Chapter 96: Unforeseen

Qin Ming widened his eyes, his heart surging with tidal waves.

"Lin Daozhi!"

No matter how hard he tried, he could never have imagined that the man slaughtering Foundation Establishment elders like chickens and dogs was right before him.

It was no one else.

But his old neighbor, Lin Zixiao.

From the final words shouted by the Lingyu Gate Foundation Establishment cultivator just now,

it was clear this man was the number one bandit wanted jointly by Lingyu Gate and Jinyun Valley.

"Qin Daozhi, long time no see!" Lin Zixiao greeted Qin Ming with a smile.

Even after slaying a Foundation Establishment cultivator, his expression remained calm and unruffled.

Qin Ming did not lower his guard just because the man before him was Lin Zixiao.

This man had killed so many without so much as blinking.

He might turn on Qin Ming at any moment.

Moreover, Lin Zixiao had clearly come here specifically for him—willing to slaughter indiscriminately, he must have some purpose.

“Heh… Lin… Lin Senior.” Qin Ming forced a strained smile onto his face.

He was stunned—never before had he encountered such an unexpected situation, his mind racing furiously.

But.

Qin Ming still had full confidence in the leaf he held, which replicated Huangfu Qi’s strongest technique.

Even this terrifying Lin Zixiao would likely be unable to withstand it.

His tense heart settled slightly.

"Qin Daozhi, it’s no surprise you have such a gift for spirit plant cultivation—you’ve already grown another second-rank spirit plant so quickly," Lin Zixiao said, glancing at Qin Ming’s spirit field.

Unable to fathom Lin Zixiao’s intentions, Qin Ming could only reply with forced composure: “Heh! Just a trivial skill, nothing worth mentioning—nothing compared to Lin Senior’s mastery of second-rank formation arrays.”

Upon saying this,

Lin Zixiao narrowed his eyes, scanning Qin Ming up and down as if searching for some hidden clue.

A massive Foundation Establishment spiritual pressure immediately bore down upon Qin Ming.

Qin Ming summoned his entire body’s blood and true qi, effortlessly resisting the pressure, his expression calm and composed.

"Huh?" Lin Zixiao looked down at Qin Ming from above, a flicker of surprise in his eyes. "Your body refinement technique is incredibly strong—quite unexpected, Qin Daozhi."

“If we’re talking about surprises, Lin Senior is the one who truly took me off guard.”

“Lingyu Gate and Jinyun Valley probably racked their brains and never imagined the person they’ve been hunting so desperately was right under their noses,” Qin Ming replied, his mind still racing.

The commotion in the spirit field must have drawn Lingyu Gate’s reinforcements—they should be arriving soon.

Every second he could delay was a second gained.

Lin Zixiao’s lips curled into a faint smile, as if he had seen through Qin Ming’s thoughts.

"Qin Daozhi, we’re old acquaintances—no need for empty words. I came here specifically for you."

"Didn’t Feng Daozhi visit the marketplace to find you?"

"Come to think of it, if I hadn’t sacrificed myself to cover for Feng Daozhi and exposed myself prematurely, I wouldn’t have had to come to you in this guise."

Qin Ming instinctively tensed—he already suspected why Lin Zixiao had come.

"Yes, Feng Daozhi did come to see me."

He guessed Lin Zixiao must have secretly investigated Feng Yuan’s whereabouts before coming to him with such certainty.

There was clearly no point in hiding anything now.

Lin Zixiao smiled and cut straight to the point: "Then did Feng Daozhi give you something?"

“Something like… this.”

As he spoke, a dragon-shaped token materialized in his white hand.

Qin Ming stared—it was identical to the one Feng Yuan had held.

He had expected this object would be a hot potato—and now, it proved true.

Qin Ming paused, then replied frankly: "Feng Daozhi did express a desire to trade the token with me."

“But I am lowly in cultivation, fully aware this item carries grave consequences—far beyond the reach of a mere Qi Refining cultivator like myself.”

“So I declined his offer.”

“And I never accepted the token.”

Lin Zixiao’s expression darkened and brightened in turns; he studied Qin Ming’s utterly open demeanor, and it seemed he truly wasn’t lying.

Yet the reasoning he gave was perfectly reasonable.

“Oh? Really?”

“I find it hard to believe—may I search you?”

Hearing this, Qin Ming’s heart tightened. His eyes flickered as he refused: “Lin Senior, I cannot accept such a demand.” As he spoke, he gripped the purple leaf in his hand even tighter, ready to use it and flee.

Upon hearing Qin Ming’s firm reply, Lin Zixiao’s face shifted several times.

He hadn’t expected it.

Qin Ming, facing a full Foundation Establishment cultivator, still looked utterly unafraid.

For a moment, he couldn’t quite gauge the man’s true intentions.

Lin Zixiao suddenly raised the token in his hand and cast a spell onto it.

The dragon-shaped token emitted a golden light screen that shone upon Qin Ming, emitting a low hum.

Hrrr—Qin Ming’s heart leapt; he prepared to dodge—but the light settled on him with no ill effect.

A few breaths later,

the golden light receded like a tide, returning into the token in Lin Zixiao’s hand.

"Heh! So it’s not on you—I must have misjudged you, Qin Daozhi." Lin Zixiao’s smile returned, and he added with deep implication: "Then I won’t trouble you further. I hope we meet again someday."

With that, Lin Zixiao pulled out a Buddha mask, slipped it on, and casually waved his hand—several formation flags flew into his grasp.

The dark clouds over the spirit field vanished instantly.

Then,

he turned back to look at Qin Ming deeply before dissolving into a black shadow that vanished into the horizon.

“Phew～”

“That was terrifying!”

“I never thought my daily neighbor was the number one bandit!”

This incident served as a warning to him.

In the cultivation world, never trust anyone.

Qin Ming wiped the beads of sweat from his forehead, relieved, and exhaled deeply.

At that moment,

the spirit plant cultivators who had barely escaped the massacre emerged, trembling.

They had only seen a black-robed demonic cultivator slaughter everyone.

They saw nothing of Lin Zixiao’s conversation with Qin Ming—the formation had blocked it all.

…

Lin Zixiao, wearing the Buddha mask, streaked across the sky in a black aura and halted beside a hidden mountain hollow.

Behind a massive boulder,

a Lingyu Gate Foundation Establishment Elder slowly stepped out, his face filled with confusion as he demanded: “Why let that boy go?”

“Killing him should be effortless for you.”

Lin Zixiao’s demonic aura surged violently, a powerful force that sent the Foundation Establishment Elder reeling backward several steps.

“Do you think I need your advice?”

The Lingyu Gate Elder staggered to steady himself, his face pale, daring not to speak again.

Silence filled the air.

Then Lin Zixiao spoke, his voice grave: “Do you think I didn’t want to?”

"Qin Daozhi has truly surprised me this time!"

“I’m beginning to find him impossible to read.”

The Lingyu Gate Elder was stunned, his expression incredulous: “Impossible?”

“He’s nothing but a Qi Refining spirit plant cultivator!”

Lin Zixiao had no intention of explaining further, but out of curiosity, he added: “Heh! I possess a magic treasure that warns of fortune or misfortune.”

“Just now, it warned me—if I had attacked him, I would have been the first to die.”

“He must have some hidden safeguard.”

“This is getting more interesting.”

The Lingyu Gate Elder listened, his expression thoughtful—but still skeptical.

His eyes flickered as he silently pondered:

‘Lin Zixiao has history with that boy—he’s just being soft, nothing more.’

After a brief exchange,

the two departed silently in opposite directions.

(End of Chapter)