Lin Zheyu moved swiftly through the forest, distancing himself from the eerie giant tree. From the red blood lotus, he had sensed an aura that belonged solely to a demon. Now that aura had merged into the tree and come alive, stirring an intense sense of danger within him.

Could that thing have left some kind of mark on me?

A thought flashed through Lin Zheyu's mind.

He had dealt with the Nine Nether Sect before. Though not often, their methods of tracking people had left a deep impression on him. The half-yao who had hunted him previously had used tracking techniques far beyond his understanding. Even now, he still did not know how to use the Ink Jade Disk. There was no helping it. Their knowledge worlds were completely different. Lin Zheyu knew far too little about immortal cultivation, demon god, yaos and demons.

No matter what, I should return first. For the time being, I should not stray too far from the City Guard defensive line when patrolling deep in the mountains, in case some unknown expert has set their sights on me again.

In the days ahead, he would have to keep a low profile. The blood lotus had been obtained from Pei Xuan. Now that he was dead, the people behind him would surely suspect Lin Zheyu of killing him. If they targeted him again, the martial artist they sent next time would undoubtedly be far more terrifying.

Upon entering the area under his command, Lin Zheyu found a secluded spot and reverted to his original appearance. This mission did not impose strict demands on them. It only needed him to assist the City Guard and hold the defensive line. Hunting demon puppets for contribution points was an additional task, optional rather than mandatory. However, the official rewards this time were extremely generous, so the martial artists were highly motivated to hunt demon puppets, voluntarily venturing deep into the mountains to search for them.

Lin Zheyu had originally planned to do the same. He was very interested in the spirit liquid and techniques listed on the exchange board. What he had not expected was that on the very first day, he would run into such trouble.

From time to time, the roars of ferocious beasts echoed through the forest.

After wave upon wave of martial artists had swept through the area, combined with the nighttime hunting of demon puppets, the number of ferocious beasts in the forest had greatly diminished. Those that survived were either relatively weak or exceptionally strong beasts with outstanding concealment and survival abilities. Near a point several kilometers from the defensive line, Lin Zheyu slowed his pace considerably. At a distance of four or five kilometers, even if danger truly arose, whether calling for help or fleeing, it would not pose much problem given his speed.

I'll catch a ferocious beast and roast it to pass the time, Lin Zheyu thought as he heard a beast's roar nearby.

He did not intend to venture too far to hunt demon puppets anymore. The forest was not suitable for cultivation anyway. He felt that catching a ferocious beast and bringing it back for a barbecue was not a bad option.

Whoosh.

Lin Zheyu's figure vanished in an instant and shot toward the direction from which the roar had come. Before long, he returned carrying a gigantic ferocious beast over three meters long.

In the forest outside the defensive line, he encountered a familiar face, someone he had met at the martial cultivation exchange held at Wuji Manor. Since arriving in Wuling City, aside from disciples of the Wuji Sect, it had been during that time that he had made the most acquaintances.

"Young Master Lin, I did not expect we would be assigned to the same area," Li Yin said with a smile.

She was a woman with a strong sense of individuality. When they last met, her hair had been cut short to her shoulders. Now she had grown it long, and amid her handsome bearing there was an added trace of feminine softness.

"Miss Li, it has been a long time," Lin Zheyu greeted her with a smile. He set the ferocious beast down from his shoulder and asked, "Would you like to roast some meat together?"

"No. I just finished eating before coming here. I am not hungry," Li Yin replied with a smile, shaking her head.

Holding her longsword, she walked a little farther away and began cultivating on an open patch of ground nearby. Li Yin cultivated the Thousand Threads Sword Technique, a style that could be both hard and soft. With a single strike, it transformed into a thousand strands of sword threads, and was formidable in power.

Lin Zheyu watched with curiosity for a while and nodded in approval. As expected of a renowned genius of Wuling City, Li Yin's Thousand Threads Sword Technique had improved tremendously compared to more than a year ago. If she were to face Heng Qiming from a year ago, there was a high chance she could defeat him. In other words, Li Yin now possessed the qualifications to rank on the Hidden Dragon List Hidden Dragon List.

Lin Zheyu casually felled several large trees with his blade to use as firewood. This time, he had brought small pieces of Crimson Flame Stones. Under their intense heat, even the dampest wood could be easily ignited.

***

In the Cold Wind Tower, Liang Cheng entered smoothly while holding a secret letter. After waiting in the first-floor hall for more than ten minutes, a middle-aged man with a smile on his face strode in quickly.

