The rain had cleared, leaving the ground a bit muddy.
Splat, splat!
Rough, heavy feet stomped through the puddles, leaving a trail of blurry footprints on the ground.
Five or six mercenaries arrived at the entrance of the slightly shabby inn.
"Damn it, we worked our asses off on this trip and got absolutely nothing."
"Hundreds of demonic beasts, level two and level three, and we didn't get a single one. Otherwise, why would we have had to fight that level four green-furred lion head-on!"
The injured mercenaries cursed with indignant expressions.
There were quite a few diners in the inn.
Seeing this group of mercenaries enter, their faces turned ashen with fear.
"What are you looking at?! Keep staring and I'll gouge your eyes out!"
A bearded mercenary roared, slamming his dagger into a table.
The other diners quickly buried their heads in their food, preparing to slip away quietly.
Mercenaries who made a living hunting demonic beasts were outlaws who lived on the edge of a blade; the kind who would hack someone down without a second thought.
"Hey, kid, bring out the best wine and meat you have in the shop."
The bearded man grabbed the waiter by the neck and spoke in a low voice.
The waiter trembled with fear and nodded hastily.
"Go!"
The bearded man let him go.
The mercenaries found a random spot and sat down.
"Brother Chai, we didn't hunt any demonic beasts, and we don't have much money left on us."
Another skinny mercenary said with a troubled look.
Most mercenaries indulged in all sorts of vices like eating, drinking, whoring, and gambling, so they rarely had any savings.
Now that they hadn't caught any demonic beasts, they were probably going to starve.
"Is it because of the Ghost Cave? I heard something appeared in the Ghost Cave."
"Bullshit! The Ghost Cave is so far away, what does it have to do with us? We just hunt small demonic beasts in places like this to feed ourselves!"
Listening to the mercenaries' discussion, Brother Chai took a fierce gulp of water and gritted his teeth. "Damn it, this is too much. If I find out who cleared out all the demonic beasts on the nearby mountains, I'll twist his head off and kick it like a ball!"
Just then, the figure of a young man in ragged clothes suddenly appeared at the inn.
He held a blood-dripping halberd and radiated a murderous aura, looking like a fierce beast.
Everyone in the inn instantly fell silent.
"Young Master, please!" The youth with the halberd slightly stepped aside.
Following behind him, a handsome young man walked in, surveying the inn's surroundings.
"It's a bit shabby, but we'll make do for now."
The two were none other than An Yi and Ye Tian, who had rushed all the way from Luojia Town.
"Brother Chai, there's something off about these two."
Two mercenaries whispered to each other.
An Yi was empty-handed and completely clean, looking as if he were just out sightseeing.
But Ye Tian was different; he was covered in murderous intent, and that long halberd was drenched in blood.
Brother Chai narrowed his eyes and pondered, "They don't even have any luggage on them, but that kid in the back was called Young Master. He's probably loaded. We'll find a chance to rob them later."
"Alright."
The mercenaries exchanged smiles.
Murder and robbery were things they occasionally did to earn some extra cash.
"Please come in, you two. What do you need?"
A waitress stepped forward nervously, looking at An Yi and Ye Tian, and gave a slight bow.
Ye Tian glanced at her with a cold gaze.
Instantly, the waitress felt as if her heart was being squeezed.
An Yi waved his hand and said, "Don't be so tense, rein in your aura."
Ye Tian suppressed the urge to roll his eyes at him, harboring a belly full of frustration.
Over the past few days, this guy had been sightseeing all day long, yet he specifically loved going to treacherous places filled with danger.
After a few rounds of this, Ye Tian had been thoroughly tormented.
After all, he was now his attendant, so he had to bear the brunt of any danger first.
The waitress stammered, "One room is thirty copper coins a night. What do you..."
Thump!
A level-two spirit core was placed on the table.
"Beautiful, how much is this worth?"
An Yi raised an eyebrow at the waitress and asked.
The waitress blushed slightly, holding up her fingers. "About three silver coins."
