Tiannan Prefecture.
Qingshui County.
As one of the County Towns ranked lower down.
Qingshui County really didn't have much worth mentioning.
The only thing worth mentioning was a clear spring within the County Town's boundaries, whose water was extremely clear and where a small creature called Clear Light Fish grew. Its flesh was very delicate and highly favored by the upper class.
Outside Qingshui County Town.
Baiyun Temple. Daoism wasn't prosperous in Great Yan.
There was only this one Daoist temple in the entire Qingshui County.
Normally, incense offerings were scarce, and most of the time, only poor people came to offer incense, seeking an ethereal form of solace. Thus, although the temple wasn't small, there were only a dozen or so Daoists within it.
At this moment, inside the Cloud Room in the temple's backyard.
"Xiao Man, you're saying both Zhou Xingwen and He Lanjiang died at Lin Sheng's hands!?"
In the Cloud Room, Qi Ning's face held a hint of emotion as she looked at the petite figure opposite her.
"That's right. Hard to believe, isn't it? If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn't have believed it either." Lan Man shook her head slightly and shrugged.
"But this matter is absolutely true. That kid Lin's strength is truly far beyond what you and I expected. He indeed possesses the strength to threaten God-Form Martial Artists, especially in terms of offense, where he can almost rival those in the Divine Transformation Realm Four Transformations. It's just that his movement techniques are a bit lacking."
Speaking of this, Lan Man's face also showed a hint of emotion.
"Moreover, this kid has rich combat experience and a cunning mind. He seized an opportunity and directly dealt with He Lanjiang and the other person. This level of decisiveness and ruthlessness... I really can't believe he's only in his twenties!"
"Such a huge leap... how could this be..."
Qi Ning's emotional expression slightly subsided, but she still held a hint of astonishment.
She knew Lan Man wouldn't lie to her, but this kind of thing was indeed hard to believe.
Taking a deep breath, Qi Ning said slowly.
"Actually, he's not even twenty. From what I know, he should only turn eighteen at the end of this year."
"What!?"
Hearing this, Lan Man's eyes widened, and her mouth opened wide enough to almost fit an egg.
In her impression, Lin Sheng was a taciturn, burly man with sharp features. Whether it was his way of dealing with people or his style of doing things, there was a sense of maturity about him. It would be normal to say he was in his thirties.
She never expected him to be less than eighteen.
What was I doing when I was eighteen!?
This thought inexplicably flashed through Lan Man's mind.
I think I had just joined the Dark Star and was still a Forging Tendons Realm Star Apprentice...
Comparing oneself to others like this is just asking for death.
She didn't know how many years it had been since she last cursed, but now she really wanted to curse fiercely.
"Being able to kill a God-Form Martial Artist at eighteen... such talent is probably stronger than those two in the organization."
"Lin Sheng is Lin Miao's younger brother," Qi Ning said slowly.
"Huh!? I was wondering why this kid's talent was so monstrous. Damn, I knew it wasn't that simple." Hearing this, Lan Man suddenly understood and couldn't help but say, "But I think this kid is even better than Lin Miao and that Ren Qionglou."
Soon, she slapped her thigh as if she had thought of something.
"Sister Qi, this kid is also one of us from the Dark Star. Such talent cannot be wasted in vain. I think we should recommend him to the Pavilion Masters; that way, it won't be a waste."
"It's too late."
Qi Ning shook her head slightly, her face showing a hint of regret.
"The two Pavilion Masters left Great Yan with Lin Miao and Ren Qionglou a year ago to go to the ancestral land. It's unknown when they will return."
"In that case, it is indeed a pity. It would have been great if kid Lin could have displayed such talent a bit earlier."
Lan Man frowned, tilted her head, and suddenly her eyes lit up.
"The two Pavilion Masters aren't here, but isn't there still that one? That one's strength is no weaker than the Pavilion Masters'. Their only flaw is that their mind is a bit... *cough cough*. That one hasn't taken a single Disciple for so many years. With Lin Sheng's talent, perhaps he can catch their eye!!"
"That one..."
Qi Ning's face showed a thoughtful expression, but ultimately, she still had some reservations.
"That one is indeed capable, but their temperament... Alas, never mind. I'll report this matter first and then see. However, regardless of whether that one has any intention of taking a Disciple, it's necessary to raise Lin Sheng's status and authority within the organization before that."
"Alright, I'll go send the message now."
Lan Man's face broke into a smile, and she immediately turned to leave.
"Wait, where is he now?"