"Greetings, Young Master Deng." Liang Cheng gave a bow and handed over the secret letter in his hand. "General Wei asked me to deliver this confidential letter to you."

"Thank you for the trouble. This is a small token of appreciation, hardly worthy of mention." Deng Yuanzhi took the secret letter and withdrew a bottle containing medicinal pills from his robe, handing it over.

Liang Cheng accepted the jade bottle and said calmly, "Many thanks, Young Master Deng. If there are no further instructions, I will take my leave."

"That will be all. Please convey my thanks to General Wei," Deng Yuanzhi said with a smile.

After Liang Cheng left, he opened the secret letter and took out the message inside. As he read its contents, a smile spread across Deng Yuanzhi's face.

"Haha, what a coincidence. Huang Baizhong's most prized disciple has actually appeared in the area under General Wei's jurisdiction. This must be fate..."

Deng Yuanzhi laughed heartily, clearly in a good mood. In his younger years, he had formed a deep grudge with Huang Baizhong. Though it was not a feud to the death, it was far from easily resolved.

"Shujie, I have a task for you." Deng Yuanzhi summoned a clan expert and instructed, "Go to the area under General Wei's jurisdiction and give Lin Zheyu, of the Wuji Sect, a proper lesson. But go easy on him. Do not take his life, or if Huang Baizhong makes a fuss later, it will be troublesome to handle. Just break his limbs and make him lie in bed for a few months so that he misses the Hidden Dragon List challenge tournament," Deng Yuanzhi said.

Back then, Huang Baizhong had injured many of his descendants. Deng Yuanzhi now intended to let Huang Baizhong taste what it felt like to have his most prized disciple crippled.

"Yes."

***

Night fell.

It was spring, and the temperature dropped sharply after dusk, though it had little effect on someone as strong as Lin Zheyu. A gentle breeze passed through, rustling the trees. Lin Zheyu sat on a wooden stump, leisurely roasting ferocious beast meat with his left hand while holding cooked meat in his right, eating with great relish.

Li Yin looked at Lin Zheyu with a strange expression and could not help but ask, "Young Master Lin, you have been eating all day. Is your stomach not full?"

During the day, she practiced her sword technique whenever she had free time, while Lin Zheyu sat there roasting meat and watching her cultivate for the entire day.

"It is fine. I was born with good digestion and absorption, so I have a big appetite. When I was young at home, I often did not get enough to eat," Lin Zheyu said, making things up casually.

Li Yin opened her mouth, then swallowed the words she had wanted to say. This was not merely a big appetite. He was practically the king of gluttons. Even ferocious beasts did not eat as much as he did. However, she was not very familiar with Lin Zheyu, and saying so would have been impolite.

Suddenly, from the forest came the roar of a demon puppet. A flicker of eagerness appeared on Li Yin's face as she suggested, "The demon puppets are on the move. Young Master Lin, would you like to join me? If we cooperate, hunting demon puppets will be easier."

"I am used to acting alone. My apologies," Lin Zheyu replied with a smile, declining her offer.

"You're too polite. Then I will go hunt demon puppets first. See you later."

Li Yin turned with a smile, holding her longsword as she walked into the darkness.

Lin Zheyu watched Li Yin disappear, unmoved, and continued sitting there roasting ferocious beast meat. Glancing at the half of the beast remaining beside him, he murmured, "Once I finish roasting this, I will patrol near the defensive line."

He planned to pass the coming days in just this manner.

An hour later, Lin Zheyu finished the remaining roasted meat and slowly rose to his feet. After eating barbecue all day, it was time to move around and digest the food in his stomach. He patted his still-flat stomach and could not help but sigh. His digestive ability was truly abnormal. Even after a whole day of eating roasted meat, he did not feel the slightest bit full.

"When I grow stronger, I will catch a Grandmaster realm ferocious beast and roast it. I want to see what Grandmaster realm beast meat tastes like," Lin Zheyu muttered. 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

The stronger the ferocious beast, the greater the sense of fullness it provided and the more energy it contained. Unfortunately, this forest was periodically swept by experts of Great Wei, making ferocious beasts at the Force Transformation realm and above rare, let alone Grandmaster realm ones. So far, the strongest beast Lin Zheyu had encountered was only at the Marrow Refining realm.

