Seeing Lin He look her way, Xiao Mei waved her fists excitedly and cheered, "Well killed, Senior! That was satisfying!"
After speaking, Xiao Mei gazed at Lin He with admiration and even wanted to step forward to offer a few words of praise. Xin Ruoyin stopped her, however. Unlike Xiao Mei, she wore a grave expression. She resolutely stepped in front of Xiao Mei and asked, enunciating every word,
"What do you intend to do with us, Senior?"
This woman really is clever!
Compared with Xiao Mei, Xin Ruoyin was much quicker on the uptake. Lin He silently praised her.
In that brief battle, not only had a magic treasure fragment appeared, but so had a Level Four Demon Beast. Moreover, Xu Yan was no ordinary man-he was the Garrison Commissioner of the Heavenly Star Sect Market. Being involved in even one or two of these matters could put them at risk of being killed to silence them, let alone all of them at once. Xin Ruoyin had thought of precisely this, which was why she was especially wary.
When Lin He did not answer immediately, Xin Ruoyin frowned. Beside her, Xiao Mei still looked utterly oblivious and asked foolishly,
"Miss, what's wrong?"
Xin Ruoyin looked at her and sighed, unsure how to explain. Fortunately, Lin He was understanding. He smiled and said,
"Xiao Mei, your young mistress is worried that I'll kill you both to keep you quiet."
"Kill us to keep us quiet? Could it be because..."
Only then did the slow-witted Xiao Mei begin to understand. She looked at Xin Ruoyin beside her, and when she saw her nod, she shook her head. "No, he wouldn't. Senior clearly saved us just now. Why would he kill us now? Wouldn't that be too strange?"
"The human heart is strange indeed, isn't it?" Lin He shook his head, then suddenly asked, "Xiao Mei, there are always people in this world who insist on thinking the worst of others. Someone saves them, yet they still suspect their savior of harboring sinister intentions. Don't you think people like that are annoying?"
Xiao Mei kept nodding as she listened, even waving her fists in angry condemnation, utterly oblivious to Xin Ruoyin beside her, who was so ashamed she wished she could crawl into a hole.
Xin Ruoyin's face was crimson. Looking deeply ashamed, she bowed low. "I judged a gentleman's heart by my own petty suspicions. I am deeply ashamed. Please forgive me, Senior!"
Xiao Mei finally caught on as well. Realizing she had just been insulting her own young mistress, she said with some displeasure, "Senior, you're awful! You actually used me to humiliate my young mistress. Oh, right, these Storage Bags..."
"The Storage Bags on these scum from the Liu family, along with everything inside, are all yours."
"Really?"
Xiao Mei was overjoyed. Seeing Lin He nod with a smile, she immediately rushed to collect the Storage Bags from the ground. Once she had finished, Lin He casually waved a hand. Seven or eight fireballs flew out, striking the corpses of Liu Ming and the others with unerring accuracy.
Only then did Lin He say, "This isn't the place to talk. Miss Ru Yin, do you have somewhere else to stay?"
Xin Ruoyin nodded, then said, "To think that man was a disciple of the Heavenly Star Sect. We really shouldn't linger here. Let's not waste time dismantling these formations. We should leave as quickly as possible, but we'll have to trouble you for the use of your flying Magic Artifact, Senior."
"No problem. Come aboard."
Lin He took out the Flying Spirit Boat, and Xiao Mei and Xin Ruoyin stepped aboard. He channeled his magic power, and with a whistle through the air, they sped southwest.
Lin He's Flying Spirit Boat was quite fast, and it soon carried Xin Ruoyin and Xiao Mei to their second refuge.
Only after Xin Ruoyin explained did Lin He learn that she actually had three refuges, moving from one to another at regular intervals.
Lin He nodded as he listened. Xin Ruoyin understood that a cunning rabbit needed three burrows. She was no ordinary woman. It seemed that years of being hunted had given her considerable experience.
