Wanhua City, other yard.
"Thank you, Ghost Face sir, for this trip. My younger brother is naughty, and I have to thank Ghost Face sir for taking care of him..."
Cao Ying looked at Lin Sheng and bowed sincerely.
"Xiao Luan, why don't you thank Ghost Face sir! You must not be rude again."
Cao Luan, who was standing aside, lowered his head like a child who had made a mistake. After hearing his sister's words, he bowed directly to Lin Sheng without hesitation. In his eyes, there was even a trace of fear.
Seeing Cao Luan so straightforward, a trace of surprise appeared on Cao Ying's face, but she didn't expect her ill-tempered younger brother to become so well-behaved and obedient.
However, she was delicate and clever, and after a moment of thought, she understood the reason. Obviously, a lot must have happened on this trip.
Otherwise, being as naughty and impulsive as before is not a good thing. Thinking of this, she felt even more grateful to Lin Sheng.
Before, after she woke up and found Cao Luan missing, she immediately went to the room where her father's relics were kept and found that the things were indeed gone.
She immediately understood Cao Luan's thoughts, but by the time she found the previous quest giver and rushed to the city gate, it was already too late.
Fortunately, no accidents occurred in the end, and her revenge for her father's murder had also been achieved.
Thinking of this, she took out a stack of banknotes from her bosom without hesitation.
"Ghost Face sir, in addition to the reward from the Dark Star Organization, please accept this money as well."
As for this extra gain, Lin Sheng naturally had no intention of refusing. He accepted the reward without hesitation. After a quick glance, it turned out to be 3000 taels.
And besides this money, it wasn't over yet. After a slight hesitation, Cao Ying took out an oval jade stone from her bosom.
Seeing this jade stone, Lin Sheng's heart moved instantly.
"I observed, Ghost Face sir. That day, you showed some interest in the Caiyu Worm. Inside this jade stone is a fully grown Caiyu Worm. Please accept it."
Lin Sheng's gaze moved away from the jade stone and fell on the charmingly smiling Cao Ying opposite him.
"What do you want me to help you with?"
This Caiyu Worm is not only a high-grade exotic flying insect, but it also possesses innate talent. Among flying insects, it can probably be considered a Pseudo-Spirit Beast level.
Its value is considerable, far beyond what the money just received can compare to.
Originally, he was thinking of spending some money to buy a Caiyu Worm, but now the other party had taken the initiative to offer one.
Hearing Lin Sheng's words, the smile on Cao Ying's face remained unchanged, and she spoke softly.
"This adult Caiyu Worm is just a token of my gratitude for taking care of Xiao Luan all the way."
Speaking of this, Cao Ying paused before continuing.
"In addition, I have another suggestion. I wonder if Ghost Face sir is interested."
"Tell me about it?"
Lin Sheng stared intently at the other party.
He understood that this was the other party's true purpose.
Although he was willing to make friends with the siblings, if the request made by the other party was not to his liking, and they wanted him to go out on another assassination mission, he would absolutely not accept it.
After all, his mind was focused on martial arts cultivation, and he couldn't be delayed by other trivial matters for too long. The reason he chose to accept the mission this time was for the money needed for cultivation.
"I would like to invite Ghost Face sir to be a retainer."
"Retainer?"
Hearing this sentence, Lin Sheng raised an eyebrow.
"That's right, a retainer. I believe you have also seen that I used to run a shop in Wanhua City, but later I suffered heavy losses during a business trip when I encountered the Red Hair Bandits, and my father was even killed by them. Having suffered such a change, I had no intention of doing business and only sought revenge for my father's murder."
"Now that the great revenge has been avenged, I plan to reopen, so I would like to invite Ghost Face sir to be a retainer."
Cao Ying had no intention of keeping him in suspense and directly stated her purpose. As if worried that Lin Sheng might have concerns, she also mentioned the remuneration.
"I have suffered a great change, and I don't have much savings left now, so I can't offer much remuneration for the time being. However, I am willing to give you 20% of the monthly profits in the future."
She knew that the person in front of her, at such a young age, possessed such cultivation. He was undoubtedly a martial arts fanatic, so she added another sentence.
"Also, unless there is something difficult to resolve, I will not disturb your cultivation. Please rest assured on this point."
After hearing what the other party said, Lin Sheng fell into thought.
He wasn't actually interested in being a retainer or not, but he was very happy to get money. In a sense, this was like a technical investment, no, it should be a strength investment.
After a slight hesitation, he nodded and directly agreed.
