The yellow-robed Cultivator’s body shriveled and curled up like a deflated ball.

His pupils dilated, staring blankly at the sky.

His Dao dissipated and his life ended.

Seeing his elder brother struck down in just two exchanges, the long-faced Cultivator was terrified. He parried Lian Li with his Mother-Child Flying Blades and immediately activated several Talismans in his hand.

With a flicker of his figure, he prepared to flee outside the temple.

Hiss—

Xiao He raised her head from the shadows; it seemed she had finally found her chance.

A cyan-gold radiance shimmered, and immense demonic energy slowly gathered in her mouth.

Unmoored Boat and Lian Li returned to their case. Song Yan’s body surged with Sword Qi as he pointed his finger into the void.

Sleeve Green Snake.

Sword Qi surged wildly from his Daoist robe sleeves, flowing and coiling like a green snake, blocking the long-faced Cultivator’s path.

His figure faltered, trapped in a dilemma.

Hiss!

At that very moment, the ball of demonic energy gathered in Xiao He’s mouth erupted, transforming into over a dozen cyan, leaf-shaped flying blades that struck at the long-faced Cultivator from various angles.

The cyan leaves fluttered through the air, dense as a rainstorm over a cold river!

The long-faced Cultivator tried to dodge to the side, but there were simply too many cyan leaf-blades, each one pursuing him relentlessly.

A moment of carelessness, and three cyan leaf-blades slashed past him.

His protective spiritual garment did not shatter immediately; instead, it began to melt away.

"Senior, spare—"

The long-faced Cultivator pleaded for mercy as fast as he could, but it was still not as fast as the flying leaves piercing his body.

"—my life."

When the first cyan leaf-blade pierced his body, he began to feel the world turn dark.

The flying leaves were just like Song Yan’s Sword Qi, sinking into him one by one.

Bizarrely, the cyan demonic energy did not dissipate but remained densely covering his body.

From Xiao He’s mouth came a human voice: "Boom!"

At the same time, the long-faced Cultivator watched helplessly as the cyan leaves on his body gradually swelled.

Then, they exploded with a bang.

Like a thunderclap on flat ground, he was blasted into a cloud of blood mist.

Watching the long-faced Cultivator’s gruesome end, Song Yan couldn’t help but grumble to himself that Xiao He’s methods of killing were so cruel...

Ju Luyi, hiding behind the incense burner in the corner, stared blankly at the remains of the three men... two corpses and a cloud of blood mist and shredded flesh.

Suddenly, an indescribable wave of dizziness washed over her. Unsteady, she fell to her knees and began to retch. 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

"Ugh, cough, cough..."

Song Yan regained his composure and glanced at her.

"Rest for a moment. I need to find a place to bury these people."

"Yes... yes."

Xiao He collected the qiankun bags of the three men one by one.

With a flick of his finger, he sent out three flames, incinerating their corpses.

Then, he gathered the corpses of the Nanshan Temple Disciples, took them to the back of the mountain, found a quiet spot, and buried them properly.

He even erected a cenotaph for Lu Yuan.

It was a small gesture of respect.

Come to think of it, he wasn’t actually very close with him.

Given Lu Yuan’s Peak Qi Refining cultivation, if he fell while away, the person who killed him was likely at the Foundation Establishment Realm.

Song Yan had no obligation to get to the bottom of it for him.

"Temple Master Lu, perhaps you don’t remember who I am, but it doesn’t matter."

He lit a stick of incense and placed it before Lu Yuan’s cenotaph.

"Now that your Dao has dissipated and your life has ended, and Nanshan Temple has fallen, surely your spirit in heaven cannot help but feel pain and frustration."

"I have avenged your Disciples and repaid the debt of that cup of Spirit Medicine tea from years ago; I believe that is more than enough."

Having said this, he bowed three times slightly toward the cenotaph.

Ju Luyi stood not far behind, watching quietly.

"This matter is finished; let’s go."

Song Yan waved his large sleeve and led Xiao Ju down the mountain.