Clouds and mist shrouded the way ahead. Knowing this was a formation master's refuge, Lin He naturally did not recklessly force his way in. He waited for Xin Ruoyin to open the formation before entering.
Once they returned to her residence, Xin Ruoyin told Xiao Mei to brew tea for Lin He-the very Purple Mansion Spirit Spring Tea she had bought at such a high price.
After Xin Ruoyin and Lin He took their seats, she asked first, "I'm ashamed to admit that I still don't know your name, Senior. May I ask what it is?"
"My surname is Lin, and my given name is He."
"So it is Senior Lin! Forgive my boldness, but there is something puzzling me. I hope you will enlighten me."
"Ask away."
"Why did you happen to appear at precisely that moment, Senior? Please forgive my suspicions, but I hope you can clear up my doubts."
After speaking, Xin Ruoyin stared intently at Lin He, watching his expression. Lin He, however, answered without concern,
"This is what happened. After parting with you, Miss Ru Yin, I intended to stroll around the market a little longer. Unexpectedly, I noticed those people from the Liu family acting suspiciously. I'd clashed with them before, so I followed them all the way there. I never expected to run into you, Miss Ru Yin. It really was a coincidence."
Seeing how naturally Lin He spoke, without seeming to lie, Xin Ruoyin finally breathed a sigh of relief. Her greatest fear had been that she was his target from the outset. If that were the case, she would have been inviting a wolf into her home.
Although Lin He's explanation did not dispel all of Xin Ruoyin's wariness, the atmosphere was much better than before. Soon, Xiao Mei brought over a bowl of tea. It brimmed with spiritual energy, its delicate fragrance wafting everywhere. It was indeed the Purple Mansion Spirit Spring Tea.
Lin He tasted the tea in imitation of Old Cai, making Xin Ruoyin nod approvingly. Xin Ruoyin herself drank with great elegance. Xiao Mei also tried to put on a cultured air, but like someone who forgot how to walk while imitating another's steps, she only made a muddle of it, drawing laughter from the other two.
Xin Ruoyin was very interested in preparing Spirit Tea and could not resist discussing it with Lin He. His month of learning from Old Cai had not been wasted; both gained something from their exchange, and the atmosphere grew increasingly pleasant.
Their conversation continued until dusk. Xin Ruoyin was still eager to talk, but after glancing at the sky, she could only say, "It's getting late. Xiao Mei, let's go prepare dinner. Senior Lin, please rest here for a while."
Lin He naturally had no objections. After the three shared a simple dinner, he chose a room at random and sat down to cultivate.
After completing two full circulation cycles, Lin He stopped meditating. He took out the many treasures he had obtained from Xu Yan and nodded to himself.
There was the magic treasure fragment, the Jadefire Blade; a Veil Magic Artifact; the corpse of a Level Two Demon Beast, a Golden-Eyed Ape; a book of Array Essentials; a Cloud-and-Mist Lost-Track Formation capable of withstanding Foundation Establishment cultivators, complete with Formation Flags, an Array Disk, and setup instructions; eight medium-grade spirit stones; over thirty low-grade talismans; assorted materials; and more than a dozen low-grade Magic Artifacts.
Xu Yan had pitifully few Top-Tier Magical Artifacts-only that Veil and the blue shield I cut apart. It seems he relied too heavily on
that Jadefire Blade.
Thinking it over, though, it made sense. A magic treasure fragment was far more powerful than an ordinary Top-Tier Magical Artifact. There really was no need to spend more spirit stones buying them. He probably no longer thought much of ordinary Top-Tier Magical Artifacts.
Xu Yan must have been someone of standing. Now that he's dead, I probably can't stay here for long. But my most pressing task is to build a good relationship with Xin Ruoyin and see whether I can obtain that Five Elements Reversal Formation. How should I go about it, though?
Just as Lin He was pondering this, a startled cry suddenly rang out. Immediately afterward, someone knocked on his door, and Xiao Mei's anxious voice came through it.
"Senior Lin, please save my young mistress!"