Ascending to Immortality by Slaying Spirits

Chapter 116 - Rapid Advancement in Soul Refinement
A little earlier in time, after learning that Lin Le might have already entered the city, Yan Xuandong immediately mobilized his informants and personnel from the Demon Slayer Division to search for Lin Le's whereabouts.

Such a big move naturally did not escape Guan Wenzhong's notice.

Li Qi rushed into a courtyard and said to Guan Wenzhong, who was reading a book, "Boss, I have some news that I don't know if it's good or bad."

"What's wrong?" Guan Wenzhong asked, putting down his book.

"That man came to the county town, and somehow, that woman Song Shiyin found out about him," Li Qi said. "Then she reported it to Yan Xuandong, who, for some reason, flew into a rage and actually ordered the entire department to arrest him!"

"Oh?" Guan Wenzhong let out a soft exclamation. This wasn't bad news for him.

If Lin Le causes trouble in the county town, some restrictions will be much more lenient.

"Go and find out why Yan Xuandong is angry," Guan Wenzhong said.

“I know that.” Li Zheng, who was carrying a roasted chicken leg, came in and immediately raised his hand when he heard Guan Wenzhong ask this question.

"Tell me," Guan Wenzhong said.

Li Zhengdao said, "You know, Lord Qingye County, that was the Yan family's private land, but now all the Yan family members there have been slaughtered!"

“No wonder.” Guan Wenzhong raised an eyebrow. He remembered that Yan Xuandong had some unclear interests in Qingye County.

Given Lin Le's temper, the wealthy gentry over there were probably slaughtered, so Yan Xuan Cave's business was obviously no good.

Other families will definitely take the opportunity to get a share, no wonder Yan Xuandong is so angry.

"Tell the guys in the team to behave themselves lately," Guan Wenzhong said. "Since Yan Xuandong can't find anyone, he might take his anger out on us."

“Boss, that’s not right. Isn’t that case handled by that woman Song Shiyin?” Li Zheng said. “If we’re going to vent our anger, we should vent it on her.”

"Who knows?" Guan Wenzhong said. "Being careful won't hurt."

"Yes." Li Zheng and Li Qi nodded.

After finishing his shift, Guan Wenzhong returned home and learned that Lin Le had taken the Cloud Soaring Qi. He couldn't help but frown: "Did he say where he went?"

"No," the butler shook his head.

"Alright then." Guan Wenzhong nodded. "Just pretend you've never met this person today."

"Yes." The butler nodded, but was surprised; the man's identity was indeed extraordinary.

Looking at the night sky, Guan Wenzhong muttered to himself, "Let them make a scene, let them make a scene, the bigger the better."

But the next day, Guan Wenzhong's face turned grim because they found clues about Lin Le at Yanxuan Cave.

Guan Wenzhong never expected that Lin Le would be so carefree, walking around the county town with his real face on display. However, after learning more about the situation, he breathed a sigh of relief.

Because the person had already left the city.

In the east of the city, Yan Xuandong looked at the old man with a face full of pockmarks and said, "Pockmarked Huang, you said he might have gone to Chunsun County."

“Yes.” Huang Mazi nodded. “He specifically inquired about my shipment yesterday. I think it might be very important to him, so he probably went to Chunsun County first.”

At this moment, a junior officer from the Demon Slayer Division also ran over, cupped his fists to Yan Xuandong, and said, "Lord Yan, we have investigated and confirmed that a man and a woman did indeed rent a carriage and leave yesterday."

Yan Xuandong's expression was icy. He waved his sleeve and said, "Wei Shanhe, Chi Daoqi, gather your centurions, prepare the supplies, and come with me to Chunsun County!"

"Yes." The two people whose names were called nodded reluctantly.

Because they're just here to coast along, not on official business.

But what can you do when Yan Xuandong is the boss?

Guan Wenzhong, standing at the back, was also very unwilling, because nominally he was still Chi Daoqi's subordinate.

If Chi Daoqi is going, he will definitely go too.

