Fragments of the two foreigners' lives bloomed before him, but Li Ye had little interest in their lives.
He was mainly curious about their mission this time.
Sure enough, the scene he wanted to see appeared.
Time unknown. In a secret chamber, the two foreigners stood respectfully before a man with his back to them.
He stood tall and straight, a Hair Crown on his head. His presence was powerful, and he seemed to be giving the two men instructions.
Could this be the Holy Son they mentioned?
The Holy Son of some sect in the Great Jin Kingdom.
Li Ye wondered.
But the Holy Son should also be within the Great Gan Empire right now—perhaps even not far from him.
After speaking to the two men for a while, the Mysterious Person slowly turned around, revealing the face of a middle-aged man.
His face was pale and clean-shaven, his bearing dignified, his presence imposing.
He then unfolded a map, and Li Ye recognized it as a map of the Divine Concealment Sect.
Was this sect from the Great Jin Kingdom plotting against the Divine Concealment Sect?
What exactly were they after?
Their appetite was far too big.
No, the map of the Divine Concealment Sect in the middle-aged man's hands was incomplete.
Li Ye spotted the discrepancy.
The scene ended there. Li Ye regretted not knowing how to read lips; he had no idea what the man had said.
But he suspected that the man was plotting to obtain something from the Divine Concealment Sect.
What exactly it was, he could not yet know.
The two foreigners were merely pawns sent ahead to test the waters.
"Did the middle-aged man deliberately take out an incomplete map, or was it because he didn't have a complete one?"
"If it was the latter, then was his real intention to send his two subordinates to scout out the Divine Concealment Sect's full layout, before making a move for something?"
Li Ye speculated.
Whoosh!
A wisp of Light Mist burst from the Corpse Incineration Furnace and slipped into Li Ye's body.
A series of sharp crackles rang out from him at once. It was as if his body had been hammered and tempered over countless years. His bones, meridians, and internal organs grew stronger at a visible pace.
His vitality surged, and his presence swelled fiercely.
Before the first wisp of Light Mist had been fully absorbed, a second one burst from the Corpse Incineration Furnace.
Li Ye's cultivation advanced even faster. The breathing method of the Nine Heavens Crimson Thunder Art began to circulate on its own, thunderous sounds rolling like the surging tides of a vast world as it absorbed the Light Mist's energy.
Before long, Crimson Electric Arcs burst from Li Ye's body like great dragons, coiling around him in dazzling, immortal brilliance.
He could clearly feel his strength growing. His body and Cultivation Method were both improving. His internal organs were like those of a newborn child, crystalline and nearly free of impurities.
"Huh? There aren't any impurities left."
"Does that mean my body has been tempered to its limit? I should be able to break through to the Qi Gathering Stage next time, right?"
Li Ye thought excitedly.
By then, he had absorbed the power of both wisps of Light Mist.
Li Ye sensed his current cultivation. He had about seven thousand catties of strength.
If he used Swift Wind Leg, it might double.
No wonder. These were the cultivation essences of two Great Experts at the Qi Gathering Stage who had only just died.
Li Ye marveled inwardly.
Whoosh!
Just as he thought the reward had ended, another wisp of Light Mist burst from the Corpse Incineration Furnace.
But this one didn't enter Li Ye's body. It floated in midair instead.
This was...
Li Ye was taken aback. The Light Mist wasn't cultivation, a Divine Ability, or a Cultivation Method.
It was... a magical artifact, wrapped in Light Mist.
More precisely, it was a treasure orb.
Li Ye took it in his hand, and a stream of information appeared in his mind:
Star Bead: It can cover a space of up to a hundred zhang at your command. Within its range, it blocks all sound.
Then came a spell for controlling the Star Bead.
Li Ye was stunned.
Could the Corpse Incineration Furnace give him magical artifacts too?
Was it because the two foreigners' magical artifacts had been thrown in and burned, turning into this Star Bead and gaining a new ability?
Li Ye guessed that was probably what had happened.
"My cultivation keeps improving, and the commotion from my training grows louder and louder."
"Now that I have the Star Bead, I can conceal the unusual phenomena during my training and avoid unnecessary trouble."
"This magical artifact is just what I need."
Li Ye praised it, then silently recited the Star Bead's spell.
The next moment, the Star Bead turned into a streak of light and slipped into Li Ye's body, vanishing from sight.
Whoosh!
Suddenly, another wisp of Light Mist shot from the Corpse Incineration Furnace.
Li Ye's eyes nearly bulged out of his head. He cried out that it was like celebrating the New Year.
He instinctively reached for the Light Mist, and a... mask appeared in his hand.
Shapeshifter Mask: Put it on, and you will have another face.
A stream of information surfaced in Li Ye's mind.
Another face?
What did that mean?
Could this mask disguise him?
Without thinking, Li Ye put the white mask in his hand on his face.
Buzz!
A magical scene unfolded. The moment the mask touched Li Ye's skin... it disappeared.
Then Li Ye's face twisted slightly, changing into someone else's.
Eighteen or nineteen years old, with proud, swordlike brows, eyes cold as stars, a high nose, and thin lips. He was graceful and refined, but looked nothing like Li Ye...
"What a treasure. It may not be a powerful weapon for attacking, but it can give me another identity."
"Just what I need."
"But why did the Corpse Incineration Furnace give me a mask? Was it because those two foreigners were spies skilled at disguise?"
Li Ye wondered.
By now, he had figured out quite a bit about the Corpse Incineration Furnace.