***

Time passed slowly. In the blink of an eye, two days had gone by. Lin Zheyu did not need to carry out missions every day. He rotated once every two days and could rest for two days each time. During these two days, he had hunted only a single Marrow Refining realm demon puppet. The forces behind the blood lotus had not come knocking, which eased his mind considerably.

"Miss Li, see you in two days," Lin Zheyu said with a smile as he bade Li Yin farewell.

"See you in two days." Li Yin nodded in reply. Watching Lin Zheyu's departing figure, her expression turned somewhat strange.

"Are all peerless geniuses this eccentric?" Li Yin could not help but mutter.

During those two days, what she saw most often was Lin Zheyu sitting on a wooden stump, roasting the ferocious beasts he had hunted. He seemed rather indifferent toward hunting demon puppets. Li Yin truly could not understand how someone with such a temperament had cultivated the Dominance true intent.

"Perhaps this is the greatest difference between peerless geniuses and ordinary people like me," Li Yin said with a light laugh, shaking her head.

Li Yin was not the only one who thought so. Deng Shujie, who was hiding in the shadows and watching Lin Zheyu, shared the same sentiment.

"Damn it, how did someone like him cultivate the Dominance true intent and even rank twenty-fourth on the Hidden Dragon List?"

Deng Shujie watched Lin Zheyu's departing figure, feeling rather speechless.

He had been watching in secret for a long time, intending to make his move once Lin Zheyu went to hunt demon puppets and strayed far from the City Guard defensive line, but he never found the opportunity. It left him quite exasperated.

Forget it. I will take some risk and find a more secluded place to act, Deng Shujie thought inwardly. His figure vanished in an instant as he quietly followed.

Bright moonlight poured down, and silver ripples shimmered across the river's surface.

Lin Zheyu stood by the riverbank as the cold wind brushed against his face, bringing a trace of chill.

From the corner of his eye, Lin Zheyu glanced toward the rear at an angle and muttered softly, "Is that fellow still not making a move? If he does not act soon, I will take the initiative."

He had come here precisely to lure out the person watching him in secret. Lin Zheyu's perception was extraordinarily powerful. Even outside the range of his Perception Domain, his senses far surpassed those of ordinary martial artists. On the second day of his mission, he had already noticed someone secretly spying on him. However, in order not to expose his strength and to avoid alerting the enemy, he had pretended not to notice all along.

"They're a martial artist at the Force Transformation realm, without the aura of Baleful Yin force. However, they still dare to pursue me this close to Wuling City, so they should not be one of those cult members. I'll probably be fine, right?" Lin Zheyu muttered softly.

While Lin Zheyu waited for the other side to make a move, Deng Shujie, hidden in the shadows, watched him in puzzlement.

What is this brat doing here? With his strength, there is no way he could have discovered me. If he had, he certainly would not lure me here. That would be no different from courting death. Could it be he came here to meet someone? Deng Shujie pondered inwardly, suspecting he might have stumbled upon some secret, making him even less willing to reveal himself.

Lin Zheyu circled the riverbank once and, after confirming no one else was around, shook his head helplessly.

Forget it. I will take the initiative, Lin Zheyu thought.

He feigned nonchalance and walked toward the other party's hiding place at an unhurried pace, as if merely strolling aimlessly. When he came within less than a hundred meters, Lin Zheyu moved.

Boom!

The blood qi within his body exploded violently, and Lin Zheyu's speed surged in an instant to a terrifying level beyond the speed of sound. Deng Shujie's expression changed as he sensed an ominous aura. Vast true strength surged from within him, rapidly condensing into a thick energy shield around his body. He did not know why he reacted this way. The opponent was clearly only a Marrow Refining realm martial artist, yet he smelled the aura of death.

"No, that is not right. How could a Marrow Refining realm possess such terrifying speed? He is not Lin Zheyu! Who exactly is this guy?" Deng Shujie's face filled with horror.

He had just erected his true strength shield when he saw a terrifying streak of purple blade light slashing toward his head. The speed of the blade light was unimaginable. The moment a bad feeling arose in his heart, the blade light was already before his eyes. While maintaining the true strength shield, he could only raise his arm in reflex to block.

Pfft...

The Purple Thunder Demon-Slaying Blade easily tore through Deng Shujie's energy shield. With a soft sound, like slicing tofu, it split him cleanly in two before his terrified and disbelieving eyes.

The two halves of his body fell to the ground with a thud. Deng Shujie's eyes were wide open. He had never imagined he would die in such a humiliating manner.