The ground trembled faintly. Looking at the serpent's head, which he had punched into the earth, Ye Lin leaped to the open ground ahead.
The enormous snake's body was twitching, and the trees around it were crashing down one after another.
"Life from One Sword—Slash!"
Ye Lin roared. After a running start, he yanked the Long Sword from the ground, leaped high, and plunged it straight through the giant serpent's eye.
The Sword Qi destroyed the giant serpent's mind.
Its massive body crashed to the ground, motionless.
"This giant serpent could easily slaughter the three tiger Demons I killed before."
Staring at the serpent's body, Ye Lin murmured. Then, with one slash after another, he cut the entire body cleanly in two.
"Found it."
Ye Lin's eyes lit up. He had found the Spatial Ring in the giant serpent's belly. If not for the faint spiritual energy coming from it, searching for a ring inside such an enormous snake would have been quite a chore.
"A Mysterious Grade Low Tier Spatial Ring. What a haul!"
Delighted, Ye Lin looked at the ring in his hand. Then, following the method he'd read in a novel, he ran his left index finger across the Long Sword. A drop of blood fell onto the ring.
At once, Ye Lin felt a faint connection forming between himself and the ring in his hand.
"What a huge space."
Ye Lin extended his spiritual sense into the Spatial Ring and exclaimed in admiration. The space inside was roughly ten meters long, wide, and high—a vast area that could hold countless items.
He put the Long Sword away. When he had finished, Ye Lin turned around and realized the villagers had gathered behind him at some point.
"Thank you, Immortal Master! Thank you, Immortal Master!"
The villagers of Wang Family Village all dropped to their knees before Ye Lin.
Ever since a giant serpent appeared in their village three days ago, children had been disappearing every day, leaving them in constant fear.
Faced with a Demon Beast, they could do nothing but hurry to report it to the Azure Cloud Sect.
That was the helpless lot of mortals sometimes. Without strength, all they could do was wait to die.
"There's no need to thank me. I have to go out for a while. Please keep an eye on the snake's head for me. As for its body, you may eat it; it'll strengthen your bodies."
The old man at the front immediately thumped his chest and promised, "Rest assured, Immortal Master. We'll take turns watching over the snake's head."
"Good. In that case, I'll be on my way."
Ye Lin nodded and headed toward Tianfeng City.
Demon Beast meat was also greatly beneficial to cultivators, but the meat of a Qi Refining Level 5 Demon Beast was useless to him.
He hurried along the road. With his Qi Refining Level 6 cultivation, as long as he didn't venture deep into the mountains and stayed cautious on the outskirts, nothing would happen to him.
Before long, Ye Lin had arrived in Tianfeng City.
"Immortal Master, have you come to Tianfeng City on a mission this time?"
Since Ye Lin had visited before, the soldiers guarding the city gates had already etched his appearance into their minds.
After all, cultivators were like immortals to mortals. No one dared offend them.
"Mm. I'm here to buy a few things."
"Very well. Please come in, Immortal Master," the guard said respectfully.
"By the way, do you know where the Wind and Flower Pavilion is?"
Ye Lin suddenly asked. The guard was caught off guard by the question.
The guard gave Ye Lin a knowing look, then replied, "Go straight ahead once you enter the city, and you'll see it. The Wind and Flower Pavilion is right in the center. You'll know it when you get there, Immortal Master."
Ye Lin nodded and walked into the city.
"Tsk, tsk. Even cultivators can't escape worldly temptations. He came all this way just to spend a night having fun at the Wind and Flower Pavilion."
Watching Ye Lin's back, the guard remarked with a meaningful look.
Following the guard's directions, Ye Lin headed straight ahead.
Tianfeng City had a population of roughly a hundred thousand. It was a small city and also an important source of support for the Azure Cloud Sect.
"Found it. But where's the beggar?"
Ye Lin stood before a flower house. Several brightly dressed women were soliciting customers at the entrance, and the sign above the doorway read Wind and Flower Pavilion.
But when Ye Lin looked around, he didn't see the beggar shown on the panel.