That womanizing young man had been skilled at charming women, so the Corpse Incineration Furnace had granted Li Ye the ability Words Manifest Reality.
The brother from Earth Gate had been good at robbing tombs and Cave Digging, so Li Ye had gained a Divine Ability like Hand of Earth.
Night Roaming God had peerless legwork, so Li Ye had obtained Swift Wind Leg...
The things the Corpse Incineration Furnace gave him were always closely connected to what the deceased had done in life. They were extracted from their Life Imprints and further amplified.
Li Ye hadn't needed much time to take care of everything.
He filled in the hole he had dug earlier, made sure no one would find it, then returned to his little courtyard to practice the Nine Heavens Crimson Thunder Art.
Not long after Li Ye left, countless little snakes appeared before White Snake's grave.
The night passed without incident.
Bare-chested, Li Ye practiced the Nine Heavens Crimson Thunder Art all night.
His power increased a little more.
He felt that burning two more foreigners would let him break through to the Qi Gathering Stage.
But where was he supposed to find foreigners?
"I haven't gone down the mountain in over half a month. I wonder how Zhou Bao's goods have been selling."
"I should go take a look."
Li Ye decided to head down the mountain.
After White Snake had unleashed her might yesterday, many parts of the once-bustling northern city had been reduced to ruins, with rubble stretching as far as the eye could see.
Even the lively Yihongyuan had fallen into decline. A group of brightly dressed young women tried to attract customers along the second-floor walkway, but no one paid them any attention.
Passersby hurried past, afraid to go anywhere near the place.
With a Great Demon like that appearing, Yihongyuan probably wouldn't be able to stay open.
Li Ye hurried toward Zhou Bao's home, drawing people's stares and whispers along the way.
His appearance really wasn't anything to write home about. He wore a tattered, grimy black robe, and his carelessly tied hair made him look unkempt. His face was blotched with soot, which nearly obscured his handsome features.
Li Ye didn't care. He had deliberately made himself look this way so no one would recognize him when he went down the mountain. He had dressed the same way on his previous two trips out.
Before long, Li Ye reached South City.
Shouts and cries of murder rang out ahead:
"Stop!"
"Don't run!"
"Kill him..."
A group of burly men chased a blood-soaked man.
Li Ye's face darkened at once.
He knew that man.
He was one of the men who worked for Zhou Bao.
What had happened? Why were they surrounding him?
A crowd of onlookers lined both sides of the street.
"Boss, help me!"
The man recognized Li Ye too.
In all of Licheng City, there wasn't anyone else dressed like him.
Even the refugees had cleaner faces than the boss.
Li Ye hesitated. He didn't want to reveal his cultivation in front of such a large crowd.
But the man worked for Zhou Bao. He couldn't just leave him to die.
Suddenly, Li Ye's eyes lit up. He called out to the crowd, "Everyone, under the broad daylight, these thugs dare to attack someone in the street! It's outrageous. We can't just stand by and do nothing!"
The thugs froze. Their leader sneered. "What a naive little beggar. You want to stick your nose into this?"
"I'd like to see who'll help you today. And if no one does, I'm sorry, but you'll learn exactly what happens to anyone who crosses the Iron Saber Society."
As he spoke, he pointed his cleaver at Li Ye's neck and mimed a beheading, his expression vicious.
The onlookers sneered too.
"Where'd this little beggar come from? He's already down on his luck, and he still wants to play hero."
"Wifey, don't you think this guy's hilarious?"
A burly man said this to his pretty, delicate-looking wife.
Smack!
His wife looked at him and raised her slender hand, giving him a hard slap across the face. "Hilarious, my ass! A crowd of people stands here watching thugs harm an innocent man in broad daylight. Where's your conscience?"
"Chen Dayong, I was blind to marry a heartless man like you. I... I'm going to fight those thugs!"
Before the man could even react, his usually delicate wife had charged into the crowd like a little hen ready for battle.
"Who'd risk getting into trouble over something like this? That little beggar's too green, thinking he can drag uninvolved people into it. Ridiculous."
Another burly man spoke up.
Then he noticed his own wife picking up a brick and heading toward the crowd.
Words Manifest Reality: Women believe whatever you say.
All of this sounded like it took a while, but it happened in the blink of an eye.
Li Ye had used Words Manifest Reality. The moment his words fell, the women at the scene were filled with a blazing sense of justice and stepped forward.
The people from the Iron Saber Society were dumbstruck.
The Iron Saber Society leader who had mocked and threatened Li Ye stood there, staring with his mouth agape.
Smack!
Then a tough, burly woman smashed a brick into his face, drawing a shrill cry of pain from him.
The men who had feared for their wives also rushed over.
Most of them were trying to hold their wives back.
"Wifey, don't be rash. The Iron Saber Society is powerful; we can't afford to provoke them... You dared hit my wife? I'll fight you to the death!"
A burly man started out trying to talk his wife down, then ended up fighting the Iron Saber Society himself.
"You bastard! Where the hell are you putting your hands? You dare take liberties with my wife? I'll cripple you!"
"Who made my wife cry?"
"The Iron Saber Society is beating women! Brothers, let's fight these bastards!"
The scene erupted into chaos.
"Bitch, I'll chop you to pieces."
The scumbag who'd been smacked in the face with a brick flew into a rage, swinging the steel knife in his hand at the older woman.
Pfft!
The next instant, the cleaver shattered into fragments against a fist...
It was Li Ye, who had blended into the crowd, seizing the chance to strike.
Before you continue