Xiao He poked her head around on the ground; from the beginning, she had smelled a strange scent.

It seemed to be the smell of a corpse, yet it was extremely unique.

"Hmm..."

"Xiao He! What are you doing?"

In the distance, Song Yan called out to her.

So she didn’t linger any longer and slithered away.

...

"What kind of Spiritual Artifact was the heirloom your mother left you, again?"

"It’s an Embroidery Needle!"

He casually wiped away the marks the three men had left on the qiankun bags and probed them with his Divine Sense.

In the fat Cultivator’s bag, he found an embroidery needle; it didn’t look like something that belonged to him.

"Is this it?"

A delicate needle hovered in Song Yan’s palm, its head and tail golden, with a white center.

The tail had some carved patterns and was extremely exquisite.

"Yes, that’s it."

Ju Luyi looked at the slowly hovering embroidery needle with immense joy and was about to reach out to take it, but suddenly remembering something, she withdrew her hand.

"Senior Song, I... I have nothing to give you."

Xiao Ju lowered her head.

Already poor, she had spent everything to provide her mother with a decent funeral and was now penniless and destitute.

The Spirit Stones given by Lu Yuan were not even enough to pay off the debt she owed to Seamless.

"Take it..."

Song Yan sighed inwardly and handed the embroidery needle to her.

Xiao Ju looked up, her expression somewhat confused: "Senior Song, what do you want?"

In this world, apart from her mother, there was absolutely no kindness without a reason.

Since Senior Song had retrieved the embroidery needle for her, he must want something in return.

She was ugly and cursed with bad luck, so it certainly wouldn’t be because of her beauty.

And this embroidery needle was the most precious thing she owned...

Song Yan wanted to say it was just a small favor.

But looking at the girl’s conflicted expression, he felt a slight sense of pity.

"Of course, I’m not returning it for free."

He said, "You must help me sew a Daoist robe."

"A Daoist robe..."

Xiao Ju looked up, her eyes clearing significantly.

"That’s right. I have just been promoted to the Inner Sect and need a custom-made Daoist robe."

He took a standard-issue Wipe Sword Peak Daoist robe from his qiankun bag, gently placed the embroidery needle on top of it, and then, without further ado, pushed it into the girl’s arms.

"It needs to have a Spirit Gathering Array pattern; you can do whatever you like for the rest."

Song Yan had originally intended to do this, and since the opportunity was right in front of him, he decided not to look for anyone else.

A Spirit Gathering Array pattern sewn into a Daoist robe could slightly increase the efficiency of absorbing Spiritual Qi.

Although the effect was minimal, over time, the time and energy saved would be quite considerable.

"Okay... okay."

"I will provide the Materials for the Spirit Gathering Array pattern; you must find a way to solve the rest yourself."

"Can you do it?"

Xiao Ju looked into his eyes and nodded vigorously: "Mm-hmm."

"Of course!"

She didn’t even need to search for the Materials for the Spirit Gathering Array pattern, and she still had plenty of Materials for other things like Dust-Repelling Array patterns and Water-Repelling Array patterns.

It was absolutely no problem.

"This time it will only take seven days, no... five days, five days is enough!"

She patted her chest in assurance.

"Good."

Song Yan nodded: "I still need to find a type of Spirit Medicine. Are you coming with me, or are you returning to the sect on your own?"

Ju Luyi was not a Disciple of Cave Abyss Sect; she could only be considered a Loose Cultivator living near Lingyuanze Market.

"..."

Ju Luyi originally wanted to say she wouldn’t trouble Senior Song, but the words changed when they reached her lips.

"Senior Song, what kind of Spirit Medicine are you looking for?"

She gave a self-deprecating smile, feeling a bit embarrassed: "I have gotten lost in this area so many times, perhaps I have seen it."

"Hmm, it is a herb called Seven-Leaf Sun-Yellow."

Xiao Ju knew nothing about herbs, so Song Yan showed her what the Seven-Leaf Sun-Yellow looked like.

"Ah..." Xiao Ju was surprised: "Then I think I really have seen it."