However, by noon, Yan Xuandong's face was contorted with anger as he looked at the two letters that had been delivered. This was because Wei Shanhe and Chi Daoqi had both used the excuse of suffering a qi deviation during practice and needing rest to avoid him.

Fortunately, all of their centurions came—oh no, there was one person who didn't come.

"Where is Guan Wenzhong!" Yan Xuandong asked, suppressing his anger.

One of the centurions said with a forced smile, "Commander Guan said he suffered a qi deviation during his training and needs to rest, so he asked for leave and won't be coming!"

Yan Xuandong's face immediately darkened, as if water could drip from it: "Men, bring Guan Baihu over here. Today I want to see if he's truly gone mad from his cultivation or if he's just faking it!"

Seeing Yan Xuandong's gloomy expression, no one dared to refuse and immediately invited Guan Wenzhong over.

Soon, Guan Wenzhong, pale-faced, was helped over by Li Zheng and Li Qi.

He asked in a weak voice, "Lord Yan, what is it?"

"I heard you took sick leave, so I came to see if it's true." Yan Xuandong said with a forced smile as he approached Guan Wenzhong.

"I'm truly sorry," Guan Wenzhong said. "I accidentally suffered a qi deviation while sparring with Commander Chi. If Lord Yan wishes to see this, should we also invite Commander Chi over to ensure fairness?"

The implication was clear: so what if I'm pretending? You're the one who can mess with me and Chi Daoqi.

Chi Daoqi! Yan Xuandong gritted his teeth. He hadn't expected Guan Wenzhong to get involved with Chi Daoqi, even though the two had been like strangers before.

The problem now is that he really can't do anything to Chi Daoqi, and the Yan and Chi families are not on good terms.

"Hmph!" Yan Xuandong flicked his sleeve. "Then you should take good care of your injuries!"

"Yes, Lord Yan," Guan Wenzhong said, inwardly scoffing.

The genius had already dealt with Lin Le, that killer star, and now that he had slaughtered an entire county, his strength must have increased dramatically. He must be crazy to go and slaughter him.

So he specifically spent money to bribe Chi Daoqi to stay away with him.

Watching Yan Xuandong leave, Guan Wenzhong smacked his lips, wondering if that kid could kill the old man. If he died, he could try to climb the ranks.

As for Lin Le's death, it doesn't matter much, since he didn't suffer any major loss anyway.

On the other side, Lin Le was meditating and refining his soul.

After introspection, one seeks outward, and this state involves the five senses—form, sound, smell, taste, and touch.

As mentioned before, the Heavenly Gate Path is not actually a traditional cultivation method; it's just that geniuses have brought forward the cultivation process.

The five senses correspond to the cultivation of the soul in the Golden Core stage. Once the five senses are mastered, breaking through to the Nascent Soul stage becomes a piece of cake.

Because after reaching the Nascent Soul stage, one must begin cultivating the soul and spiritual realm, which is closely related to the five senses, the soul refinement stage is considered the end.

What Lin Le is doing now is to complete the entire Soul Refining Path before entering the Foundation Establishment stage, laying the most solid foundation.

This wasn't difficult for him, since he still had over three thousand merits from the Underworld to squander, and he had also confirmed with a Lotus Seed from the Underworld that he could refine his soul in that environment.

Even with the replenishment of Soul-Strengthening Dew, he would be exhausted for half a day after just one refining session.

Looking at the half-disappeared Soul Dew on the lotus leaf, Lin Le felt somewhat grateful to Huai Zigui in Heiling County.

If he hadn't cultivated such a large ghost-raising sect as the Yin Ghost Sect, he wouldn't have had so many resources for soul refining.

"Almost there, one or two more times will be enough."

Lin Le thought to himself.

Nourished by the twelve-story Heavenly Gate, he broke through two senses in his soul refinement. After consuming one Earthly Lotus Seed, he broke through another sense. Including the initial form, he now possesses form, sound, smell, and taste, only lacking the final touch.

(End of this chapter)