A Secret

Buzz, buzz, buzz. The drone of insects hummed in his ears. The mountain forests around Lion Valley teemed with all manner of venomous pests. Fortunately, Lin Zheyu had dusted himself with insect-repelling powder, which kept most of them at bay. *Rustle, rustle, rustle.* Roughly an hour later, figures appeared once more. Lin Zheyu narrowed his eyes and looked toward the entrance. It was indeed the Xing clan entourage from before. *They’re finally out!* His expression shifted, and he quietly fell into step behind them. This was right at the mouth of Lion Valley. If a fight broke out here, it might draw out the valley's powerhouses. The mountain paths were rugged and treacherous. Leading their packhorses, the burly men made slow progress. It took nearly two hours of walking before they finally emerged from the mist-shrouded forest. "Out at last. Damn woods aren't fit for human travel," grumbled one of the brutes leading the way. In the past, they had delivered shipments only to the edge of the woods, where bandits from Lion Valley would personally come out to receive the cargo. This time, however, things seemed different. The items being transported were evidently of great value—even the Grand Elder had set out in person. "Stay sharp, all of you. Watch our surroundings." "Though with me... Wait, something's wrong! Hold your breath!" Halfway through his sentence, the Second Elder's expression changed abruptly, and he shouted in alarm. Yet it was already too late. Aside from the Second Elder and the Fifth Elder, every man and horse swayed dizzily for a few paces before collapsing to the ground. The Second Elder and Fifth Elder swiftly closed ranks. Back-to-back, each drew a pill from his robes and swallowed it. "It’s the Zhao clan’s Night Orchid!" the Fifth Elder said grimly. He dabbled in the study of poisons. As rivals, the Zhao clan's classic poisons were well-studied by him, and he could recognize them at once. "Hmph! Since you’re here, why not show yourself!" the Second Elder barked coldly, his booming voice echoing through the woods. No one answered. The entire forest remained dead silent, save for the hum of insects. *Whew—* A cold glint suddenly flashed. Five throwing knives shot from the woods like silver lightning, streaking toward the burly men lying on the ground. *Clang, clang, clang!* Unsurprised, the Second Elder and Fifth Elder flicked their wrists and hurled five concealed projectiles of their own, knocking the flying daggers aside. *Boom!* The instant they countered, a figure burst from the woods at blinding speed. Wielding a long saber, Lin Zheyu unleashed terrifying power, shattering clumps of earth beneath his feet with every stride. *Swish!* A cold arc blazed as the saber howled through the air, whistling shrilly toward the Fifth Elder's neck. *Crack—* The snap of a whip tore through the wind. As if anticipating the blow, a black whip lashed out from behind the Fifth Elder, coiling around the descending blade just before it could sever his neck. "Hmph!" The Second Elder sneered. Richly experienced in battle, he was not so easily ambushed. Gripping the whip tightly, he yanked with all his might, intending to wrench the saber from Lin Zheyu's grasp. A colossal force traveled down the blade, locking Lin Zheyu's weapon in place. At the same moment, the Fifth Elder bared his teeth in a savage grin. His qi and blood power surged as he drove a fist straight toward Lin Zheyu's chest. He and the Second Elder shared seamless coordination; without exchanging a single word, they had devised the optimal counter. *Bang!* A dull thud rang out, followed immediately by the sharp crunch of fracturing bone. The cruel smirk froze on the Fifth Elder's face, replaced by stunned disbelief. Lin Zheyu had driven his left fist forward, meeting the Fifth Elder's strike head-on. A monstrous force surged from Lin Zheyu's knuckles, instantly shattering the bones in the Fifth Elder's arm. The entire right limb dropped limp and useless. *Qi and Blood Like a Tiger!