Chen Linger's Invitation

Wang Xuance immediately found it rather strange. Such a tremendous opportunity, yet they insisted on coming to him—and even splitting it evenly with him?

"Brother Xu, are you sure this information is reliable?"

"Hey, you can set your heart at ease. I spent ten taels of silver to buy this news from the Hundred Know Pavilion in the city!"

Xu Dalin thumped his chest so hard it thundered, wearing an utterly sworn-and-certain expression.

"That's right, Brother Wang. Even split evenly, hunting a muntjac-antler deer would net each of us more than thirty taels of pure silver for nothing. Wouldn't that also give us an extra safeguard for the test three months from now?" Song Damao said with a beaming grin, afraid Wang Xuance would miss out on a heaven-sent opportunity if he refused to join.

"Hmph. One who shows undue kindness has either treachery or theft in mind!"

After politely declining, Wang Xuance assumed his stance and began practicing.

Seeing this, the two exchanged looks, then turned away to search elsewhere.

"A good thing?" Wang Xuance's expression shifted uncertainly. One must never be without a heart wary of others.

"I don't want to die muddleheadedly and have no one even collect my corpse!"

"It seems I should have less contact with Xu Dalin in the future. Why hadn't I seen this side of him before?"

"As the ancients said, the human heart is unfathomable."

Though Wang Xuance knew the Hundred Know Pavilion's reputation in the city, how much of what those two had said could truly be trusted?

It seemed that ever since General Li had punched the black-clad man to death that day, people had been mysteriously disappearing from the Mountain Sea Guard every so often during its rest-and-bathing period. It was bizarre and sinister.

How could he still dare to leave the city so casually now? The safest course was to stay put and steadily pass the assessment three months later.

On this day, Wang Xuance was practicing his stance technique in the courtyard during his rest-and-bathing period.

[Crane Form Grand Stance: 360/1000 (Beginner)]

His body moved with his force; when one move ended, his intent continued. His black robe billowed roundly, stirring the breeze at the treetops into a whistling "whoosh, whoosh."

Tall and straight, his eyes were deep and dense as an ancient well or still pool, tranquil and without a ripple. Beneath the falling sunlight, he appeared lofty and unrestrained, as though soaring on wings.

"There are only three days until the month is up, but the Crane Form Grand Stance is still progressing too slowly. It seems I have to get some medicinal herbs!"

The moment he stepped into the Medicine King Shop, a delicate woman in yellow approached him and smiled faintly.

"Is this Young Master Wang? My lady requests your presence!"

Having said that, she did not wait for Wang Xuance's response and turned toward the inner hall.

"How did she know I came to the Medicine King Shop?"

Full of doubts, he followed her without haste.

The Medicine King Shop's luxury and extravagance made Wang Xuance curious about the identity of its owner!

White Light City had been built in the heart of Blue Orchid Continent. Sustained by an underground water source that ran for a thousand li, it nourished countless living creatures. Though the city was divided into inner and outer districts, even land in the outer city was worth every inch of its weight in gold. Every year, countless refugees longed to enter the outer city, if only to keep a single life alive.

Yet after winding through the shop for nearly an hour, he still had not seen Chen Linger. This alone showed how vast the Medicine King Shop's grounds were—far from ordinary.

"We've arrived, Young Master Wang. My lady is waiting for you ahead."

Before a pavilion where streams wound and rose, the woman in yellow stopped. She gave a slight bow and silently withdrew.

"Thank you, miss!"

Wang Xuance thanked her loudly, then swept his gaze over the surroundings.

A gentle breeze came slowly, and the water's ripples did not stir. The lingering sound of the wind seemed ready to blow away the recent gloom in his heart.

At the center of a lake that gleamed like a sapphire crystal in the distance stood a water platform with an orchid pavilion upon it. A faint, indistinct figure sat within.

Only then did Wang Xuance notice a unique medicinal-herb fragrance permeating the air. Merely a wisp of it entered his body, and the flesh all over him trembled, sending out signals of longing. It stimulated the circulation of his blood and qi, making it several degrees faster.

"Young Master Wang, since you have already come to my Water Orchid Pavilion, why are you still standing there? Must I invite you over myself?"

Following the voice, he crossed a secluded path paved with some unknown jade and finally saw the face of the figure on the water platform.

