Zhang Hongxiu!

So, she was looking for a lost item.

Li Qingshan felt a slight sense of relief, but his face remained filled with trepidation. "Re... replying to Senior Sister, this old one spends his days merely cleaning. The newly arrived scraps are all piled in that corner over there, and I haven't had the chance to sort through them carefully yet... I haven't specifically noticed any jade pendant..."

"You didn't notice? Then what use is an old piece of trash like you?!"

The young girl's willow-leaf brows arched in anger, clearly extremely dissatisfied with this answer. "Then hurry up and look! What are you staring at with those old eyes of yours? Get over to that pile of garbage and dig! If you can't find it and delay this young lady's affairs, you'll have a bitter price to pay!"

Her tone was vicious, as if ordering Li Qingshan around was a matter of natural right.

Li Qingshan felt a surge of indignation, but he dared not show the slightest hint of it on his face, only nodding repeatedly. "Yes, yes, this old one will go look right now, I will go look right now..."

He turned and walked toward the pile of newly discarded items, pretending to rummage through them with great effort.

Li Qingshan had managed to cultivate to the fourth level of Qi Refining with great difficulty, and he only wished to cultivate in peace within the Hall of Discarded Treasures, without being disturbed by others.

Therefore, he only hoped to find this so-called jade pendant quickly so that the girl in red would leave.

But the girl in red clearly lacked patience. She stood to the side with her arms crossed, watching Li Qingshan's slow movements, complaining and urging him incessantly: "Faster! Did you not eat? Your old arms and legs are just in the way! What a useless waste!"

Li Qingshan suppressed his anger, rummaging perfunctorily while remaining secretly vigilant, praying for this plague-god to find her item and leave.

However, the girl seemed to grow angrier the more she thought about it. Suddenly, she stepped forward, a flash of light appeared in her hand, and she lashed out at Li Qingshan with a whip: "Dawdling! Just looking at you makes me angry!"

"Snap!"

A harsh, crisp sound rang out!

The tip of the whip struck Li Qingshan's hunched back with brutal force.

His coarse hempen clothes tore instantly, and a bloody, lacerated welt appeared immediately. A searing, sharp pain spread throughout his entire body, and blood quickly seeped out, staining the tattered fabric red.

Li Qingshan let out a muffled groan, his body stumbling as he nearly collapsed into the pile of debris before him.

He bit his teeth together so hard he nearly broke them, swallowing a cry of pain. Cold sweat instantly drenched his forehead, and his aged face twisted in agony, but deep within his eyes, a cold flame burned with madness.

Humiliation! Rage! Murderous intent!

A torrent of emotions surged in his heart. His fourth-level Qi Refining cultivation, with a depth of mana comparable to the sixth level, roared within his dantian, nearly bursting out of control to crush this arrogant, spoiled brat before him!

But he could not.

A century of experience acted like ice water, instantly extinguishing this dangerous impulse.

He knew clearly that if he made a move, a catastrophic disaster would await him.

The identity of this girl was by no means as simple as an ordinary inner sect disciple; the power behind her could crush him like an ant.

Endure! You must endure! If you cannot tolerate small things, you will ruin great plans! Only by surviving can there be a future!

Li Qingshan warned himself frantically in his heart, forcibly suppressing his churning blood and murderous intent.

He trembled, turning around with an even more hunched posture. His face showed only terror and servility, his voice laced with a sob: "Senior Sister, please calm your anger! Senior Sister, please calm your anger! This old one will search faster, I will search faster..."

He acted as if he had been scared out of his wits, scrambling to speed up his search, even intentionally making himself look more pathetic by letting his wounds rub against the dirty debris, appearing to be in unbearable pain.

Seeing Li Qingshan's miserable and servile appearance, the anger in Zhang Hongxiu's heart seemed to dissipate slightly, though the disgust and impatience on her face remained undiminished.

She snorted coldly and flicked her whip. "Old thing, you're an eyesore! This young lady doesn't have time to waste here with you!"

She paused, pointing her whip at Li Qingshan, and threatened him with a chilling tone: "Old thing, I'll give you three days! Turn this broken hall upside down, and you must find that Vermilion Sparrow Jade Pendant! Three days from now, I will return, and if I don't see the pendant..."

A flash of undisguised cruelty crossed her eyes. "I will dismantle these old bones of yours and throw them to the spirit beasts in the back mountain! Do you understand?!"

"Understood! Understood! This old one understands, I will definitely find it, I will definitely find it!"

Li Qingshan nodded and bowed repeatedly, his body shivering with fear.

"Hmph!"

Zhang Hongxiu cast one last look of disgust at the filthy environment and Li Qingshan, as if she couldn't bear to stay for even another second, before turning away, mounting a flying magic tool, and departing as a streak of red light.

Only when the red light had completely vanished into the horizon did Li Qingshan slowly straighten his back.

The sharp pain in his back remained vivid, but his eyes had turned ice-cold, devoid of any previous trepidation.

He walked silently back to his stone room, fetched clean water, and carefully washed his wounds.

Looking at the aged face and the hideous whip mark reflected in the water, Li Qingshan's fist slowly tightened, his knuckles turning white from the pressure.

"This whip today, this old man will remember."

He whispered to himself, his voice calm yet containing bone-deep chill.

"The path of immortality is long; we... have plenty of time."

Just as he finished tending to his wounds and was considering how to deal with this trouble, another figure appeared outside the Hall of Discarded Treasures.

The visitor was Zhang Ming.

He looked the same as always, but there was a trace of imperceptible urgency in his expression.

"Junior Brother Li? I heard Senior Sister Zhang was here just now?"

As soon as Zhang Ming entered, he asked with feigned familiarity, though his eyes were scanning the surroundings.

Li Qingshan's heart skipped a beat, and he immediately reverted to his terrified, servile, and cowardly appearance, saying with a bitter face: "Oh, it is Senior Brother Zhang... Yes, Senior Sister Zhang just left, she was in a terrible temper..."

He deliberately turned slightly to the side, revealing the whip marks on his back that, despite being simply treated, remained clearly visible.

Seeing the whip marks, a look of realization and "as I expected" flashed through Zhang Ming's eyes. He lowered his voice and said, "Junior Brother Li, you have gotten yourself into big trouble! That person is the direct granddaughter of our sect's Golden Core Elder, Ancestor Zhang Yuzhen—Senior Sister Zhang Hongxiu!"

"She has been spoiled since childhood, possesses an arrogant and domineering nature, and walks sideways through the Inner Sect! If she truly loses her temper, no one can protect you!"

Li Qingshan wore an expression of immense fear and despair at the perfect moment: "Ah? The granddaughter of a Golden Core Elder? This... what should I do? Senior Brother Zhang, you must save this humble old man!"

This was the exact effect Zhang Ming wanted. He leaned in closer, his voice dropping even lower: "Junior Brother, let me be frank with you. The Vermilion Sparrow Jade Pendant that Senior Sister Zhang is looking for is said to be quite a fine treasure and is very important to her. If you find it, you must absolutely not give it to her directly..."

"Ah? Not give it to her? Then..."

Li Qingshan feigned confusion.

"Give it to me first!" A glimmer of shrewdness and greed flashed in Zhang Ming's eyes as he patiently explained: "If I pass it to Senior Sister Zhang, she won't be angry because I have a good relationship with her. If you give it to her directly, she might just kill you to silence you, understand?

In the future, I will naturally look after you a bit more within the sect. Rest assured, there will be no shortage of benefits for you!"