A level-two demonic beast spirit core was the lowest grade, after all, so it couldn't be exchanged for much money.
"Alright then, we'll use this to cover it. Get us two rooms!" An Yi said generously.
The waitress looked pleasantly surprised, her eyes rippling with excitement.
This spirit core could be sold for about three silver coins, which was enough to exchange for a full three hundred copper coins.
She knew she had run into a wealthy young master!
An Yi gave her a wicked wink. "Don't forget to give me two silver coins and thirty copper coins in change."
The waitress: "..."
To hell with the wealthy young master!
Ye Tian looked at his heavily nicked and battered halberd with some heartache, then waved to the waitress. "Please bring me a pot of water to wash my halberd first."
The waitress froze, looking at Ye Tian's handsome face, and blushed. "Sorry, sir, we... we are a legitimate establishment and do not provide that kind of service."
Ye Tian: "?"
After waiting for An Yi and Ye Tian to go upstairs.
Downstairs, the bearded man and his crew had eyes glowing green with greed.
Casually using a level-two spirit core to pay for an inn—whether these two were stingy or not, they definitely weren't short of money.
Brother Chai wiped his mouth, revealing a sinister smile.
He loved fat sheep like this the most.
"Get ready. We'll find a chance to rob them!"
"Alright!"
...
In the room.
An Yi counted the spirit cores in his hand. "A total of thirty-nine level-two spirit cores and five level-three spirit cores. Good job, I'll give you half."
Ye Tian took the bag, unable to resist rolling his eyes at him.
This guy had been flapping his wings and floating in the sky the entire time.
He was the one doing all the fighting!
However, considering that he couldn't defeat the level-four green-furred lion when it finally appeared, and this guy had stepped in to save his life, half the spirit cores was a fair trade.
"How far is it to Qi City?"
An Yi asked, stifling a yawn.
Along the way, he had gone to great lengths to raise this kid's Destiny Value.
Fortunately, it had finally reached the passing mark of 75 points, surpassing the level of an ordinary person.
Ye Tian pondered and said, "We're almost there. Just past the Ghost Cave Mountain Range ahead is Qi City."
"Alright."
An Yi stretched lazily, looking at Ye Tian curiously. "What's the deal with your fiancée?"
Ye Tian showed a bit of shyness. "She is my betrothed from birth. We haven't seen each other in five years."
"So, the Xu family asked you to come to Qi City this time to get married?" An Yi asked, raising an eyebrow.
Calling over a useless young master with absolutely no value to get married... what was the point?
Ye Tian smiled slightly. "True friendship is seen in times of adversity. Uncle Xu and my father are sworn brothers. Now that the Ye family is facing a catastrophic disaster and is being targeted by the Divine Spirit Cult, I'm afraid only the Xu family is willing to help."
An Yi raised an eyebrow slightly.
Something wasn't right!
And then what?
This guy gets protected by the Xu family, becomes a live-in son-in-law, and then lives happily ever after with his fiancée?
Absolutely impossible!
As for what the real situation was, he couldn't figure it out just yet. He would just have to deal with it as it comes.
"Young Master, you should rest first."
Ye Tian said, preparing to leave.
At this moment, An Yi stopped him. "Ye Tian, let me ask you something."
"Go ahead." Ye Tian stopped in his tracks.
"Um, have you ever heard of An Yi?"
An Yi asked tentatively.
His current name was An Yi in the Great Xia language of the Blue Planet.
But the An Yi he just asked about was spoken in the language of the Ancient Continent.