The girl had long hair draped over her shoulders and wore white from head to toe. A golden band bound her hair; when the white light reflected upon it, it shone all the more brilliantly.

She was at the age when a young maiden's charm was beginning to bloom. Her skin was like snow and creamy jade, incomparably lovely. The sight made Wang Xuance's face flush, his blood surging as if ready to burst through his veins.

"Her beauty is peerless—one cannot look at her directly!"

"What? Could it be that Young Master Wang has never seen a woman before?"

The girl's smile blossomed like spring. Though still young, her eyes brimmed with spirit, and she wore a sly, mischievous look.

Seeming to realize his lapse of composure, Wang Xuance quickly looked aside and cupped his hands in apology.

"I have embarrassed myself. May I ask what matter Miss Chen has summoned me for?"

"Tsk, tsk. Who would have thought that Wang Xuance, who single-handedly slew disciples of the demon sect in the Qilian Mountains, would have a day when he felt shy?"

The moment the words left her mouth, Wang Xuance's expression changed drastically. His earlier demeanor vanished as his gaze flashed like lightning, locking onto the girl before him.

A savage aura surged from his eyes, like a ferocious beast pouncing in for the kill.

Blood and qi flooded into his arms. So long as the timing was right, at such close range, Wang Xuance was confident he could hammer her to death on the spot.

Under his deadly stare, the girl's expression remained unchanged. She merely flicked her sleeve and poured him a cup of tea.

"Young Master Wang, you came today to ask for something. As it happens, I too have a deal I wish to make with you. Why make things so stiff?"

As she spoke, she casually lifted a silver-threaded phoenix cup and took a sip.

Wang Xuance narrowed his eyes and sighed inwardly.

Though the medicinal herb fragrance permeating the air had dulled his senses, he knew that, at the instant killing intent arose in his heart, at least six martial disciples no weaker than himself had appeared nearby.

He might have been able to kill the girl with a punch, but there was no chance he would leave alive.

"Phew—"

Suppressing the killing intent in his heart, he sat down cross-legged as the girl had. However, he had no intention whatsoever of touching the tea.

Seeing this, the girl's delicate brows drew together as she gazed at him meaningfully.

"Young Master Wang, may I ask what medicinal ingredients you came to purchase today?"

"That's right. I need a medicinal decoction, something similar to Bone-Strengthening Soup—one that invigorates the blood and qi and strengthens the sinews and flesh."

"Young Master Wang is about to reach the Three Knock Blood Barrier, isn't he? Then allow this little woman to congratulate you first, young master, on your smooth road in martial cultivation!"

At this point, her tone paused. Her fingertips rubbed the rim of the cup as she looked at him with a half-smile.

She had spoken a baffling, incomplete sentence, leaving him quite unable to discern what she meant.

"Young Master Wang, do you know my identity?"

"Miss Chen receives such treatment at the Medicine King Shop. Could it be that you are connected to the owner of this shop?"

"Hahaha, has Young Master Wang ever heard of the Lord of South Abundance Valley?"

A thousand li from White Light City lay Jade City—a city famed for producing a kind of jade called Biyang Gold Jade, warm in winter and cool in summer.

Yet now, this city that could only be considered a small town in Blue Orchid Continent had already been reduced to ruins, with an air of deathly stillness everywhere.

A string of sharp, metallic "whoosh, whoosh, whoosh" echoes rang out. In the ruins at the heart of the city stood a middle-aged man in a short yellow robe, built like a mountain bear, with thick joints and a bamboo hat atop his head.

It seemed that where the yellow-robed man stood, even the scorching heat around him could not draw near, as though it had crashed against an unshakable wall.

He muttered to himself.

"The auras of the Dark Demon Sect, Three Corpse Mountain, and Great Vajra Mountain!"

"Heh, it seems this hidden treasure truly has made so many factions see red... I wonder what sort of scene it would be if those fellows from the Central Plains learned of it!"

Before his words had faded, his figure took a step forward and vanished from where he stood. In the next instant, he appeared thirty zhang away; with his following step, he had already crossed a hundred zhang.

Had anyone been present, they would have been stunned. The martial art this man employed was exactly the same as the legendary Ten Thousand Feet, One Line!