Chapter 14

“I don’t know, never seen, never heard of him.”

Lin Qingyang unsurprisingly gave a triple denial.

Cheng Hui pretended not to hear anything from the side.

Although honesty is a virtue, at this moment, telling the truth isn’t a virtue, it’s just dumb.

No matter what happened to that gray-robed man, it’s best to clear any ties with him.

Zhang Yifan wasn’t surprised by Lin Qingyang’s answer either.

After spending over a month together, he knew his little junior brother’s personality all too well.

Despite being only eight years old, Lin Qingyang was particularly mature, spending most of his time cultivating in the courtyard and never running around wildly. Such a quiet and well-behaved child couldn’t possibly have had the chance to meet that scoundrel.

“Senior brother, who is this person you’re looking for?” Lin Qingyang asked, feigning curiosity.

Zhang Yifan waved his hand dismissively, “A useless scoundrel from the Seventh Peak. It’s best if you haven’t met him. If you ever do, stay as far away as possible. If he dares to trouble you, just mention our master’s name.”

“Oh.” Lin Qingyang nodded obediently. “Then… why are the people from the Seventh Peak asking you to look for him? Did something happen to him?”

Zhang Yifan sneered, “It’s good if something happened to that bastard.” Seeing his little junior brother looking at him with curiosity, he had no choice but to explain. This guy is just a scoundrel, relying on his father being the peak master of the Seventh Peak to bully others.

The most despicable thing is that he likes pretty people and even collects beautiful body parts. There were incidents before where good-looking servants were harmed by him. Although his father covered it up, his bad reputation spread.

Later, he got smarter and started covering his tracks when doing bad deeds. Even if he targeted someone, it was usually servants or low-level disciples. Without enough evidence, no one could seek justice for the victims.

Now, this guy suddenly disappeared. Zhang Yifan wasn’t exactly a good person, but he found this news quite satisfying.

After all, attacking fellow disciples is a big taboo. As a disciple of the Corpse Puppet Sect, he still had feelings for the sect. If someone really dealt with this rotten apple in the soup, he would truly thank that person.

After getting the information from Lin Qingyang, Zhang Yifan turned and left.

He would just report this to the disciples of the Seventh Peak and be done with it.

The Thirteen Peaks and the Seventh Peak never got along. If it weren’t for saving face, he wouldn’t even bother asking.

The fact that he didn’t clap and cheer when something happened to the Seventh Peak was already quite generous. As for helping to find someone? Not happening!

After dealing with the Seventh Peak people, Zhang Yifan put the matter behind him.

Lin Qingyang stayed calm for a few days. When he went to ask Zhang Yifan for cultivation insights again, he casually inquired about it.

He learned that the Seventh Peak’s peak master never found the person and was furious, insisting that someone harmed his only son. But without evidence, he couldn’t do much. After being reprimanded by the sect leader, he finally calmed down a bit.

However, the Seventh Peak’s peak master, Wu Shan, was known to be petty. With his only son harmed and no culprit found, he was furious and started causing trouble for others.

It’s said that he even made a suspect list, and anyone who had ever offended his son was probably on it, bound to be harassed.

Lin Qingyang breathed a sigh of relief. His encounter with the gray-robed man was purely coincidental, with no offense involved. Thankfully, he acted decisively and dealt with the man. If he had delayed a few days, he might have ended up on the Seventh Peak master’s radar.

Currently, he was only at the Qi Refining stage. If a Golden Core cultivator targeted him, it would be a big problem.

After all, he couldn’t stay in the Seventh Peak forever. Even with many trump cards, they wouldn’t be much use against absolute power.

In the blink of an eye, three months passed. During these three months, Lin Qingyang focused on closed-door cultivation, only attending classes once a month, dedicating the rest of his time to diligent practice.

Cheng Hui’s displayed intelligence pleasantly surprised him. After spending so much time together, he sensed that Cheng Hui seemed unable to fully control his body.

This disconnect between body and intelligence was uncomfortable, and he often saw Cheng Hui get frustrated over it.

Although… Cheng Hui’s frustration was just him sulking in a corner, drawing circles on the ground, which Lin Qingyang found adorable.

Ahem…

As a qualified fiancé, he couldn’t let his dao partner suffer, so he worked hard in cultivation to help Cheng Hui evolve into a wandering corpse. Wandering corpses are stronger than walking corpses, slower but immensely powerful, at least making Cheng Hui more comfortable.

Three months of hard cultivation allowed Lin Qingyang to smoothly reach the fifth level of Qi Refining.

Don’t think this speed is slow. Even the most valued geniuses in major sects would be at this level during the Qi Refining stage. So, except for Wu Youzi’s indifferent demeanor, the other senior brothers were extremely delighted.

