Lingering Yin Souls

The sunlight bathed the earth, dispelling the chill of the night.

At the entrance to an alley in the Stone House District, Yin Xiaojiu had lost her usual smile. She stared blankly at the receding figure, a sense of panic rising in her heart. Her small hand instinctively covered her chest, but she couldn't feel her heartbeat. It was because a stack of banknotes was in the way.

She didn't understand.

Why had Brother Yezi insisted on giving her that stack of banknotes before leaving?

She didn't understand.

Why had Brother Yezi looked at her with such reluctance before leaving?

She remembered when she was young, her parents had sold her to the textile shop. She had stood at the alley entrance just like this, watching their figures disappear...

North of the city, at the Ten Mile Pavilion.

Ye Tong arrived alone and sat down cross-legged in the pavilion, waiting for the Medicine Slave. He held a scroll in his hands, lost in thought. The scroll was divided into four pages: the first two were white, and the last two were black. It was the Book of Life and Death, which he had just studied and released from his sea of consciousness.

Ye Tong had tried repeatedly. With a thought, he could easily summon it or return it to his sea of consciousness. The four pages, black and white, were blank. However, his hundred years of life on Earth had allowed him to thoroughly understand the Book of Life and Death's functions.

The white pages represented life.

The black pages represented death.

He was not Yama, yet he could use the Book of Life and Death to decide life and death. Upon arriving in this world, he realized the Book of Life and Death was his trump card, his ultimate ace in the hole for killing or saving his life in the future.

"What a pity!"

The crystal-clear Silver Crystals appeared in Ye Tong's mind. A hint of regret flickered across his delicate face. The Vital Energy flowing through his meridians was cultivated by the original owner of his body. However, Ye Tong was now altering the flow of Vital Energy, practicing according to the cultivation techniques of the Ma Yi Divine Physiognomy lineage.

From his memories, Ye Tong knew one thing: cultivators could practice various techniques. The more profound the technique, the more powerful the cultivation effect. The technique he had practiced from the Ma Yi Divine Physiognomy lineage was clearly much more profound than his previous one.

"According to this world's cultivation level standards, I am currently only at the Qi Refining Third Level, belonging to the lowest tier of cultivators. If I encounter a stronger enemy, I will be in a situation where 'the knife is in the hand of others, and I am the fish.' The toxins in my body affect my cultivation speed. Even though this world is rich in spiritual energy, progressing step-by-step, it would likely take an eternity to temporarily possess the means for self-preservation."

"Fortunately, heaven never closes all doors. This world has Silver Crystals, Gold Crystals, elixirs, rare fruits, and blood-based medicinal meals... However, all of this is based on wealth. The nearly three thousand taels of Silver I had on me were all given to Yin Xiaojiu before I left. The Medicine Slave is responsible for rebuilding the Precious Medicine Workshop, plus purchasing those Jade pieces and ordinary medicinal herbs. It likely cost a significant amount. If I have a thousand taels of Silver left now, that would be good."

"So..."

"Gathering medicinal herbs and hunting low-level ferocious beasts in the Golden Palace Mountain Range is a way to quickly earn silver."

"On this trip, I will try my best to earn enough wealth to buy Silver Crystals."

"..."

Lost in thought, Ye Tong didn't notice five figures approaching menacingly on the winding path not far away. Especially the person in front, who looked at Ye Tong with eyes full of anger and murderous intent.

Tong Kaishan, the pampered young tyrant of Cold Mountain City, had always been arrogant, overbearing, and unruly. In the past, he was the one bullying others; when had he ever been toyed with?

However, Tong Kaishan was furious this time. He had never dreamed that the Medicine Boy from the Precious Medicine Workshop, that thing that was worse than a pig or a dog while still alive, would dare to deceive him. According to their agreement, he should have received his poison last night, and perhaps he could have extorted more Silver. But he waited until midnight and still saw no sign of Ye Tong.

Tong Kaishan was filled with hatred!

He ordered dozens of his family's servants to search all night. It wasn't until half an hour ago that he learned from a patrolling guard that Ye Tong had left Cold Mountain City alone, heading towards the Ten Mile Pavilion.

Ye Tong wanted to run!

He wanted to run away and renege on his debt!

Tong Kaishan, believing he had been tricked, immediately rushed over with four family servants. Therefore, the first time he saw Ye Tong, his smile was laced with ferocity, and countless ways to make Ye Tong wish he were dead flashed through his mind.

"You damn mutt, I finally found you."

Tong Kaishan, filled with murderous intent, stopped in front of the pavilion. The sound of his sword being unsheathed was like a soul-snatching melody, its tip pointed directly at Ye Tong. He wasn't in a hurry to kill; letting the enemy die too quickly lacked the screams and wails, depriving him of the pleasure of killing.

Ye Tong frowned slightly. He hadn't expected this "fly" to chase him all the way here. He wasn't afraid of Tong Kaishan himself, but he was wary of the Tong family in Cold Mountain City. However, if Tong Kaishan, relying on his family, harbored ill intentions towards him, there was no need to hold back.

"Are you very angry?"

Ye Tong relaxed his brow and asked Tong Kaishan calmly.

Tong Kaishan's anger intensified. He hadn't expected Ye Tong to show no fear upon seeing him. Did his reputation for ruthlessness not scare him?