"That is acceptable."
Now that he had joined the Seven Forms Sect, he would be in Wanhua City for a long time in the future.
As his Realm improved, the various resources needed for cultivation would also increase, and the expenditure of money would also increase accordingly.
He originally had the idea of taking over a shop and letting Wang Dehai and Lao Zhou be responsible for managing it, which would also be a stable income.
He just didn't know how capable this Cao Ying was.
However, judging from her ability to offer so much money as a reward, she was clearly not bad. Moreover, these siblings had some research on insect-type exotic beasts and should have mastered a method of raising insects.
He was also willing to have more interactions with them, after all, he remembered that Nether Ghost Bee.
Seeing Lin Sheng agree to this suggestion, the smile on Cao Ying's face deepened, and she also breathed a sigh of relief in her heart.
Although she still didn't understand how the Red Haired Ghost Luo Hu was killed by the other party, the fact that he could bring back Luo Hu's head and also bring back Cao Luan, this burden, was enough to show that her intuition was not wrong, and the strength of the person in front of her was far from as simple as it seemed.
Moreover, she could tell that the other party was not very old, and his future achievements were obviously limitless. As a businesswoman, and a rather shrewd one, she naturally understood that she must be friend such a person.
That's why she offered so much profit. Of course, given their current situation, they indeed needed a reliable person with good strength.
"Then, happy cooperation."
Cao Ying smiled and spoke.
Without staying long, after everything was settled, Lin Sheng got up and left.
Watching the tall figure go away and disappear from sight, Cao Ying did not withdraw her gaze.
"Sister, we only have one fully grown Caiyu Worm. Why did you take it out and give it to him?"
It wasn't until Cao Luan's voice sounded from the side that her thoughts were pulled back.
The serene smile on her face disappeared, and she put on a stern face.
"You still have the nerve to say that? If you dare to be so reckless next time, see if I don't beat your butt raw."
"Do you really think that by holding the Nether Staff left by father, you can get your revenge? If it weren't for Ghost Face sir this time, would you still be able to see me?"
"I... I..."
Cao Luan paused, saying 'I' several times, unable to refute, because it was true. If the other party hadn't acted this time, he couldn't even imagine what the result would have been.
He lowered his head, still a little unconvinced, and said in a low voice.
"I know, but sister, you didn't have to give him the Caiyu Worm directly, did you? And the 3000 taels of silver. If I remember correctly, we only have a little over 3000 taels left in total?"
"You gave him all the money, sister, what will you use to open a shop?"
"You're still talking." Cao Ying frowned and reached out to twist Cao Luan's ear.
Immediately, there were sounds of grimacing pain and pleading in the yard.
After fussing for a while, Cao Ying finally let go and asked angrily.
"Now, tell me everything that happened on your trip from beginning to end..."
Covering his red ear, Cao Luan slowly recounted the events.
"This guy is simply a monster, terrifyingly strong. I didn't even see him fight Luo Hu. I just waited outside for a while, and then I saw him come out carrying Luo Hu's head..."
After Cao Luan finished speaking, a thoughtful look appeared on Cao Ying's face. Finally, she sternly instructed Cao Luan.
"Oh, you must not be disrespectful to Ghost Face sir again, understand?"
"Understood..."
...
After leaving Cao Ying's yard, Lin Sheng went straight to the Dark Star Organization's base.
The middle-aged woman at the antique shop's base showed surprise on her face after seeing Lin Sheng appear, especially when she learned that he had completed the mission and was there to collect the reward, her surprise deepened.
It wasn't until she confirmed it several times that she believed the result and credited the mission's merit to Lin Sheng's account.
Lin Sheng glanced at the wooden plaque on the commission wall again, but had no intention of taking another commission, and turned to leave.
Watching Lin Sheng leave, the middle-aged woman's eyes flickered with a faint light.
"Interesting, he actually completed this mission."
Muttering to herself, she snapped her fingers, and soon a short man walked in from outside.
"Go and check what happened in Pingshan County?"
The short man did not answer, and turned to leave after listening.
"Ghost Face?"
The middle-aged woman chewed on the name, as if remembering something.
"It seems he came with that scoundrel Huang Quan. But that old fellow Huang Quan has been hiding for so many years, and he actually dared to come back. He must be crazy..."
Shaking her head slightly, the middle-aged woman picked up her needle and thread from the side and continued her needlework.