* The Fifth Elder's heart seized in terror. The boy's strength was beyond comprehension. The person before him had undoubtedly attained the level of Qi and Blood Like a Tiger. Only a powerhouse at that tier could shatter his iron-tempered arm with a single punch. Without a shred of hesitation, he shifted his footing to flee. Yet a hand like a vice of cold iron clamped onto his throat. As crushing force constricted his windpipe, the Fifth Elder's face flushed crimson. It had all unfolded in less than two breaths: the Fifth Elder's arm snapped, his neck seized. By now, the Second Elder realized something was dreadfully wrong. No matter how hard he pulled, Lin Zheyu's saber did not budge an inch. And before he could process that, events spiraled far past his expectations. In the brief instant he faltered, the Fifth Elder was caught by the throat. *Crack!* A sickening snap echoed. Lin Zheyu wrenched his left hand, breaking the Fifth Elder's neck. With a violent heave, he flung the corpse aside. The Second Elder was horrified. He knew the situation was dire; this intruder possessed terrifying strength far beyond his ability to counter. Releasing his grip, he tossed the iron whip away, drove off his heels, and shot backward in retreat. Yet how could his speed match Lin Zheyu's? Lin Zheyu pushed lightly off the balls of his feet, his form shifting like an ethereal wraith. In the blink of an eye, he was right in front of the Second Elder. *Thud!* His right leg whipped out like a lash, crashing brutally into the Second Elder's chest. A horrific impact tore through him. The Second Elder felt his viscera twist in agonizing torment as five or six ribs snapped with a sickening crunch. *Pfft—* A mouthful of blood sprayed from his lips, and his body flew backward through the air. With a heavy thud, he slammed into a tree trunk and tumbled into the dirt. "Y-You... Who are you?" The Second Elder struggled to prop himself up. His internal organs were heavily injured, leaving him with scarcely any strength to muster. Lin Zheyu did not reply. With a cold, indifferent expression, he strode toward the old man, long saber in hand. "Don't kill me! I can tell you a secret!" the Second Elder blurted frantically at the sight. He did not want to die. He had only just acquired the legendary immortal cultivation method. He had yet to experience its mysteries, yet to rely on it to attain longevity. Lin Zheyu remained silent. He drew closer, step by step, dry leaves crunching softly underfoot. A domineering aura rose from his frame, bearing down on the Second Elder with suffocating pressure. "As long as you spare me, I can give you a legendary immortal cultivation method—an art that grants eternal life!" the Second Elder rushed out in panic as Lin Zheyu closed the distance. Surprise flickered in Lin Zheyu's eyes. *An immortal cultivation method?* He truly had not expected that. He had assumed that the Xing clan had mobilized several Qi and Blood Realm experts to conspire with the Nine Nether Cult over rebellion. Naturally, he had presumed the Second Elder's secret would be tied to that. To think it was not an insurrection, but an immortal cultivation art! Ever since Master Liang Song told him that demons walked this world, and that people pursuing immortal longevity often ended up turning themselves into monsters, Lin Zheyu had suspected that cultivation arts truly existed. Later, Han Mo had confirmed that they were real, though in Great Wei, immortal cultivation was branded a forbidden art. Anyone caught practicing it faced execution and the extermination of their clan. "Interesting. Cultivation arts are forbidden. How could your Xing clan possess such a thing?" Lin Zheyu remarked with a slight chuckle, his voice deliberately raspy. "Hmph! If emperors and royalty may seek longevity, why shouldn't ordinary men cultivate the immortal arts?" the Second Elder sneered. "Did you obtain it from the Nine Nether Cult?" Lin Zheyu asked. He could not help the deduction. The force the Xing clan had deployed was simply too formidable—three Qi and Blood Realm experts in total. One of them even vastly exceeded the strength of the Qi and Blood Three Transformations. Lin Zheyu suspected that man had likely reached the Qi and Blood Four Transformations; otherwise, he wouldn't have felt such a distinct sense of threat. "Indeed." "If you spare my life, I can transcribe a copy for you," the Second Elder said, breathing a faint sigh of relief. Seeing that the youth was intrigued by cultivation arts, he thought he might yet survive. "And how can I be sure you will actually give it to me once I let you go?" Lin Zheyu asked coldly. "Just as you said, immortal cultivation is a forbidden art. Practicing it brings clan extermination." "Now that you know of this, bringing you aboard is the only way to safeguard the secret," the Second Elder reasoned. His expression was earnest, yet malice churned within him. As long as he returned alive, he would find a way to eliminate this bastard. "Oh," Lin Zheyu said flatly. By then, he had already arrived before the Second Elder. *Slash.