Daqin arrests alchemists, what does it matter to me as a qi refiner?

Yang Ling was somewhat confused. Why would that old man suddenly go out? Finally, he realized that the man must have escaped, most likely colluding with the Dark Gate. Sure enough, after thinking for a moment, he directly addressed the group:
"That old guy escaped, but I won't let you go either. Take action now, leave no one alive!" After Yang Ling finished speaking, the men's eyes widened.

"No, what are you trying to do? Our families have always kept to ourselves and made money together peacefully. Your actions now are going too far! Besides..."

"Aren't you afraid of being scorned and attacked if word gets out? Aren't you afraid someone will come after you?" they blurted out. They couldn't understand why Yang Ling would do such a thing. Moreover, the patriarch's sudden departure without a word—what else could it be but an escape? They didn't think Yang Ling would massacre them; after all, Yang Ling had his pride, and this would certainly look bad if word got out.

But they were wrong; Yang Ling didn't care at all.

"I don't care about any of what you're saying. Besides, your thoughts are written all over your faces. If I really cared, would I need you to say it?" he said seriously. Then, without giving them a chance to speak, Yang Ling attacked directly. Those people were powerless to resist and ultimately fell to Yang Ling.

The disciples, realizing what was happening, begged Yang Ling for mercy. Several elders had been easily dealt with by Yang Ling, let alone them. How could they possibly be a match for him? Their fate would only be worse; begging for mercy now might save their lives.

“We are willing to admit defeat. We truly do not know where our patriarch has gone. He most likely fled for his life. Someone was looking for our patriarch at the time, but we didn’t see who it was. However, that person’s aura was extraordinary, and he must be no ordinary person,” he said thoughtfully. Just as he had thought, that was exactly what had happened.

"Since that's the case, I understand now. Everything makes sense. Your family must have a place to store treasures, right? Take us there directly!" The female family head's face twitched. She had originally come to deal with the people, but Yang Ling's actions made them seem like bandits.

"Wouldn't it be wrong of us to just rob them?"

"What you're saying is ridiculous. Even if we don't steal it, someone else will. Isn't it perfect that we take it in advance?" Yang Ling's words left her speechless, because she felt they made a lot of sense.

Immediately afterwards, they successfully found the family's treasure trove.

Yang Ling walked straight in and swept all the treasures inside. This time, he took dozens of times more than before. He hadn't expected that the old man hadn't taken a single thing with him when he fled.

However, this actually benefited him.

What Yang Ling was most curious about was where the old man had escaped to; he had no clue where he was hiding. Left with no other option, he had to leave with the female family head.

Just as they were about to leave, a black figure flashed past them. The person, hiding in a corner, turned deathly pale upon seeing Yang Ling and turned to flee. Fortunately, Yang Ling noticed in time. His eyes darted around, and he recognized the person somewhat; he seemed to be a disciple of a clan, someone he had seen in the Spirit Realm before. Back then, the person had been completely inconspicuous and hadn't attracted Yang Ling's attention.

This guy had intended to slip away while the family head was escaping, but unexpectedly bumped into Yang Ling, who was coming out of the treasure vault. Just as he was about to turn and leave, Yang Ling instantly blocked his way.

Yang Ling snapped his fingers, and the man was instantly paralyzed. Although his strength was roughly equal to Yang Ling's, taking his life would have been incredibly easy for Yang Ling. Yang Ling grabbed him, and the man screamed in agony.

"You can't kill me! I have something you want to know, I'll tell you, please don't kill me!" Hearing this, Yang Ling immediately became interested; it seemed this person knew something useful. He raised an eyebrow, a glint of shrewdness flashing in his eyes.

"If you can confess everything you know, I might consider sparing your life!" The female patriarch stood beside Yang Ling, never expecting such an unexpected gain. It was truly a case of "searching high and low without finding it, only to have it come to you effortlessly."

The man gritted his teeth and said:
"I don't know who the patriarch went with, but I'm very familiar with his aura; he's definitely from the Dark Gate!"

