Tianxing City, Clear River Teahouse.
When Lin He entered the teahouse, he found the atmosphere rather strange. The disciples he saw wore expressions of grief and resentment, as though they had suffered some tremendous setback. Several looked stern, a far cry from the welcoming air expected of a business.
Puzzled, Lin He gave his name to one of the female disciples. She went inside to announce his arrival, and soon, slightly hurried footsteps approached. A beautiful young married woman appeared before him. It was Zhou Yuan.
At the sight of Lin He, Zhou Yuan concealed her grief and indignation and forced a faint smile. "So it's Fellow Daoist Lin. Hmm... your cultivation..."
Zhou Yuan was astonished. Her instinctive sweep of spiritual sense had revealed that Lin He had already reached Core Formation. Like her, he was now an early Core Formation cultivator.
"Congratulations on reaching Core Formation, Fellow Daoist Lin!"
Lin He smiled slightly, but soon noticed something amiss. Although Zhou Yuan was congratulating him, worry showed on her face. Clearly, something was troubling her. She tried her best to conceal it, but how could she hide it from his keen spiritual sense?
Pulling herself together, Zhou Yuan quickly ushered Lin He inside and into a private room on the second floor. She immediately sent the disciples out, then activated an isolation formation to prevent anyone from spying on them. Only then did she speak.
"Fellow Daoist Lin, now no one can eavesdrop on our conversation."
Rather than immediately bringing up the materials, Lin He casually asked, "Fellow Daoist Zhou, has something happened to your sect recently? The atmosphere here feels a little strange."
"Ah!" Zhou Yuan sighed. "Your several transactions with our sect have benefited us greatly, Fellow Daoist Lin. You also helped us tame that Earthly Astral Ape