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

Back when he first came to the Qin family, he was questioned and looked down upon by many people, while his friends were loved and respected.

"As long as your strength isn't as weak as I imagine, I can guarantee your safety and even persuade the elders to let you join the family!"

Meanwhile, in another scene...

Shen Yue followed cautiously behind Yang Ling and asked softly:

Where are you planning to go?

"Naturally, I'll go find your family head. He's been in seclusion for a long time. Don't you want to see him?" Yang Ling's response made Shen Yue suspicious. Why did these words sound a little strange coming from a man? What did Yang Ling mean by that?

"Take me to your family head!" Yang Ling's expression was serious. He suspected the family head was secretly plotting something and was determined to find out the truth, no matter what. Shen Yue's face changed drastically upon hearing Yang Ling's words, and she hurriedly said:

"Young Master Zhao, please don't make things difficult for me. Family rules forbid anyone from disturbing the patriarch's seclusion; otherwise, I'll be expelled from the family!" Yang Ling waved his hand, knowing Shen Yue wouldn't take him, but he remembered the patriarch's seclusion was nearby. Yang Ling easily found the patriarch's location, and Shen Yue quickly followed, unable to resist saying:
"You'd better not waste your energy. The patriarch's secluded place is heavily guarded, and he has also set up a barrier so that no one can enter!" Yang Ling seemed to have heard a joke and ignored Shen Yue.

"You've talked quite a bit on this journey, and your attitude towards me is different from others. Why don't I give you a high-level cultivation technique? It'll suit you perfectly!" Yang Ling had countless high-level techniques like this; they were nothing to him. But in Shen Yue's eyes, they were priceless. She was completely stunned. How could he give away such a high-level cultivation technique so casually? Yang Ling was incredibly generous!
The way she looked at Yang Ling also changed.

At this moment, the inner sect elder was still immersed in shock, unable to recover for a long time. Ever since Qin Zhen's defeat at Yang Ling's hands, he sighed helplessly, lamenting the gradual decline of his entire family. The demonic beasts came with overwhelming force, and it was only Yang Ling who held them off. How many scornful looks did their families suffer while hiding in the shadows? Not only did Qin Zhen fail to defeat Yang Ling, but he was also defeated, and his status plummeted. The inner sect elder knew all too well that Qin Zhen's strength was far inferior to Yang Ling's.

What surprised him even more was that after the former patriarch regained power, he turned a blind eye to the matter, as if Qin Zhen was not his son. Upon learning of this, the patriarch simply went into seclusion, ignoring everything. Now that the outer sect elder had brought up the matter again, the inner sect elder felt a chill run down his spine.

"By the way, where is he now? How did he come back?"

"Hurry up and tell me! I feel like he came with a lot of force, he must have a purpose, like he's here to settle scores!" The inner sect elder's guess was correct, Yang Ling did indeed come for this reason.

"He came with great force. I suspect he's here to see the patriarch. What does he want? Let's go and see!" The inner sect elder hurriedly led his men over.

Yang Ling arrived at a certain place and, as expected, sensed the aura of a barrier, an aura he recognized very well. Just then, several young men emerged from the barrier, staring at Yang Ling with menacing expressions. Yang Ling recognized these men; they had once been fellow disciples and possessed considerable talent.

"My fellow disciples, it's been a long time! I didn't expect you to have forgotten me. I'm truly disappointed." When they saw Yang Ling, their hearts tightened and their faces turned pale.

No one expected Yang Ling to return, and they were speechless for a moment.

"Yang Ling, why did you come back at this time? Now that you're back, don't make things difficult for us. We are here on the orders of the family head to guard this place, and we will not allow anyone to enter!"

“That’s right, for the sake of our past camaraderie, please let us go!” Yang Ling waved his hand; he had no deep-seated hatred for them. Since that was the case, they would simply step aside. He had intended to spare their lives, but they stood motionless. Yang Ling gritted his teeth, drew his sword, and the tip was only an inch from their chests. They were terrified and retreated hastily. Yang Ling’s strength was too great! When the inner sect elders arrived and saw this scene, they quickly tried to stop Yang Ling:

"You've just returned, don't go on a killing spree!"

