Mountain God Yu Family

Just as Lin Shu intended to push the door open and step out.

The childish voice behind him rang out once more, interrupting his movement.

The porcelain doll on the bed seemed to have resigned herself to fate, her eyes opening with a mournful glint. "I'm not joking. Stop practicing blindly. For a cultivator, spiritual energy rushing through the meridians due to a fractured mind and soul really can kill you."

Although an Immortal Scion submitting to a cultivator sounded like a complete reversal of the natural order.

But since things had already reached this point and she had already lost all her dignity, she had to at least ensure her own survival.

The cub felt somewhat puzzled. "I actually don't quite understand. It's normal for the other cultivators in Blackwater City to be anxious, as they truly might die, but you hold my lifeblood essence—what do you have to be anxious about?"

"What do you mean?" Lin Shu turned around, his face showing confusion.

The hour was still early, and since the Immortal Scion was uncharacteristically willing to speak, he didn't mind taking the opportunity to learn about this world.

Hearing this, the cub said as if it were a matter of course, "These people are kept in captivity here in Blackwater City, most likely because some Immortal Scion has taken a fancy to them and wants to extract something from them. But you have already formed a bond with me, so you are considered half a member of the Yu Family. In the future, you can naturally enter the Immortal Sect."

"No matter who that Immortal Scion is, they will give the Yu Family some face and let us both leave."

"..."

Lin Shu fell into deep thought.

He could understand every word the other party said, but when combined, it was somewhat mind-boggling.

The term "kept in captivity," according to his own understanding, was usually used for livestock.

And what exactly was the Yu Family?

"Ah—"

Seeing the young man's expression, the cub on the bed suddenly felt a sense of hopelessness.

Her body, which had just struggled to sit up, flopped back down with a thud, her eyes staring straight at the ceiling.

Just the thought of her life being tied to such a bumpkin.

Her future suddenly felt inexplicably bleak... too bleak!

The cub let out a long sigh and said listlessly, "To put it simply, those who rely on immortal relics to embark on the path of cultivation don't count as proper Immortal Sect cultivators."

"They lack both techniques and background, and their lives are held in the hands of some Immortal Scion! That is why they resort to those crooked paths."

"But you are different. You can use my life—this little chick's life—as a pass to enter the Li Province Yu Family to cultivate. Our Yu Family has a Half-Life Immortal; we are Mountain Gods! We have status!"

The porcelain doll-like Immortal Scion looked like she had truly run out of options, shaking her head vigorously. "So you don't need to overthink it. As long as you keep your life, once we leave Blackwater City, there will be no shortage of immortal arts."

"When can we leave?" Lin Shu frowned slightly, not blinded by the grand promise she had painted.

Although he was indeed curious about the Immortal Sect, he could not entrust his life and death entirely to this Immortal Scion.

"That's hard to say. Given the current situation in Blackwater City, it's likely that the Immortal Scion hasn't yet smoothed over certain relations within the imperial court, so things are at a stalemate. A few years at the shortest, a few decades at the longest; there will be a result eventually."

Discovering that Lin Shu could finally listen to reason, the cub breathed a sigh of relief in her heart.

Just from that slap the bandit had delivered without hesitation earlier, she had almost thought his brain had been controlled by Sha Qi.

"I am an Immortal Scion with a long lifespan, and you are a Qi Refining cultivator; you can live at least two hundred years. Waiting a little longer is nothing."

The cub patted her bellyband and vowed, "Don't worry, as long as we don't keep running into those mortals with eyes but no vision, my, Yu Sheng's, life is still worth something. I guarantee I can get you out."

Having said that, she couldn't help but reveal a confident smile.

But soon, that fair, tender little face quickly stiffened.

Not far away, Lin Shu calmly pulled open his lapels, revealing a hideous scar and a hollow chest.

Yu Sheng's face went from stiff to trembling, until it turned into terror.

She stared fixedly at Lin Shu's chest, at the nearly uncontrollable Sha Qi and the phantom hidden within it.

"It's about to wake up..."

Yu Sheng couldn't understand what kind of method this was.

But she realized instantly that the only reason Lin Shu was still alive was because that phantom remained inside his body.

Now, the phantom was clearly showing signs of movement.

As for exactly how long it would take to wake up... she felt that using years as a unit was already excessive.

Thinking of this, a sob suddenly crept into Yu Sheng's voice. "Give my lifeblood essence back to me, quickly!"

In the courtyard.

Lin Shu pushed the door open and stepped out, tidying his clothes slightly.

Yun Niang seemed to have figured out his habits; she would boil hot water in advance every day so that by the time he woke up to wash, the temperature was just right.

But today, the water in the basin was clearly a bit cold.

"Didn't you sleep well? Please wait a moment, I will go and boil some more."

Yun Niang looked over with some confusion. Not only had her benefactor woken up later than usual today, but his complexion was also a bit abnormal.

"It's fine, just leave it."

Lin Shu cupped some cold water and scrubbed his face vigorously twice.

He shook the water from his hands and looked up, his expression already back to normal.

Fortunately, he had kept the Immortal Scion that day; otherwise, he would not have known that his condition had become so dire.

Headache or not, Lin Shu had no intention of giving up on himself.

At the very least, he had learned a great deal about cultivation today.

Whether it was the reason for Blackwater City being sealed off, the White Wolf in his chest, or how to join an immortal sect if he managed to survive—everything was clear now.

With so many things rushing in at once, his head felt a bit swollen.

But in Lin Shu's view, since he could cultivate, any problem could be attributed to a lack of strength for the time being.

Since that was the case, he just needed to find a way to improve.

However, judging by the miserable, tearful tone in Yu Sheng's voice at the end, it was likely that he did not have much time left.

"Still short on Virtue Coins."

Lin Shu narrowed his eyes, sighing inwardly.

No matter how powerful the immortal arts were, his cultivation realm had to keep up.

He needed at least enough ability to escape this city before he would have a chance to deal with the methods that even the Immortal Scion found shocking.

Just as his thoughts were drifting, the dilapidated Firewood Courtyard welcomed three figures.

In front were the usual Bai Feng and Yan Jin, and behind them was a lean man dressed in blue robes.

"I've brought you the wolf pup from Four Directions Street, and I've brought you some good news while I'm at it."

Bai Feng's expression was noticeably more enthusiastic, acting as if the two of them had known each other for a long time, while he also intentionally or unintentionally used his body to block Yan Jin from view.

"..." Yan Jin was clearly too lazy to argue with him and stood to the side on her own.

"I am Dong Cheng. You can just call me Little Dong. From now on, I'll be following Master Lin to earn a living," the lean man said, cupping his hands and taking over the conversation.

"The good news Master Bai mentioned is that to celebrate your promotion, Senior Yin Ling specifically arranged a trade to acquire the two alleys at the entrance of this courtyard, and they have been placed under your name."

At this point, the look in Dong Cheng's eyes as he gazed at Lin Shu had clearly changed.

For a Fierce Wolf, the most important thing was territory.

Although the one surnamed Yin was in the wrong, the fact that he had taken the initiative to offer two alleys as an apology was enough to show how wary he was of this newly promoted Fierce Wolf.

This was not something that the Mountain-Sitting Wolf from a few days ago could compare to.