"I've settled him outside Yan County, in the bamboo building where I used to go into seclusion. Don't worry, the location is quite hidden and won't be discovered by the Imperial Court's people. Moreover, only you and I know about Lin Sheng's strength. He Lanjiang and Zhou Xingwen died while trying to encircle and suppress me, but now they've lost their own lives instead. The Imperial Court's first suspect will definitely be me."
"So, that kid shouldn't have any major issues."
"Okay."
*
*
Bamboo building.
Inside the simply furnished attic.
Intense high temperature emanated from within, even causing the fabric items in the room to give off a burnt smell.
Finally, the silk curtains instantly burst into flames and burned completely.
But soon, a chilling aura emanated from the room again.
It was as if, in an instant, it had gone from the height of summer to the bitter cold of winter.
A thin layer of frost even appeared in the attic, and the burning fabric items quickly extinguished completely.
Not long after, the chilling aura dissipated, and the intense heat swept back in again.
Thus, the cold and heat alternated continuously.
Only this simple attic suffered. It was already riddled with holes, and after constant expansion and contraction due to heat and cold, a large number of fine cracks appeared on its main structure, seemingly on the verge of completely shattering and collapsing at any moment.
Finally, as the frequency of the cold and hot alternation in the room became faster and faster, a loud bang suddenly echoed from within the bamboo building.
The bamboo building, which was already overloaded, completely turned into a pile of ruins.
In the center of the ruins, from a raised area, there was a bang, and the stacked broken bamboo boards were sent flying.
Lin Sheng stepped out from it.
Not paying attention to the collapsed bamboo building, he was currently frowning deeply, his clothes already torn with holes by the powerful force.
"It actually doesn't work."
His face showed a look of surprise. Just now, he was trying to Cultivate both Yang Polarity and Yin Harmonization Skill simultaneously.
He wanted to directly merge Yin and Yang, as this kind of cultivation could greatly save on cultivation efficiency.
At first, the cultivation went smoothly. He didn't feel any difficulty.
It was just a pity that as more and more Yin and Yang Qi were stimulated from his body, that balance became extremely difficult to grasp. In the end, the True Qi of two vastly different attributes became completely chaotic and thoroughly exploded within his body, not only damaging his meridians but also causing the scattered aftershocks to directly collapse this bamboo building.
"It seems I was still taking this cultivation method too much for granted before. Although I have the System panel and can specifically absorb the corresponding exotic beasts to greatly accelerate the cultivation speed of this method, this also means that maintaining the balance of Yin and Yang Qi within the body becomes extremely difficult. A slight carelessness will cause the True Qi to become chaotic and lead to this situation."
Lin Sheng frowned, lost in thought. He carefully felt the situation inside his body again.
With his physical strength, although his meridians were damaged, this level of injury was nothing to him. At this moment, the meridians inside his body had quickly healed, basically returning to their original state.
However, the Yin and Yang Qi that he had spent the entire morning condensing were completely gone, not a trace could be seen. It was clear that the previous explosion had completely used up the True Qi he had painstakingly cultivated.
He could tolerate getting injured during cultivation, but he couldn't tolerate the hard work of cultivation ending up being useless effort.
"This martial art..."
Lin Sheng's expression was somewhat unpleasant, and for a moment, the thought of giving up this martial art flashed through his mind.
But soon, he shook his head slightly again.
He wasn't someone who liked to give up easily.
"Never mind. I'll try a few more times. If it's truly impossible, then so be it..."
Thinking of this, he then glanced at the bamboo building that had already become a ruin.
"It's just a pity about this bamboo building."
Fortunately, there was more than one bamboo building. Although the largest one had collapsed, there were still two much smaller bamboo buildings on either side, which were more than enough to accommodate one person.
He stomped his foot, and the ground immediately cracked open, burying the ruins.
Just as he was about to go to the small building next door, his steps suddenly paused, and a dangerous aura emanated from him. He turned his head to look at the bamboo forest on one side.
However, upon seeing the graceful figure in the bamboo forest, the aura on his body instantly dissipated.
"As expected, your strength has greatly improved compared to the last time we met."
In the bamboo forest, the figure in a black dress slowly walked out, looking at Lin Sheng with a hint of complexity and surprise in her eyes.
"When Lan Man originally told me the truth, I didn't quite believe it, but now I believe it quite a bit."
"Senior Qi."
Looking at the person who arrived, Lin Sheng's expression became serious, and he cupped his fist in a salute.
The person who came was none other than Qi Ning.
With a flash of a shadow, Qi Ning was already close to Lin Sheng.
Her deep gaze constantly sized up Lin Sheng from head to toe.
Only after making Lin Sheng feel a bit uncomfortable did she stop.
"How long has it been? You've actually grown to this extent?"
Qi Ning's voice carried a hint of sighing.
