred with eagerness, but he did not immediately begin practicing. Instead, he greeted Zhou Wanqing before finally leaving the Hidden Scripture Pavilion.

After reaching an uninhabited corner, Lin Fan followed the youth's movements and began practicing the leg techniques again.

His movements were extremely skilled. Combined with the insights in his mind, he soon noticed that with every kick, the Internal Force in his dantian gathered into both legs of its own accord, actually creating an astonishing sound as it tore through the air.

With Internal Force augmenting them, the power of his leg techniques surged, forming a unique leg force.

Lin Fan focused his mind. With every move, he increasingly displayed the bearing of a leg-technique grandmaster. Before he knew it, the surrounding Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy began converging toward him without end.

His legs grew light and nimble. He felt the Internal Force in his dantian, which had originally amounted to eight or nine hemp ropes, grow again until it was equivalent to a dozen or so.

Once he finished practicing, Lin Fan immediately summoned the panel to inspect his latest changes.

Name: Lin Fan

Lifespan: 373

Talent: Pre-emptive Dao Fruit

Realm: Spirit Gathering Realm, Seventh Grade

Techniques: Intermediate Demonic Arts (Mastery), Blood Gathering Art (Mastery)

"Spirit Gathering Realm, Seventh Grade. At this rate, it won't be long before I reach the Eighth Grade or even the Ninth Grade."

Lin Fan's eyes lit up.

Now that he had the Blood Gathering Art to conceal his cultivation, he did not need to worry about advancing too quickly for the time being.

Time flew by. In the blink of an eye, three months passed.

Lin Fan had completely adapted to this place. Every day, he obtained lifespan rewards by copying books, then used his Pre-emptive Dao Fruit to consume lifespan and raise the proficiency of the corresponding techniques.

As his strength grew stronger, Lin Fan became increasingly low-key.

By contrast, Wang Biao and the other veteran Menial Disciples grew more and more brazen. To raise their cultivation quickly, whenever newcomers arrived, they acted like madmen. They either lured the newcomers into Dual Cultivation with false promises or forced them to agree through threats.

This behavior earned the contempt of many and repulsed many newcomers, but before absolute strength, the new Menial Disciples had no ability to resist.

In just two short months, putting aside the other veteran Menial Disciples, Wang Biao alone had ruined five or six young men and women.

What was more, not only had this failed to draw any intervention from above, it had instead received even more tacit approval.

"Human lives are cheap as grass."

Lin Fan could only let out a soft sigh.

He was a Menial Disciple himself. Although he had gained some strength, he was still completely unable to change anything.

He did not even know how long he himself could survive here. How could he possibly still meddle in other people's affairs?

Whenever Zhou Wanqing watched one young man or woman after another get drained dry and disappear, she secretly rejoiced that she had chosen Lin Fan back then.

Apart from the mad actions of Wang Biao and the other veteran Menial Disciples catching Lin Fan's attention, Feng Ling's transformation also left him secretly amazed.

Ever since the delicate girl died, Feng Ling seemed to have become a different person. She, too, began living with a member of the opposite sex.

She chose a weak young man called Fang Jie, and the two had remained peaceful together.

Whenever someone died, someone else would arrive.

Batch after batch of newcomers arrived every few days, then died in batches, like an endless cycle from which no one could ever escape.

Night fell...

Feng Ling and Fang Jie sat facing each other. They had been living together for some time, yet nothing had happened between them. They treated each other with mutual respect, like honored guests.

Feng Ling's eyes were bright, her skin snowy-white and delicate, her waist slender and supple, and her legs straight and long.

Gazing at Feng Ling's exquisite body, Fang Jie swallowed and said, "Sister Feng, as long as you're willing to give yourself to me, I'll listen to you no matter what you ask me to do in the future."

Feng Ling cast him a glance and asked, "The condition I set when I agreed to live with you was that we would not interfere with each other."

"You want to break the agreement?"

"I don't either, but, Sister Feng, you're just too... I can't hold myself back anymore." Fang Jie's eyes burned with heat. He begged, "My aptitude is pretty good. As long as you agree, I'll let you drain me dry."

"I know you want to advance to become a Formal Disciple after three months."

"There is no need." Feng Ling shook her head and decisively refused.

"In that case, don't blame me."

Fang Jie let out a sinister laugh and suddenly pounced at Feng Ling.

"You really aren't a good person either."

Feng Ling sighed softly and struck out mercilessly with her delicate hand.

The next day, Fang Jie vanished without a trace. Feng Ling told others that he had sleepwalked the previous night, opened the door of his own accord, and been devoured by Bloodthirsty Demonic Insects.

"Big brother, good big brother, drain a little more from me..."

"Use a little more force. I want it—I want more."

"Please, hurry, faster..."

With only three months left before the assessment, Zhou Wanqing was extremely nervous.

Over the past few months, she had discovered that not only had her body failed to deteriorate, it had actually become healthier than before, nearly driving her mad.

If she grew healthier and healthier, did that not mean Lin Fan was draining less from her?

If Lin Fan could not pass the test and become a Formal Disciple, she would have no chance to rise above her current station either.

Lin Fan was a good person, but she did not want to keep wasting his time like this.

At this moment, Zhou Wanqing had completely cast off her moral restraints and frantically demanded that Lin Fan drain her dry.

Faced with such an "excessive" request, Lin Fan found it difficult to refuse. He could only straighten his back and display his masculine prowess.

In the blink of an eye, another three months passed, and the day of the assessment finally arrived.