The circle within the Corpse Puppet Sect was small, often only accommodating one mountain peak.

Lin Qingyang wasn’t sure about the other peaks, but on the Thirteen Peaks, there were six senior brothers, and they all had a great relationship.

Although each senior brother and sister had their quirks, they were genuinely good to their little junior brother.

With such an outstanding talent emerging in their circle, the senior brothers and sisters were thrilled, and Zhang Yifan was in awe of their master’s discerning eye.

Wu Youzi himself was quite pleased, casually finding a talented disciple with a Blood Fiend Body was a rare occurrence.

However, he considered it and instructed his disciples not to reveal the little junior brother’s cultivation level. Recently, there had been several conflicts between the Xuan Corpse Sect and the Puppet Sect, sparked by the death of the Seventh Peak master’s son.

Although this matter had nothing to do with the Thirteen Peaks, the Seventh Peak master targeted Xuan Corpse Sect disciples during his revenge.

The Xuan Corpse Sect naturally refused to let their outstanding disciples be bullied and retaliated, leading to another round of conflict.

Their little disciple was so exceptional that calling him a genius wasn’t an exaggeration. But an unripe genius was nothing. Only when a genius fully realized their potential could they become a true prodigy.

He didn’t want the promising seedling in their garden to be uprooted before it matured, so to be safe, it was best not to expose him.

Wu Youzi valued Lin Qingyang greatly and went out of his way to have a jade ring crafted. This ring could conceal his special physique, and he specifically instructed Lin Qingyang to never take it off.

Lin Qingyang obediently agreed, diligently cultivating at the Thirteen Peaks. However, while he could focus on cultivation, refining corpses required many materials. Most could be purchased, but some had to be collected on-site.

Lin Qingyang held Cheng Hui in high regard and wouldn’t settle for anything less than the best. He wanted to use the finest materials on Cheng Hui.

Magic fish gold wasn’t a necessary material for refining corpses, but if integrated during the process, it could awaken the corpse’s innate talents.

The specific talents depended on the type of magic fish gold encountered, and it had to be integrated within half an hour of extraction to be effective, with matching attributes. So, even though the material wasn’t rare, few could use it to awaken a corpse’s talents.

Lin Qingyang wouldn’t miss this opportunity, wanting to give Cheng Hui the best.

Fortunately, magic fish gold was found in yin-filled caves, and the Corpse Puppet Sect had plenty of yin energy and caves where magic fish gold was common. However, due to the half-hour time limit, he had to collect it himself.

The collection point for magic fish gold was within the sect, so Wu Youzi wasn’t particularly worried. Lin Qingyang informed Zhang Yifan and took Cheng Hui with him.

Since realizing his fiancé disliked the corpse-raising space, he stopped putting him in there. Even though it benefited Cheng Hui, Lin Qingyang prioritized Cheng Hui’s feelings.

There were many ways to increase cultivation, and he didn’t have to choose one that made Cheng Hui uncomfortable. He’d rather slow down his own progress than let Cheng Hui feel any discomfort.

“Hui Hui, when we go to collect magic fish gold later, if you feel any particular piece resonates with you, let me know immediately.”

Cheng Hui nodded, indicating he understood. When it came to his own strength, he was quite attentive.

The two of them followed the path down the Thirteen Peaks, walking for about an hour until they reached the vicinity of the back mountain.

The yin-filled cave was nearby, guarded by disciples. Seeing the black robes symbolizing a direct disciple on Lin Qingyang, they immediately showed respect.

“Is this senior brother here to look for magic fish gold? Please show your token,” the disciple on the left said warmly.

Lin Qingyang nodded and took out the token Zhang Yifan had given him.

The disciple checked it, confirmed there were no issues, and stepped aside.

Lin Qingyang nodded in acknowledgment and led the wobbling Cheng Hui inside.

Soon, their figures disappeared into the cave entrance. The two disciples exchanged glances, and the one on the right sighed, “It’s true, comparing oneself to others can be deadly. Look at him, so young and already looking for magic fish gold.”

The one on the left glared at him, “Stop talking nonsense. If you want to become a true disciple, just work hard and cultivate. When the sect competition comes, if you perform well, an elder will surely notice you.”

“Yeah, I hope so.” The one on the right sighed again, looking quite dispirited.

The one on the left frowned, about to say something, when he suddenly saw the one on the right’s eyes light up as he stepped forward.

Looking up, he saw a tall, handsome man approaching the yin-filled cave.

His heart skipped a beat. It was Ouyang Zheng, the manager of the Law Enforcement Hall!

Why was he here?