“I’ve dealt with people from the Dark Gate before, this person is definitely a remnant of their gang, I’m absolutely certain…” He said, enunciating each word clearly, his eyes revealing an unprecedented determination. Yang Ling frowned.

How did that person leave?

"You knew absolutely nothing about it? Did they say anything?"

"They seemed to have exchanged a few words before leaving. I was too far away to hear clearly!" he said, his body trembling. Regardless, they had at least obtained concrete information. Yang Ling took a deep breath; the people of the Dark Gate were destined to be his sworn enemies and would undoubtedly be a major problem in the future.

"If we don't eliminate them, they will come after us sooner or later. We must be on guard at all times, otherwise our lives will be in danger at any time!" The female head of the family did not deny it.

"Your current strength is still too weak, and you are lacking in many aspects. Although you are stronger than others of the same level, you are still not enough when facing stronger opponents!"

“You’re mistaken. They’ve amassed so much strength; they must have a plan. Do you really think they’re only after my life? They probably have other intentions!” Yang Ling said to the female patriarch.

The female patriarch nodded, realizing that those people were no ordinary individuals. The fact that they were able to take people away quietly before them meant they must have anticipated this.

What should they do next?
"Forget it, you have so many enemies anyway, it doesn't matter who you kill. Besides, killing people is an easy thing for you, so don't let your guard down!"

Yang Ling's expression was indifferent; they now had other options.

"That's it! Why don't we go hunt some demonic beasts? There are a few I've been wanting to kill for a while now. I can take their demonic crystals; those crystals will be incredibly useful to me!" Yang Ling made up his mind. The female clan leader led Yang Ling to the demonic beasts' territory, and they moved forward at top speed. The man watched Yang Ling's retreating figure, and seeing that Yang Ling had truly let him go, he finally breathed a sigh of relief. Yang Ling's power far exceeded his expectations; he no longer dared to harbor any improper thoughts towards Yang Ling.

It's already a miracle that they survived Yang Ling's clutches.

In the territory of the monsters.

Yang Ling and the female clan leader moved swiftly, their speed so fast that no one could detect them. The demonic beast standing in the middle, looking down at the demonic beasts below, was burning with rage.

"What a disgrace! I just learned that all the demonic beasts we sent out were defeated by Yang Ling. Today, no matter what, I will fight Yang Ling to the death and I will never let him go!" they shouted loudly, while the demonic beast stood in mid-air.

It seemed to have thought of something and said to the other demonic beasts:
"Don't worry, Yang Ling's strength hasn't improved yet. When I encounter him, I will kill him without mercy!" As soon as it finished speaking, a white light illuminated half the sky. The female patriarch appeared with Yang Ling, who stood behind her. When they saw the demonic beast, the heavy weight in their hearts finally lifted. On their way here, they had been worried that the demonic beast might have been taken away by the people of the Dark Gate. If even the demonic beast was taken away, where would they find their enemies?

Moreover, only those beings of sufficient power possess primordial energy. Fortunately, the demonic beast did not flee. Sensing the female patriarch's aura, it abruptly raised its head. Its body was like a mountain; even a slight movement caused the heavens and earth to tremble. It quickly braced itself; the appearance of Yang Ling and the female patriarch was definitely not a good thing for it.

It couldn't possibly be here to deliver a gift, could it? It understands the saying, "A weasel paying respects to a chicken—it has no good intentions," and it's not that stupid.

If we could take this opportunity to kill Yang Ling, that would be wonderful; it has been looking forward to it for a long time.

All the surrounding demonic beasts glared at Yang Ling with fury, their teeth clenched in hatred. Yang Ling had killed so many demonic beasts, and they hadn't come to settle scores with him; yet now he dared to come to their door—he was truly audacious.

"I don't think you're a match for this monster. I'll handle it. The rest of the monsters shouldn't be a problem for you. I'm counting on you, so don't let me down!" Her words reached Yang Ling's ears, and something about them sounded very wrong.

However, Yang Ling was too lazy to care. The female patriarch was powerful enough that he didn't need to intervene.