At this moment, Lin Sheng had returned to his residence in the city. He first went to see Lin Hong and Xie Guilan, and then inquired about Wang Dehai and Lao Zhou. After confirming that nothing special had happened during his absence, he began to tally his gains from this trip.
In the room, a thick stack of banknotes was placed in front of Lin Sheng. Besides that, there was a jade stone and a bottle of pills.
"Counting the one hundred merit points from Dark Star, this trip's total monetary gain was close to 30,000 taels. As for that tiger skin, it should be Spirit Beast fur, and the price won't be..."
The gains this time were undeniably abundant, and a smile appeared on Lin Sheng's face.
This money is enough to buy a living Spirit Beast.
Also, this Caiyu Worm can be integrated into the body.
As for these last pills...
Lin Sheng's gaze fell on the reddish-brown porcelain bottle. He didn't have a deep understanding of pills and couldn't tell what the pills in the bottle were or what their specific effects were.
However, since it could be collected by Luo Hu in his secret room, it was clearly not an ordinary item. He could find time to go to a pharmacy in the city and have someone identify it.
While thinking, he suddenly remembered that he seemed to have lost something.
He took out a piece of red cloth from his bosom.
The red cloth was fine and smooth to the touch and felt slightly cool. It was the red silk from the wooden box in Luo Hu's secret room.
He held the red silk in his hand and examined it carefully, but found nothing special about it, except for the material.
In fact, on the way back, he had studied this piece of red silk more than once, but found nothing.
However, like the bottle of pills, since it could be collected in a wooden box, it was probably not as simple as it looked.
After studying it for a while without any clues, he was too lazy to waste time and simply put the red cloth away.
At this time, the sky had already darkened. After thinking for a while, he dismissed the idea of going out and went straight to sleep in the room.
After traveling and fighting all the way, now that he was back in the city, he could finally get a good rest.
He slept all the way until dawn the next day.
After being away for so long, he first returned to the Seven Forms Sect headquarters.
He came all the way to Qingniao Yard. Just as he arrived at Xie Qingyun's Green Bamboo Manor, preparing to greet Xie Qingyun, he saw two women walking towards him. The woman leading was Senior Sister Wei Yun.
Following Wei Yun was a young woman in her early twenties. The woman had a ponytail, wore a green dress, was very tall and slender, with straight long legs, appearing to be nearly 1.8 meters tall, roughly the same height as Lin Sheng at this time.
The woman's skin was not fair, but a healthy wheat color. Her features were well-defined and beautiful, but her eyebrows were quite thick, giving her an indescribable heroic and capable air.
"Junior Brother Lin, you're back?"
Seeing Lin Sheng come over, a faint smile appeared on Wei Yun's face.
"Yes, I came back after finishing the matter. I came this trip to greet Master."
Lin Sheng nodded.
"I knew it. However, Master already went to the main peak for a meeting at the invitation of the Sect Leader yesterday. She'll probably be back in a day or two."
"Is that so? Then forget it."
Hearing this, Lin Sheng stopped in his tracks. He hadn't expected to come all this way for nothing. If he had known, he wouldn't have made the trip.
"You are Master's newly accepted direct disciple Lin Sheng?"
The capable woman beside Wei Yun glanced at Lin Sheng and spoke.
"Junior Brother Lin, this is Master's fourth direct disciple, Bai Qing. She was out on a Sect mission before and just returned not long ago. This is your first time meeting."
Wei Yun smiled and introduced him to Lin Sheng.
"Greetings, Senior Sister Bai."
He had already guessed the identity of the capable woman, and this time was no exception. He cupped his hands slightly towards her in greeting.
However, Bai Qing's response made him taken aback.
He saw the other party's figure flash and she was already in front of him, then she pinched his shoulder.
"Forging Tendons Completion, strong and robust bones. Very good. Although the Bloodline is only of the lowest grade, there is still a path forward in the future. When you have time, we can spar and exchange pointers."
Feeling the strength from his shoulder, Lin Sheng nodded subconsciously.
Bai Qing also nodded and turned to leave.
"Don't take offense. Your Senior Sister Bai's personality has always been like this. She's a martial arts fanatic, but she's a very good person. You'll get used to it."
Seeing Lin Sheng looking a bit stunned, Wei Yun explained with a smile.
Lin Sheng just nodded, and after chatting with Wei Yun for a few more sentences, he bid farewell and left.
He didn't take the little interlude on the mountain to heart, nor did he stay long in Qingniao Yard, and returned to Wanhua City. Now that he was wealthy, it was time to look for a suitable Spirit Beast.