"Xiao Mei, come in."
Hearing her young mistress's voice, Xiao Mei entered again, but she soon sensed that something was different.
Xin Ruoyin was all smiles, her earlier gloom swept away. "Xiao Mei, before long, we'll be accompanying Young Master Lin to the Yue Kingdom."
"The Yue Kingdom?" Xiao Mei was surprised to hear they were going there, but the way her young mistress addressed him surprised her even more.
"Young Master?" Xiao Mei looked at Lin He suspiciously. Something she knew nothing about must have happened while she was away.
Lin He nodded as well. "Ru Yin has agreed to accompany me to the Yue Kingdom. Once a suitable opportunity arises, I'll arrange for her to join the Covering Moon Sect."
Hearing how Lin He addressed her young mistress, Xiao Mei was surprised all over again. Her gaze darted between the two of them, brimming with curiosity.
But the mention of the Covering Moon Sect soon left her utterly bewildered. Seeing the question marks practically floating above Xiao Mei's head, Xin Ruoyin gave her an affectionate look, then explained things until she finally understood.
Upon learning that Lin He actually knew a Core Formation cultivator, Xiao Mei could not help saying, "Young Master Lin, you actually know such an esteemed senior? Why didn't you say so earlier? I was so worried!"
Lin He smiled, not minding Xiao Mei's words in the slightest, but Xin Ruoyin immediately scolded her. "Xiao Mei, where are your manners? Apologize to the young master!"
Xiao Mei drooped her head and hastily apologized, though she muttered under her breath, "Once she has a man, she forgets her good friend. Even my young mistress puts romance before friendship now!"
Although Xiao Mei spoke quietly, cultivators had keen ears and sharp eyes, so both heard every word clearly. Lin He felt awkward, while Xin Ruoyin flushed scarlet, yet could hardly bring herself to reprimand Xiao Mei.
Seeing the awkward atmosphere, Lin He quickly said, "I commissioned someone at the Market to refine some magic artifacts for me. They'll need a little more time, but I doubt it will take more than half a month. Once they're ready, I'll take you both to the Yue Kingdom to enjoy the sights of another land."
Neither woman objected. Xin Ruoyin glanced at the sky and saw that it was still early, then promptly said, "Young master, since we have nothing else to do here, why not exchange some insights on arrays with me?"
Xin Ruoyin made it sound so gracious. With Lin He's attainments in arrays, how could he possibly exchange insights with her? All he could do was listen to her instruction.
Lin He smiled, took Array Essentials out of his Storage Bag, and handed it to Xin Ruoyin. "I found this in Xu Yan's Storage Bag. I thought it might be useful to you, Ru Yin, so it's yours."
"This is..."
Xin Ruoyin carefully put the book away and explained, "It seems you aren't aware of this book's significance, young master. Our Yuanwu Kingdom has three great sects. The Divine Weapon Sect excels at artifact refining, the Myriad Wonders Temple excels at talisman making, and the Heavenly Star Sect excels at arrays. Array Essentials is one of the Heavenly Star Sect's most famous texts. It contains nothing particularly profound, but it is the best guide for introducing beginners to the subject."
"Oh, I thought this book might be some rare text. Looks like I got excited for nothing."
Xin Ruoyin smiled at his words. "I don't see it that way. For someone without any grounding in arrays, like you, young master, this book could hardly have come at a better time. I'll use it to guide you through the basics. How does that sound?"
Naturally, Lin He had no objections. The spiritual energy here was too thin for him to cultivate quickly. He only needed to maintain his basic daily cultivation, leaving the rest of his time free to learn about the art of arrays.
Time flowed on, and half a month passed in the blink of an eye. Lin He stood beside a clearing, waiting. That day, while trailing Liu Ming and the others, he had sent Shopkeeper Xu a Sound Transmission Talisman in advance to arrange a time and place to meet. Of course, Lin He had not known he would later encounter Xu Yan, but he had prepared for a rainy day, and that preparation was proving useful now.
After quite a while, a burly man approached with a broad smile. It was Xiao Hei.
Upon seeing Lin He, Xiao Hei hurriedly handed over the Storage Bag he was carrying. "Senior, you really are here. These are the magic artifacts you commissioned earlier. Please take a look."
Lin He took the Storage Bag and swept his senses through it. Sure enough, the Divine Wind Boat, Black Dragon Grab, Greenfire Miasma, White Phosphorus Shield, and the single-use consumables refined from the Ink Flood Dragon's horn were all inside.
Seeing that Lin He was pleased, Xiao Hei finally relaxed. He was just about to head back when Lin He stopped him to ask about recent developments at the Market, and, sure enough, learned a few things.
"I don't know what's been going on lately, but things seem really tense at the Market. People keep coming and going, and several groups have even come to inspect the shop. They've been driving the shopkeeper mad, but there's nothing he can do. After all, they're led by Foundation Establishment cultivators."
Lin He's heart tightened at these words. Just as I thought.
Xu Yan had been the Garrison Commissioner of the Heavenly Star Sect Market. Now that he had disappeared, the entire Market was probably searching everywhere for him.
Xiao Hei was only a Qi Condensation cultivator, after all, and knew little. After questioning him for a while, Lin He let him leave.
I need to leave as soon as possible. So far, they've only sent Foundation Establishment cultivators, and I can still handle those. If they really send a Core Formation cultivator, escaping will be difficult.
With that, Lin He piloted the Divine Wind Boat back to Xin Ruoyin's residence. Having already received word from him, the two women had packed everything and were ready to go.
Looking at the little house where she had lived for so long, Xin Ruoyin let out a long sigh, then boarded the Divine Wind Boat with Xiao Mei. Lin He spurred his magical power, and the Divine Wind Boat sped toward the Yue Kingdom, considerably faster than his previous Flying Spirit Boat.
While Lin He was flying away, two elderly Foundation Establishment cultivators waited uneasily inside a hidden cave abode belonging to the Xu family.
One was fat and stood motionless with a gloomy expression. The other was thin and paced back and forth, plainly distracted.
"Will you stop pacing around? Isn't it irritating?"
"It is! It's driving me mad! But Xu Yan is dead. How are we supposed to explain that to the ancestor?"
The fat man who had spoken first was struck speechless. Only after a long while did he say, "We've investigated for half a month and still found nothing. Whoever killed Xu Yan did it without a sound or a trace. I suspect it was some Core Formation expert."
"Exactly! Xu Yan even had the Magic Treasure Fragment the ancestor bestowed on him, yet he was still wiped out without a trace. It must have been some Core Formation old monster."
The two had actually mistaken Lin He for a Core Formation old monster. Had Lin He been there to hear them, who knew what he would have thought?
Their bickering finally disturbed someone farther inside, and soon an imposing voice rang out.
"Useless fools. The moment I enter seclusion, you can't accomplish anything."
"Please calm your anger, Ancestor!"
"What good will calming my anger do?" The person inside
continued, "Whoever he is, even if I am still in seclusion, he must give the Xu family an accounting!"