"You should all leave now, there's no need to stay here any longer!" Yang Ling nodded to the inner sect elder. He remembered this person somewhat, after all, he had helped him a lot when he left the family, and had even escorted him away.

"Why didn't you tell me you were coming back this time?" The inner sect elder asked with a smile, wanting to get an explanation. Yang Ling swallowed back the words he was about to say, then, as if he had thought of something, said:

"Actually, as you know, I didn't come back for anything major. I just wanted to find Patriarch Qin and get to the bottom of why he colluded with the Dark Gate!"

"He was the one who harmed Saint Xieyun! His actions are unforgivable! I'm here today to uphold justice. I'm sworn enemies with someone like him! Today, I'm going to take his life!" Yang Ling said, each word distinct. The inner sect elder gasped, realizing it really was him! He was more surprised than anything else; who could have imagined this? The inner sect elder calmly withdrew his gaze; in truth, he had already guessed.

"So what should we do next?" he asked, looking at Yang Ling. Yang Ling distanced himself from the inner sect elder, knowing the elder must already be aware of the situation. He was certain that the old man was currently in seclusion healing his injuries.

He was determined to rush in and get to the bottom of this. Seeing Yang Ling about to enter, the inner sect elder asked in confusion:

"Should we take you in with us? But we still need to be careful. Even injured, that man's strength shouldn't be underestimated. Plus, if he really is colluding with the Dark Sect, his strength must be considerable now!" Yang Ling smiled and directly broke the barrier. This barrier was easy for him; he had his own way of dealing with it. Looking at Yang Ling's back, they understood his meaning. Sure enough, Yang Ling was very strong, able to break the barrier in one fell swoop. They definitely couldn't have done it.

Upon entering, Yang Ling was surprised to find another layer of barrier inside. Looking at the person before him, he saw a ferocious face, radiating a thick aura of killing intent. At this moment, the man, half-human and half-beast, roared like a savage beast:
"I will definitely take your life!" Yang Ling looked at him calmly.

This person brought this upon himself; it's not surprising that he did such a thing. As for his collusion with the Dark Gate, Yang Ling fell into deep thought; the people of the Dark Gate would definitely stir up trouble.

Yang Ling clenched his fists, his heart filled with shock and anger. He never expected that person would do so many heinous things.

No wonder he always made things difficult for him and couldn't tolerate him. As he thought about it, Yang Ling seemed to suddenly realize something.

He sensed that the Dark Gate members were not alone; judging from the lingering, intense aura, they hadn't been gone long. Thinking this, Yang Ling frowned deeply. The Dark Gate members were truly omnipresent. It now seemed their strength far exceeded his expectations; with his current abilities, he was utterly incapable of rescuing the trapped individuals. Moreover, if Venerable Bodhi left to deal with the Dark Gate, those imprisoned in the Spirit Realm might seize the opportunity to escape. Once they escaped, the world would surely descend into chaos.

Yang Ling looked around and muttered, "That old guy must have run away."

He felt the old man must have left behind a lot, so he searched everywhere, but found nothing useful. Finally, Yang Ling turned to leave, but in the next second, a dark shadow suddenly rushed towards him. Yang Ling reacted quickly, instantly drawing his sword and thrusting it forward. Unexpectedly, such pure primordial power remained here; this must have been set up by the old man to kill him, but now he had absorbed it.

Yang Ling's eyes lit up; this power could help him improve his strength. When he came out, several elders hurriedly came to greet him, which surprised Yang Ling.

"Why are you all waiting here, elders? I just went in to take a look. I'm so sorry to have kept you waiting!" Yang Ling's words came from the bottom of his heart. After all, these elders had always treated him quite well, and he was also aware of their strength.

"After you went in, there was a sudden, loud noise. What happened? How is that old man?" an elder asked anxiously. Yang Ling pondered for a moment and then said:
"That old guy ran away a long time ago; he must have received advance notice!"

"Don't worry, that old fellow has been bewitched by the Dark Gate and won't be coming back!" Several elders sighed upon hearing this. The Qin family was originally a powerful clan, but now it has fallen to such a state, with even its last member gone.

Without this person, the Qin family's status will surely plummet. What should we do? They looked at each other, and Yang Ling saw through their thoughts and guessed what they were worried about.

