Tattered Map Secured

Hai Bodong sneered:

"Although I don't know how you know me, you're still not good enough if you think you can keep me here..."

Slap!

Before Hai Bodong could finish, Lion knocked him unconscious with a single slap. Lion scratched his head and said rather sheepishly:

"Sorry, Young Master. This guy talked too much. My hand was itching!"

"It's fine!"

Lin Qing did not care about it. His own subordinate was naturally worth more than some—

Lin Qing stepped forward and took out the Tattered Map. After letting everyone have a look, he said:

"Xiao Qi, search around and see if there are any maps like this hidden in this room! Dig three feet into the ground if you have to."

"Alright!"

Though they had their doubts, they all began moving.

Lin Qing also started inspecting Hai Bodong's Storage Ring.

There was a pile of Medicinal Herbs, Cultivation Techniques, and Dou Techniques inside. The collection was passable, so Lin Qing reluctantly accepted it. However, a small black blade inside seemed rather strange.

Lin Qing pulled Little Marten out of the Pocket World.

"What is it, Big Brother?"

Little Marten had been sleeping in the Soul-Nourishing Jade when he discovered that Lin Qing had woken him.

"Little Marten, what is this?"

Lin Qing took out the small blade and asked.

"Big Brother, this is the legendary Star Iron. It is said to be formed from the stars in the heavens and carried to the continent by falling meteors... Weapons forged from it are especially sharp and sturdy..."

Just as Little Marten was about to show off more of his knowledge, Lin Qing tossed him back into the Pocket World.

He only needed to know what it was. As expected, it was a good thing. It had probably been this, combined with Hai Bodong's experience, that had cut open the Demon Flame Remnant Map.

Then Lin Qing began feeling around Hai Bodong's clothes. Fortunately, just as he had guessed, the Tattered Map was indeed on Hai Bodong's body, sewn into the inner lining of his clothes.

"Good grief, I thought it was hidden somewhere special. It was just sewn into his clothes. Alright, stop searching!"

The others, who had been turning the room upside down in search of the Tattered Map, immediately stopped and ran over.

Lin Qing took out a dagger and cut open the lining, removing the Tattered Map within. He combined the three Tattered Maps into one. With that, the Demon Flame Map mission was fifty percent complete!

Li Qingchan looked curiously at the assembled map and could not help asking,

"What map is this?"

Curiosity also appeared in Ling Qingzhu's eyes.

Lin Qi answered, "My brother and I found one quarter of this map in a cave. Now we have half of the full map, but we probably still can't unravel its mysteries!"

Lin Qing patted Lin Qi's head and replied with a smile:

"This is a map related to a kind of Heavenly Flame. That Heavenly Flame should be comparable to the Flame Ancestral Talisman on Qingzhu's side. But having the map is useless. To subdue it, one would need at least the strength of a Five-Star Battle Saint. And when this Heavenly Flame emerges, it will cause quite a commotion. Many people will know about it."

Hiss!

After hearing Lin Qing's explanation, everyone sucked in a deep breath.

Lion King was dumbfounded. A Five-Star Battle Saint was something he would not even dare dream of.

Little Lion simply widened her eyes, brimming with wisdom. Unable to understand what the adults were talking about, she also sucked in a breath of air.

The three women exchanged glances.

Battle Saints... Why did everything and everyone they encountered while following Lin Qing always seem to be connected to Battle Saints and Dou Emperors?

Then Ling Qingzhu and Li Qingchan thought of that terrifying existence again.

Not long after, Hai Bodong slowly woke from his unconsciousness. Coughing up blood, he struggled up from the ground and sat there. After taking some time to recover, he wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and regained some strength. At the same time, he discovered that both his Storage Ring and the Tattered Map hidden in his clothes were gone. Where they had gone was obvious.

Looking at Lin Qing seated in a chair, he could not help snorting coldly:

"What? You already have what you wanted. What else do you want? I, Hai Bodong, lived in seclusion for decades, only to fall into the hands of a junior today. I admit defeat. Kill me or torture me as you please."

Hai Bodong had completely given up. He no longer cared about the map's secret. Forget it, this map truly was a curse. It had provoked Queen Medusa before, resulting in his cultivation being sealed for decades. Now it had provoked someone like this as well. Not only had he failed to uncover the secret of the Tattered Map, he had also lost the Medicinal Herbs he had painstakingly prepared and the mysterious Tattered Map. If he had known, he would have simply given it to Medusa when she wanted it.

The world was truly unpredictable. He deserved this calamity in his life.

"Wasn't it because you refused to answer my questions from the start and kept putting on airs? I was originally planning to exchange an Eighth-Grade Pill for it!" Lin Qing looked at Hai Bodong with a teasing expression.

He truly had intended to trade for it. However, his bottom line had been a Seventh-Grade Pill, along with capturing Medusa and making her lift Hai Bodong's seal.

He had originally thought that, with his status as a Fifth-Grade Alchemist, Hai Bodong would beg him to refine a Medicinal Pill. But Hai Bodong had continued refusing to answer, so Lin Qing decided to toy with him. In the end, Hai Bodong had talked himself into getting knocked unconscious by Lion.

"Alright..."

The momentum Hai Bodong had only just gathered instantly withered again. He did not know what secret the Tattered Map held, but if the person before him had been willing to exchange an Eighth-Grade Pill for it, then the secret had to be significant.

Lin Qing rose from his chair. "Actually, it's not too late yet. As far as I know, Ice Emperor became like this because of Medusa, right?"

"So what?"

At the mention of Medusa's name from Lin Qing's mouth, a flash of fear passed through Hai Bodong's eyes. Yet he immediately snorted coldly again.

Lin Qing took two steps forward and chuckled.

"It's nothing. She was the one who placed this seal, wasn't she? I'm sure you've always wanted to remove the seal on your body. Ice Emperor, you don't want to remain sealed forever, do you? I can resolve the seal on your body, but you'll have to work for me for five years afterward!"

Naturally, Hai Bodong wanted that. Otherwise, he would not have spent all these years collecting the Medicinal Herbs listed in the Medicinal Pill Formula he had obtained with such difficulty. Yet those items had now fallen into Lin Qing's hands.

However, his Medicinal Pill Formula was Tier 6 and required Heavenly Flames for refinement. The person before him was merely a Fifth-Grade Alchemist. He did not believe this kid could refine the Medicinal Pill for him.

"Oh? My seal requires a Tier 6 Medicinal Pill, and the pill also needs Heavenly Flames to refine it."

Facing Hai Bodong's doubtful gaze, Lin Qing extended his right hand and released the Xuanhuang Flame. "I forgot to introduce myself. I am Lin Qing. Though I have only tested for a Fifth-Grade Alchemist Emblem, I can still refine Tier 6 Medicinal Pills. I have Heavenly Flames as well."

If that really doesn't work, I'll capture Medusa and make her lift your seal herself!

Just as expected, shock appeared on Hai Bodong's face.

Such a young Sixth-Grade Alchemist, and one with Heavenly Flames too... let alone seeing one, he had never even heard of one. Could this kid be from the Central Plains?

"Well? Have you decided? Work for me for five years. Don't worry, I won't make you risk your life. You only need to help me guard a family in the Jia Ma Empire!"

At Lin Qing's words, Hai Bodong came back to his senses. A somewhat stiff smile appeared on his aged face.