Looking at Lin Sheng at this moment, she couldn't help but think of the very naive young man outside Lin'an County back then.
It had only been two years, and the originally fragile and insignificant life had become a towering mountain that rose from the ground, and it was still continuously expanding and growing with time.
At that time, choosing to bring him into the Dark Star Organization was merely a momentary whim.
She never expected such a huge change.
"This time's matter also had Lan Jie's help; otherwise, it wouldn't have gone so smoothly."
Lin Sheng knew what the other person was talking about. He shook his head slightly and spoke.
He knew this matter couldn't be concealed, but there was no need to conceal it either.
Because now he had enough power to protect himself.
Even when facing Martial Artists in the middle or Late Stages of the Divine Transformation Realm, even if he couldn't defeat them, he could escape by using his earth-walking ability.
Displaying strength beyond one's level before growing up might bring a lot of trouble, but exposing strength after growing up isn't necessarily a bad thing.
"Lan Man has already told me the details of the matter. If it weren't for you, I'm afraid she wouldn't have returned this time."
Qi Ning spoke softly, then suddenly her tone became serious as she instructed.
"I will find a way to help you resolve this matter. It's best not to easily reveal your strength, otherwise being targeted by the Imperial Court will ultimately be troublesome, especially at this time."
"I understand," Lin Sheng nodded.
"Also, I came here this time for another matter." Qi Ning's expression softened considerably, and she suddenly changed the subject.
"What matter?" Lin Sheng raised his eyebrows slightly.
"To raise your status within the organization and also to find you a suitable teacher." Qi Ning gently brushed aside the strands of dark hair falling across her forehead and spoke slowly. "I originally planned to report this matter after coming out of the Congyun Mountains, but it was delayed due to the Beast Suppression Army incident. Now it seems the delay was good, otherwise, finding you just any teacher with your talent would have been a bit of a waste."
"Teacher?" Lin Sheng was startled. Raising his status in the Dark Star was normal, but the matter of a teacher was a bit unexpected.
"That's right. With your talent, a good teacher is very necessary."
Qi Ning said seriously.
Actually, at that time, she had the idea of taking Lin Sheng as a Disciple, but his Bloodline talent wasn't very compatible with the cultivation method she practiced. Therefore, she wanted to find a more suitable Blazing Star Envoy within the organization to be his Master.
However, given the strength Lin Sheng had now displayed, a Blazing Star Envoy was clearly not suitable to be his teacher.
"Originally, the most suitable would naturally be the two current Pavilion Masters of the Dark Star. It's just a pity that the two Pavilion Masters are not in Great Yan now, and they already have Disciples. However, there are many strong individuals in the organization. Besides the two Pavilion Masters, there is also a veteran Dark Star Envoy whose strength is not much inferior to the Pavilion Masters'."
"Dark Star Envoy!?" Lin Sheng's heart trembled.
He hadn't expected that the teacher Qi Ning spoke of would actually be a Dark Star Envoy.
The Blazing Star Envoy level was something only God-Form Martial Artists were qualified to hold, so a Dark Star Envoy meant a Realm above the Divine Transformation Realm.
"That's right, it's a Dark Star Envoy, and it's the strongest Dark Star among the organization's several Dark Star Envoys."
Qi Ning said in a deep voice.
"Your physique and Bloodline should be specialized in the direction of strength, and what this Dark Star Envoy has learned is quite compatible with you. I have already sent a message to the organization, and there should be a reply soon. However, that Dark Star's temperament is eccentric, and it's unknown if they have any intention of taking a Disciple."
"But don't worry, if that doesn't work, I will also introduce you to other suitable Dark Star Envoys."
"In short, your talent won't be buried. You will Cultivate the Peerless True Art that can truly unleash your talent, enough to allow you to Cultivate all the way to the peak of the Void Transformation Realm."
"Thank you, Senior Qi." Hearing Qi Ning's words, Lin Sheng immediately bowed in salute.
This bow was sincere. Along his journey, not many people had truly helped him, but Qi Ning before him was definitely one, and she had helped him greatly.
Moreover, many times Qi Ning was considered one of his trump cards.
After all, back when he was insignificant, what a Divine Transformation Realm powerhouse meant was self-evident.
"Alright, if you didn't have any talent, I naturally wouldn't value you. All of this is also thanks to your own efforts." Qi Ning smiled and shook her head.
"Also, besides the matter of taking a Master which hasn't been decided yet, the matter of raising your status is basically a sure thing. There will be a reply soon. By then, you will be the new Blazing Star Envoy. At that time, I will have Huang Quan send you the token, as well as the benefits of a Blazing Star Envoy. In short, you definitely won't be disappointed."