“Young Master Zhao, as you know, our Qin family desperately needs help. Currently, no one in the Qin family can shoulder the responsibility. We need more people to rebuild the family, and more importantly, we need a leader!” an elder said, each word deliberate. He bore the weight of the family's fate on his shoulders; this responsibility was unbearable and deeply worrying. But Yang Ling said he was powerless to help.

"I'm afraid I can't help with this. I'm not a member of the Qin family, and I have no direct kinship with them!"

"So, you understand what I mean..." The elders naturally understood Yang Ling's words, but there was still one way to go: they could bring back Qin Yixian, the young master of the Qin family. Qin Yixian was doing very well in the Yun family; if he was willing to return, the Qin family could be saved. Yang Ling understood Qin Yixian's thoughts; he knew that if Qin Yixian learned about what had happened to the family, he would definitely come back to help, after all, he was a member of the Qin family. As for the others, Yang Ling didn't know. He came back to his senses and said:

"If I had to choose, I'd still choose Qin Yixian. I've had a lot of contact with him, he's built his own family, and his strength is considerable, no less than anyone else's!" Actually, they had initially thought Qin Yixian was capable of becoming the family head, but the then-head of the family disagreed. Now, the Qin family's years of hard work are about to be destroyed, and they must bring Qin Yixian back. As long as Qin Yixian is willing to return, and Yang Ling is willing to help behind the scenes, the Qin family will have whatever they want. Yang Ling thought for a moment and then said:

"I just sensed the power of primordial energy inside. This thing isn't very useful to me, but it will definitely be very useful to Qin Yixian!"

"As long as he absorbs this source, he can use this power to increase his strength!" Yang Ling and Qin Yixian had supported each other all the way, and he respected Qin Yixian from the bottom of his heart. In his view, this opportunity was a good chance for Qin Yixian to advance. He hoped that Qin Yixian could become stronger. After discussing with the elders, Yang Ling left. However, the elders also knew about Yang Ling's killing of several families.

Yang Ling's actions demonstrated his power to them. They wondered whether they should seek refuge with him. After all, demonic beasts weren't so scary; Yang Ling was truly ruthless, not only killing entire families but also seizing their property—something even demonic beasts wouldn't do. As for the matter of Venerable Bodhi, they had heard of him. It turned out Venerable Bodhi had always stayed in the Spirit Realm; they had assumed he didn't want to leave the world, but it turned out to be for this reason.

The disciples greatly admired Venerable Bodhi, but harbored some resentment towards their family. They thought back to their previous life-or-death struggle with Yang Ling, and what good outcome it ultimately yielded?
As soon as Yang Ling arrived in the Spirit Realm, he went to find Venerable Bodhi. Venerable Bodhi had two disciples who had rushed back to the Spirit Realm after learning of his misfortune. Upon seeing Yang Ling, they greeted him. They had heard of Yang Ling's previous visits and, having no conflict with him, saw no need to antagonize him.

"We know what happened before, and we are very grateful for what you did!" they said to Yang Ling. Yang Ling looked at them and nodded, recognizing their identities. He could sense that these two were quite powerful, and their auras were from the same lineage as Bodhi Venerable.

"I never expected that Venerable Bodhi would expend his own life essence to suppress this! However, I can sense that the energy here is still strong, enough to last for a while longer, but this is not a long-term solution. I will definitely find a way to rescue him!" Hearing Yang Ling's words, the two men became extremely agitated. Venerable Bodhi was their master, and they had always regarded him as a father. If Yang Ling could truly rescue their master, they were willing to impart all their knowledge to him.

"Young Master Zhao, can you really rescue our master?"

"If possible, we can give you our treasures. What do you think?" one of them said directly. Yang Ling was surprised by their generosity and their willingness to give away their treasures so readily.

Then, they asked questions with faces full of curiosity.

"By the way, may I ask what brings Young Master Zhao to the Spirit Realm this time?"

"I've heard about Venerable Bodhi, and I know you have considerable knowledge of the Dark Gate, so I thought I'd come and see for myself!" As soon as Yang Ling finished speaking, their eyes showed more respect as they looked at him. In this critical moment, Yang Ling's willingness to step forward clearly indicated he wasn't a truly wicked person. Other families would have long since fled, and even the most powerful clans were unwilling to intervene against demonic beasts. (End of Chapter)