Ye Tian shuddered slightly, his expression strained as he forced out the words, "Why... why are you asking about this all of a sudden?"
s + Rent Collection Wealth】 At the start, he inherited a rundown house in the urban village from his grandfather. The house had no tenants, but the moment he was diagnosed with a terminal illness, a self-proclaimed empress from the Tianxuan Continent arrived as his first tenant. Ye Chuan soon discovered that with every new tenant moving in, not only did he receive massive daily payments, but he also obtained unique items related to their backgrounds. 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Tiger Strength Pill—dramatically enhances physical power!】 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Deer Blood Pill—significantly boosts vitality!】 …… From that day on, all sorts of bizarre tenants began appearing in the house: the empress from Tianxuan Continent, an apocalyptic sorceress from the Magic Realm, a mysterious scientific girl who fell through a spacetime rift… Every single day, he received strange, powerful items and endless money. Then one day, he suddenly realized—he had become invincible. Enough, enough! Stop giving me more!
nd fell into a coma while saving his younger sister from an out-of-control car. He became a vegetable. No one knew that his consciousness had crossed into a world of cultivation. Over the course of sixty years, he began as the lowest kind of mine slave, struggling to survive amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood. By sheer chance, he eventually obtained the complete memories of a fallen Immortal King. Alchemy, medicine, formations, feng shui, physiognomy, artifact forging… Every great inheritance of the cultivation world was now his. But when he opened his eyes again, he discovered that ten full years had passed in the modern world. To pay for his treatment, his father had sold the family’s shop and house, leaving himself covered in lasting injuries and illness. His mother had cared for him day and night, and more than half of her hair had already turned white. His younger sister, who had been only fifteen back then, was now twenty-five. To help repay the family’s debts, she had been forced to lower her head and put on a smiling face in places of glittering lights and endless revelry. Only then did Chen Xuan understand that what he had lost was not merely ten years. He had lost the life his entire family was meant to have. The good news was that he had brought back the memories of an Immortal King’s entire lifetime. The bad news was that his soul had returned alone—his cultivation had not come with him. Spiritual energy was scarce, resources were depleted, and the modern world still had firearms, surveillance, capital, and laws. If he wanted to protect his family, break free from everyone’s control, and become truly invincible beneath the heavens, he would have to start all over again.
uld barely embark on the path to immortality. Just as he was on the verge of death, his golden finger awakened. No matter whether it was poison, drained blood and vital energy, diminished lifespan, or any other physical debuff caused by paying a price—once midnight passed, everything would be refreshed. From then on, whenever someone asked what kind of person Chu Ran was, the answer was simple: Forbidden arts that other cultivators dared not learn? Chu Ran would learn them. Prices that even demonic cultivators dared not pay? Chu Ran would pay them. Lifespan that even righteous cultivators dared not burn? Chu Ran would burn it. All the blood essence in his body? Take it. Want both his hands and feet? He would cut them off and send them to you. You say he’s finished? He wasn’t built to sit idle. You think he’s gone mad? No—he was simply waiting for midnight. From that day onward, Chu Ran would respect neither Heaven nor Earth, bow to neither gods nor ghosts. He had only one wish: For midnight to arrive a little sooner.
rowess are unmatched, commanding a million-strong army! Yet, the Emperor wants to depose him for the sake of a false prince? Hold on, are you throwing me into some female-oriented romance plot? How can I tolerate this? With a grand wave of his hand—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! Slander the Emperor? Very well, all of you shall die! ... The False Prince: "Although I am not the biological son, Father and Mother love me more. The throne should be mine!" The Female Lead: "Qin Xiao, you are the Emperor, and I am a commoner. If you wish to marry me, you must abdicate. Otherwise, you will never have me!" The Empress: "After we divorce, you must give me half the empire!" The Transmigrator Consort: "You worthless Emperor, why should I kneel to you? All men are equal—I advise you to be kind!" The Great General: "The enemy general is my childhood sweetheart. For her sake, I willingly abandon the frontier defenses!" The Retired Emperor: "Although Yu'er was adopted, I prefer him. Qin Xiao, you should abdicate and let him become Emperor!" ... Very well! So this is how you want to play? Facing this twisted world of female-oriented tropes, Qin Xiao grins and raises his hand to unleash—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! I am the Emperor. Why would I bother reasoning with you? Seal the gates! Leave none alive!
