"Miss," the old woman said urgently, her expression turning grave in an instant as she lowered her voice. "You're being followed."
Qin Tianxian's face changed. When had this happened?
"Let's go!" The old woman whisked Qin Tianxian away, and they vanished from the spot.
Chen Lin was slightly startled. He'd actually been discovered—but he'd also managed to sense the old woman's realm.
It seemed Qin Tianxian's identity really was no ordinary one. Otherwise, the fact that a Dharma Aspect Realm expert was guarding her so devotedly would have been proof enough.
"Let it all descend into chaos, let it all descend into chaos..." Chen Lin murmured, a glimmer of anticipation flashing in his eyes. "Only in this muddied water will my good disciple have a real chance to fish up the big ones."
The blazing sun scorched Tianyan City until the streets were scorching hot, and waves of heat rippled through the air.
By the window of a roadside inn, several figures stood out from the crowd.
They exuded thick Blood Fiend Qi, as though they'd just crawled out of a pool of blood. Each face was covered in hideous scars, crisscrossing in a horrifying display.
At that moment, they were slumped by the window in utter boredom. Their vacant gazes swept over the bustling streets below, full of people and carriages, but focused on nothing.
"Ugh, when will this mission ever end? It's like some old demoness who just won't leave us alone!" A man with a deep, knife-carved scar on his face couldn't help grumbling under his breath, his voice heavy with weariness.
He spat, and yellowish phlegm splattered across the windowsill.
A burly man beside him, with a crescent-shaped scar across his forehead, chimed in. "Don't complain! If we pull off this mission, the reward is a genuine Heavenly General Pill. That thing can greatly increase our chances of breaking through to the Dharma Aspect Realm!"
A flash of greed and anticipation lit his eyes.
Just then, their attention was caught by a bright splash of color at the corner of the street.
When the young disciples in Taoist robes, with sun emblems shining on their backs, came into view, they exchanged glances. Excitement nearly spilled from their eyes. There was their target!
But the scar-faced man in the lead quickly tamped down his excitement and said in a low voice, "That's them."
He swiftly glanced around before adding in a hushed tone, "But it's not time to act yet. We have to wait until the sect masters of the two sects clash, then fish in troubled waters."
However, just as they were keeping their eyes fixed on the target below, a figure suddenly appeared at the inn's entrance.
It was a man with a sword on his back, his bearing cold and austere. The moment he appeared, diners inside the inn turned to look at him and began whispering among themselves, and a small commotion quickly spread.
The men who had been watching the street couldn't help turning toward the sound.
But the instant the scar-faced man in the lead laid eyes on the swordsman, astonishment flashed across his face. "Jian Wansheng? I didn't expect the Sword Demon to show up too!"
He turned to a companion, whose face was likewise covered in scars, and quietly asked, "By the way, has the Sword Demon been put on a bounty?"
The scar-faced man's thinking was simple: if there was a bounty, he wouldn't mind claiming another reward.
But his companion shook his head, regret coloring his voice. "Though the Sword Demon has challenged many renowned Sword Cultivators and stirred up a storm, no one's willing to spend money to put a bounty on him."
The scar-faced man let out a soft sigh. "What a shame... Jian Wansheng may be a Divine Treasury Realm eighth-layer expert, but compared with our Iron Blood Squad, he's still a little short."
They belonged to the Blood Wolf Mercenary Group—an organization of bounty hunters that operated in darkness and bloodshed.
As long as someone could pay, they would take on any job, whether it was killing for treasure or escorting a secret treasure—and once they took a job, they never stopped until it was done.
Only the most elite members of the Blood Wolf Mercenary Group could earn a place in a Golden Squad.
And they—the Iron Blood Squad—were one of the most renowned among them!
The squad had five members:
Their captain, "Blood Edge," was at the ninth layer of the Divine Treasury Realm. His blood-red saber had severed the heads of countless powerful foes.
Their vice-captains, "Crippled Wolf" and "Ghost Claw," were both at the eighth layer of the Divine Treasury Realm. One excelled at assassination, while the other specialized in poison.
The other two members, "Iron Bone" and "Shadow Snake," were at the seventh layer of the Divine Treasury Realm. One had a body as tough as a ferocious beast, while the other moved like a ghost.
Such a lineup was enough to strike fear into anyone, wherever they went.
After all, the Blood Wolf Mercenary Group was one of the five top forces in the Great Yan Imperial Dynasty!
They had never failed a mission!
Just then, Jian Wansheng seemed to sense someone watching him. He looked up and met Blood Edge's gaze, the Iron Blood Squad's captain.
Blood Edge grinned, then looked away.
By then, Ling Tian had silently arrived outside Chen Lin's Scripture Repository.
Yet his usually mysterious and inscrutable master was fast asleep in a rocking chair, completely unaware that the Crown Prince himself had come to visit.
Ling Tian's mouth twitched almost imperceptibly. He shook his head with an amused smile, thinking, Master really does love to sleep.
However, just as he was about to call out softly, Chen Lin's keen Spiritual Sense, seemingly able to see through everything, had already detected the slightest disturbance.
His eyes snapped open. The drowsiness vanished in a flash, replaced by a warm smile just in time.
"Well, Crown Prince," Chen Lin said, getting to his feet with a familiar smile, as if the person who'd just woken up were merely an ordinary junior. "What brings you to see me today?"
Ling Tian's lips curved into a faint smile. He knew perfectly well that his master was doing this to avoid being watched in secret.
He didn't call him out. Instead, he followed Chen Lin's lead and said sincerely, "Elder Lin, I've noticed that you've remained at the Foundation Establishment Ninth Layer. I knew you were consolidating your foundation. As it happens, I have a Core Gathering Pill that can help stabilize your realm, so I'd like you to have it."
Before he had finished speaking, a lustrous pill was already resting in his palm. He gently held it out to Chen Lin.
But Chen Lin didn't take it right away. With a slight movement of his fingertips, Ling Tian slipped an inconspicuous Storage Ring beneath the pill, so discreetly that no one could have noticed.
Seeing this, Chen Lin's smile grew warmer, and his expression filled with reverent gratitude. "Oh, thank you for your generosity, Crown Prince! I thought Your Highness was far too busy with state affairs to remember an old man like me. You flatter this old fellow!"
As he spoke his thanks, he accepted both the pill and the ring and tucked them away.
Yet behind his smile, his Spiritual Sense quietly sent a message to Ling Tian. "Disciple, enough with the formalities. How much of the power at your disposal can you truly bring out? The Eastern Palace isn't your only support."
Chen Lin wanted to understand his disciple's true trump cards.
Ling Tian received the message and answered without hesitation, sending the full extent of his core strength through their connection. "Master, including my uncle and you, I have ten Dharma Aspect Realm experts under my command."
Ling Tian's uncle had once commanded the Divine Guard Army. His strength was unfathomable, and he was undoubtedly a pillar of support among them.
After a brief pause, he continued, "As for those at the Divine Treasury Realm, I have close to twenty whom I can mobilize at any time. And in the court, the ministers of the Ministry of War, the Ministry of Rites, and the Ministry of Revenue are all on my side. My foundation in court is fairly solid."
Before you continue