"That's strange. Could this be Huang Xiao's fated opportunity? Impossible. If the panel can show it, then it can be taken."
After thinking it over, Ye Lin went into the restaurant across the street and sat down, watching the Wind and Flower Pavilion.
"Brother, stop staring. The Wind and Flower Pavilion isn't a place people like us can afford."
A young man sitting across from Ye Lin held a wine jug and wore a face full of worry.
Ye Lin didn't pay him the slightest attention. Seeing that he was being ignored, the young man realized he'd been presumptuous, clicked his tongue, and walked away.
"Why has that filthy beggar come back? Get lost, you stinking beggar! If you're driving away our customers, can you afford to make up for the loss?"
"Exactly. If we didn't feel sorry for you, we'd have reported you to the authorities already."
Just then, Ye Lin's heart jolted. An old beggar had appeared in front of the Wind and Flower Pavilion, sitting there with a long staff in hand. The women nearby looked at him with undisguised disgust.
"That old beggar has been showing up here for a month. Every day, he appears right in front of the Wind and Flower Pavilion at noon."
"It's quite a sight. These days, even beggars have dreams."
At some point, the young man who'd spoken out of turn earlier had returned to Ye Lin's side and murmured.
Ye Lin looked up at him. A transparent panel appeared before his eyes.
Name: Cheng Huai
Cultivation: Qi Refining Level 4
Fate Rank: Black (A Great Calamity Is Near)
Fate Traits: None
Destiny: He was originally a member of the Heavenly Sword Sect, but after being framed, an elder arranged for him to infiltrate the Azure Cloud Sect. Three days from now, when he joined the Azure Cloud Sect, an elder would expose him. The elder would then kill him, and three Mid-grade Spirit Stones would be found on his corpse.
Recent Opportunity: None
Looking at the panel, Ye Lin's heart gave a slight jolt. Good grief, a spy?
The Heavenly Sword Sect was the second-ranked sect within a thousand miles. The undisputed first was the Azure Cloud Sect.
"Did the Heavenly Sword Sect send a disciple to infiltrate the Azure Cloud Sect because they want to overthrow it?"
A cold glint flashed in Ye Lin's eyes. Then he recalled the fate of an Azure Cloud Sect disciple: half a year later, an Evil Demon would drain every drop of his blood and kill him.
On top of that, the Azure Cloud Sect's secret realm would open in half a year. In other words, something major was bound to happen then.
The Azure Cloud Sect's dominance over the surrounding thousand miles was precisely because of the secret realm.
Just then, Ye Lin suddenly struck, slamming the young man's head onto the table with a resounding crash.
"Brother, what are you doing?"
Pressed against the table, Cheng Huai was furious, but he kept his composure and asked calmly.
"Don't think I don't know who you are. Hand over the Mid-grade Spirit Stones on you, and I might spare your life today."
Cheng Huai's heart lurched. How did he know he had Mid-grade Spirit Stones?
After he'd been framed, just before he was expelled from the sect, he had sneaked into an elder's residence and stolen three Mid-grade Spirit Stones from the elder's ten-year hoard.
"Brother, who am I? I'm just an ordinary person. As for Spirit Stones, those are for cultivators. I don't have any."
Ye Lin sneered at that.
"If you keep pretending you don't know what I'm talking about, you might not live through today. Isn't that right, Cheng Huai?"
By the time Ye Lin finished speaking, Cheng Huai understood. He'd been exposed. He reached into his robes, took out three glittering crystals, and handed them to Ye Lin.
"A wise choice. I advise you not to go to the Azure Cloud Sect looking for death. Some things aren't what they seem on the surface."
After taking the Spirit Stones, Ye Lin spoke to Cheng Huai, released him, and headed toward the Wind and Flower Pavilion.
Since Cheng Huai had handed over the Spirit Stones, Ye Lin didn't mind warning him. If he still went looking for death, that would be his own problem.
Three Mid-grade Spirit Stones in exchange for his life. A pretty good deal.
Before you continue