The female clan leader moved swiftly, arriving before the demonic beasts. Her aura enveloped them, and silence descended upon the area. Those beasts attempting to escape had no chance to flee; they fell silent instantly, without even a scream. The scene was terrifying, and the demonic beast, witnessing it, sneered.

"Ordinary people wouldn't dare approach us demon beasts rashly, yet you dare to be so bold! It's truly unexpected! Do you really think you can take me down by yourself? You're simply courting death!"

It charged toward the female head of the household.

However, in the very next moment...

Unexpected situations followed one after another.

He had been wounded. It was known that demonic beasts were incredibly strong, rarely sustaining injuries even against the most powerful opponents. But the female clan leader's attack had made him truly feel the danger. He quickly retreated, narrowly avoiding the subsequent attacks.

"How is this possible? How could this happen? You actually managed to hurt me?" He was filled with doubt, completely unable to understand why the female patriarch's move had brought him such a painful lesson, and even less could he comprehend why she was so powerful. The female patriarch had broken the stalemate with just a casual move; if this continued, the consequences would be unimaginable.

The female patriarch, wielding her sword, slashed fiercely at the demonic beast. The sword's light, like a surging wave, crashed violently against it. With this strike, the demonic beast screamed in agony.

Its body slammed heavily into the ground, creating a huge crater. The surrounding monsters panicked and tried to flee, but before they could even move, they were overwhelmed by an immense pressure that made it hard to breathe. What on earth was happening?

By the time it realized what was happening, the way it looked at the female head of the family had changed.

"Your essence has actually improved? Why? How is this possible? How did you do it?!" it exclaimed, its face filled with shock. Then, it sneered and launched another attack, tearing a hole in the surrounding air. The power was even stronger, and the monster had nowhere to hide.

Faced with this overwhelming power, it had nowhere to hide. Sure enough, it could only fight with all its might, using every trick in the book. But even so, it was still no match for the female head of the family. All its actions had no deterrent effect on her; on the contrary, it was increasingly at a disadvantage. It couldn't understand how the female head of the family had managed it, and its heart was filled with bewilderment.

"With such immense strength, aren't you afraid of attracting envy and resentment? You're fighting so desperately just because you don't like me. But is it really worth going to such lengths for Yang Ling?!" it roared.

"Do you think that kid will remember your kindness? Why don't we join forces? We'll definitely become the strongest then. Wouldn't that be better?" The female head of the family looked at it, finding its endless chatter annoying and irritating.

"You're being too noisy. Who gives you the right to speak here? Shut up! Otherwise, don't blame me for being rude. You should know I don't have that much patience!" she said, gritting her teeth, her eyes full of disdain.

The next second, the female patriarch used all her skills, and with her relentless efforts, the demonic beast instantly fell silent. She breathed a sigh of relief; thankfully, it was just a hair's breadth away from escaping. Meanwhile, Yang Ling had also fought several rounds with the demonic beasts, most of which were now scattering in all directions.

"I've already gotten the item for you, hurry up..." the female patriarch said coldly. This unleashed power, if mastered, would surely propel someone to a higher realm, making them a powerful figure. Yang Ling looked up at the demon crystal and began absorbing it.

None of them noticed that Yang Ling was faintly emanating a murderous aura, but no one perceived it. Yang Ling, however, could sense that this was the power he had longed for.

Meanwhile, in the spirit world.

"Old Bodhi, let me tell you, a wisp of my soul has already escaped. How long do you think you can suppress me with the little life you have left? Do you think your strength has increased after all these years?!"

"Are you really planning to wait for death? Or do you really not want to live anymore? If you don't want to live, I can send you on your way!" he shouted. The old man Bodhi, however, ignored his words and remained calm and composed.

"Old man, how about we cooperate? After we cooperate, we can create better opportunities, and I'll give you some good stuff then, is that alright? What else are you dissatisfied with? Just say it! I've already said so much, what else could you possibly be unhappy about!" He was extremely displeased. He had finally escaped, but this old man was actually using his own life force to trap him here; it was utterly despicable. The Bodhi elder didn't take his words to heart at all; to be precise, he didn't listen to them at all. (End of Chapter)