"I am very angry. You damn mutt, daring to deceive me, you're simply asking for death."

Ye Tong asked indifferently, "Do you want to know why?"

Tong Kaishan shouted, "Although I don't care, I still want to hear why you deceived me."

Ye Tong raised a finger and said, "First: On the arena, you promised me, yet you still forced me to fight Butcher Zhang. If I hadn't had some ability, my fate would have been dire."

He extended his second finger: "Second: You followed me to the Warm Medicine斋, ruined my good deeds, and even harbored murderous intent towards me. Furthermore, your greed caused you to arbitrarily raise prices."

He extended his third finger: "Third: I just don't like you."

After speaking.

Ye Tong closed his fingers and asked, "Are you satisfied with these three answers?"

Hearing Ye Tong's words, Tong Kaishan immediately exploded in rage and sneered, "You brat have guts, but do you know that no one who dislikes me ends up well? You will wish you were dead for your answers."

Ye Tong said faintly, "I advise you not to act rashly. My old servant is not as defenseless as I am. He will arrive here soon. If you dare to harm a single hair on my head, he will likely tear you into eight pieces."

Tong Kaishan's expression changed. He quickly turned and scanned his surroundings, finding no sign of the old servant from the Precious Medicine Workshop. Only then did he relax somewhat and curse loudly, "You mutt, do you think this young master is scared easily? Today, I will definitely kill you. Attack, first chop off his limbs."

The four Tong family servants heard this and immediately swung their long sabers, charging at Ye Tong menacingly. As slaves, they were not qualified to cultivate, but through years of hard labor, their strength far surpassed that of ordinary people. Moreover, they often followed Tong Kaishan in his misdeeds, so they were also experienced in fighting.

Therefore, they were confident in chopping off the limbs of a seemingly frail youth.

Too slow!

Too many flaws!

Ye Tong secretly shook his head, holding the Book of Life and Death in his left hand, while his right fist powerfully struck out.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

Unfancy punches landed on the heads of the four house slaves in an instant. He could feel the killing intent from the five people before him, so he didn't hold back his strength, directly blasting them away. They crashed about ten meters away, falling unconscious.

Tong Kaishan narrowed his eyes, realizing he had made a foolish decision. Ye Tong's ability to defeat Butcher Zhang meant his strength shouldn't be underestimated. While the four house slaves could bully ordinary people, they posed little threat to a cultivator like Ye Tong. Having them attack was simply asking for death.

"You're quite something!"

Tong Kaishan's killing intent intensified as he attempted to lunge at Ye Tong.

Ye Tong raised his hand and said loudly, "Wait."

Tong Kaishan paused and then burst into laughter, "What? Scared? Don't worry! I'm only at Qi Refining Sixth Level, I won't kill you too quickly."

Qi Refining Sixth Level?

Ye Tong's heart sank. If the opponent was only one or two levels ahead of him, he would be confident in heavily injuring or even killing them. However, a gap of three cultivation levels made him cautious.

Perhaps!

He needed to use the Book of Life and Death.

Ye Tong took a deep breath, slowly turned to a black page, and looked up at Tong Kaishan, saying in a deep voice, "Do we have to fight to the death?"

Tong Kaishan grinned sinisterly, "You must die, and all the Blue Silver and poisons on you must be mine."

Greed is the original sin!

Ye Tong sighed inwardly. Guiding Qi with his finger, he quickly wrote "Tong Kaishan" on the black page. At that moment, he felt a terrifying suction force emanating from the Book of Life and Death, and the Vital Energy within his body was rapidly absorbed into the book through his arm and fingers.

In the unseen realm, a mysterious aura appeared on Tong Kaishan, who was charging forward.

"What?"

The sinister grin on Tong Kaishan's face froze. He stopped abruptly when he was only three meters from Ye Tong. As the long sword in his hand dropped, his muscles writhed, his facial features contorted, and he withered at a speed visible to the naked eye, his blood and energy dissipating. At this moment, he saw a long saber dropped by a house slave, which Ye Tong had picked up and was now bringing down towards his head.

"You dare!"

Tong Kaishan roared in horror. Unable to dodge in time, he gritted his teeth, raised his left arm, and retreated violently.

Blood splattered, and a severed arm flew through the air.

Tong Kaishan's left arm was completely severed.

Ye Tong felt a tinge of regret. Even after using the Book of Life and Death, he still hadn't managed to kill Tong Kaishan directly. This made him realize that the difference in cultivation levels had a significant impact on the Book of Life and Death's effectiveness. Also, because the Vital Energy within him was so scarce, the Book of Life and Death had almost completely drained him in that instant.

"Knowing I'm skilled at poisoning, you still dare to waste my time. Today, you're the one who's going to die." Facing the heavily injured Tong Kaishan, Ye Tong still didn't have absolute confidence in killing him, especially if the latter decided to flee at full speed.

Therefore, he needed to bluff and put on a show, using poison to mask the Book of Life and Death's bizarre attack.

As expected!

Tong Kaishan's true nature—bullying the weak and fearing the strong, being as timid as a mouse—was fully revealed at this moment. After suffering such a severe injury, even though his cultivation level was three levels higher than Ye Tong's, he had lost all desire to fight and was fleeing desperately into the distance.