* A cold glint flashed, and blood sprayed into the air. Under the Second Elder's bewildered gaze, Lin Zheyu raised his blade and struck. The edge swept cleanly across his throat. The head rolled from the shoulders, eyes wide with sheer disbelief. They had been negotiating smoothly—why had he struck without warning? That was an immortal cultivation method! An art that led to eternal life! "An immortal cultivation method?" "So what!" Lin Zheyu's gaze was chilly. He felt not the slightest temptation toward the legendary path of immortality. Even if such methods were genuine, achieving longevity through them was no simple task. If cultivation in this world was like the novels of his past life, requiring spirit roots and special aptitudes, there was no telling whether he could even practice it. Moreover, Lin Zheyu sensed something fundamentally wrong with this world. Or rather, something wrong with its immortal path. He had inquired about cultivation and demons with Xu Qinyi and the others, and their answers aligned with Master Liang Song's. There were no immortals in this world. All who sought longevity through cultivation wound up as demons. And demons were formidable—terrifyingly so. That meant that if cultivation methods truly existed, those who practiced them—whether they turned into demons or not—were immensely powerful beings. Yet these powerhouses had virtually no public presence, and their cultivation methods had been relegated to forbidden arts. In a world where strength reigned supreme, that was utterly unnatural. "Immortal cultivation..." "There must be a massive secret buried behind it." "I'm far too weak right now. Entangling myself in it today would do more harm than good. Once I grow stronger, it won't be too late to seek out the truth." Lin Zheyu muttered to himself. He was still young, only seventeen. With the help of his Heaven Rewards Diligence cheat, he would reach the pinnacle of the martial path and step into the Innate Realm within a few years. When that time came, it would not be too late to unravel the mysteries of immortality. Having dealt with the old man, Lin Zheyu carried his saber toward the unconscious Xing clan retainers. A string of muffled thuds echoed as every man and mount was silenced forever. "Well now, so much silver!" Delight surfaced on Lin Zheyu's face. From the old man at the Second Blood Transformation level, he had turned up three hundred and forty taels of gold, equivalent to three thousand four hundred taels of silver. Compared to a cultivation manual fraught with hidden perils, this wealth was what he actually needed right now. Aside from the money, he also scavenged medicinal powders, common pills, concealed weapons, and other supplies from the elder's body. Lin Zheyu searched every corpse, gathering a grand total of three thousand four hundred and eighty taels in silver value, along with assorted pills and powders. Reaping such a bounty made all the time spent staking out the entrance to Lion Valley well worth it. *Robbing these bastards who trade with the Nine Nether Cult truly is the best move. Every single one is a fat sheep!* Lin Zheyu thought to himself. Finishing his search, he cast a glance over the corpses, shook his head slightly, and vanished back into the woods. He made no attempt to hide the bodies. Even if they were discovered, suspicion would never fall on him. More than two hours after Lin Zheyu's departure, a dozen burly figures emerged from the forest, drawn by the scent of blood. *Thwack, thwack—* Arrows flew, easily felling the wild beasts gnawing on the corpses. The burly men then crouched to inspect the dead. "Big Brother, don't these look like men from the Xing clan?" one shouted. "Wait, they really are! I know this guy—he was the one who handed over the goods to us last time!" another called out. "All of them Xing clan?" "Holy shit, I saw this old man before. He's an elder of the Xing clan with First Blood Transformation strength! To think even he died here!" Another man gasped, horror creeping into his eyes.