Chen Qing and Li Baichuan returned to the rear courtyard of the Cyan Wood Institute.

Li Baichuan glanced at him, his tone level. "You took your sweet time coming back. It seems you’ve made quite a haul this time."

Chen Qing clasped his hands and replied, "You jest, Master Li. I was delayed this time mainly because I took a palm strike from an Earth Element Sect Elder from a distance. I was shaken up a bit and had to regulate my breathing on the journey back, so I was cautious. Moreover, I heard the Demon Sect stronghold at West Sun Mountain was evacuated ahead of schedule. The leak is suspicious, and I was worried..."

He said no more, but his meaning was clear—he was implying that there might be a spy within the Four Sects Alliance.

Li Baichuan scoffed. "And what about getting the True Treasure Pearl? Were you afraid you’d be targeted the moment you returned, so you decided to hide away and study it thoroughly before showing your face?"

Chen Qing rubbed his nose. ’I really can’t hide anything from this Old Deng,’ he thought.

Li Baichuan nodded. "But your worries aren’t entirely baseless. While you were gone these past few days, the Sect Leader used this incident to fish out a little minnow hidden in Cold Jade Valley."

"The Sect Leader went fishing?" Chen Qing was a bit surprised.

"What was He Yuzhou’s nickname in the Jianghu again?" Li Baichuan asked leisurely.

A jolt went through Chen Qing, and he blurted out, "The Canglang Fisherman..."

He understood at once.

It seemed He Yuzhou was merely holding down the fort, but in reality, he had already set a trap. Using the "news" of Chen Qing’s death as bait, he waited patiently, and sure enough, someone couldn’t resist and revealed their true colors.

For the investigation to be spread so quickly, someone must have leaked it.

"The Sect Leader is no simple man. He even knows for a fact whether the Nether and Ghost Guards returned to the Demon Sect stronghold or not."

Li Baichuan waved his hand dismissively. "Enough of that. You’ve been tinkering with that pearl for a while now. Have you figured anything out?"

"A little, but not much."

As he spoke, Chen Qing took out the Earth Essence Marrow Pearl.

The pearl in his palm emitted a warm, gentle, and restrained yellow halo, faintly resonating with the Qi and blood in his body.

Carrying it with him these past days, he could clearly feel his internal Earth True Qi circulating more smoothly. It was being subtly refined and purified, strand by strand. Although the effect was extremely faint and almost imperceptible, its strength lay in its constant, gradual influence.

If he wore this pearl for years on end, the benefits to his Earth Attribute True Qi would be immeasurable. His foundation would be solidified to a terrifying degree.

No wonder the Earth Element Sect was willing to pay any price, even dispatching their Astral Force Elders personally.

"Keep it safe. Don’t let someone steal it from you one day."

Li Baichuan only glanced at it once before looking away, seemingly unconcerned with the Exotic Treasure.

Chen Qing put the Treasure Pearl away and pondered for a moment. "Master Li, do you know... if there’s truly a Technique that uses five different elemental wonders of heaven and earth to merge the True Qi within one’s body?"

Upon hearing this, Li Baichuan said slowly, "When you encounter a problem you can’t solve, as long as the benefits are sufficient, I can solve it."

With that, he closed his eyes completely, like an old monk in deep Meditation, and said no more.

The benefits are sufficient!

He was hinting at me!

Chen Qing knew he wouldn’t get any more answers, so he bowed respectfully to Li Baichuan and slowly withdrew from the small courtyard.

The once-noisy Transmission Square suddenly fell silent. The eyes of every disciple focused squarely on him.

From the moment Chen Qing stepped through the gates of the Wutai Sect, the news of his survival had spread throughout the entire Sect as if it had grown wings.

Seeing him standing here now, safe and sound, was still a powerful shock.

"First Brother!"

Yu Bao’Er gave a great leap of joy and rushed over, tears welling in her eyes.

"I knew it! I knew you’d be okay, First Brother! This is wonderful!"

She was babbling, laughing and crying at the same time, one of the few who were genuinely ecstatic about Chen Qing’s return.

Chen Qing patted Yu Bao’Er’s shoulder, taking in the varied expressions of the crowd.

"What are you all staring at me for? Have you forgotten the rules of the Cyan Wood Institute? Those who should be cultivating, cultivate! Those who have duties, get to them!"

His voice wasn’t loud, but it reached everyone’s ears clearly.

As if waking from a dream, the disciples quickly dispersed.

Yu Bao’Er eagerly sidled up to Chen Qing and lowered her voice, looking as if she were reporting a state secret. "First Brother! Things haven’t been peaceful in the institute while you were gone! Some people were getting ideas... especially that Hong Liangcai! He’s been running around, whispering with Brother Xu Qi. They’re definitely up to no good, eyeing your position as First Brother!"

Hearing this, Chen Qing gave her a cool glance and changed the subject. "If you put half this energy into your Cultivation, you would have broken through the Transmutation Force bottleneck long ago. How has your training been recently? Have you accumulated enough True Qi? What are your chances of breaking through to the Embracing Pill Force realm?"

The moment he mentioned Cultivation, Yu Bao’Er’s face fell. She gave a dry laugh. "Uh... about that... hehe. First Brother, you just got back, you must be tired. I’ll go train now, go train..."

She backed away as she spoke, then vanished in a flash.

Chen Qing shook his head. He had already gotten a sense of the Undercurrent Swell within the institute from everyone’s reactions just now.

It was normal for some to get restless, but as long as he was back, these minor disturbances couldn’t stir up any major waves. The situation was generally under control.

He headed straight back to his own private, small courtyard.

He pushed open the gate. The courtyard was just as he had left it, save for a thin layer of dust on the table.

He had barely sat down when a soft knock came from the courtyard gate.

Opening the gate, he was surprised to find Lin Xue standing outside.

She was dressed in the simple uniform of an Outer Disciple, with fine beads of sweat on her forehead, as if she had rushed over.

Seeing Chen Qing standing before her, truly safe and sound, her eyes instantly reddened. "Brother Chen, you’re really back... That’s wonderful..."