When it comes to cultivating immortality, it naturally starts with upgrading the herb garden.

Song Chen sat in a flying boat, flying over the sea at Wandaobo.

While flying on the wind is elegant, it is not as practical as flying boats in terms of spiritual energy consumption and speed.

Besides, he had just expended a great deal of spiritual energy, and he had important things to do next, so he should conserve it even more.

The tides have just passed this year.

The sea was calm and sparkling, and Wandaobo was peaceful. Occasionally, one or two fish would emerge from the water, only to dive back in for a breath of fresh air.

Song Chen headed towards One Finger Island, his intention clear—to annihilate the Zhang family.

It didn't take long; in less than half an hour, he arrived at One Finger Island.

Song Chen arrived above the Zhang family mansion, looking down from above, and felt a surge of emotion:

"Last time it took me two hours to get here, this time it only took a quarter. The difference in cultivation level is just too great!"

He landed on the flying boat, no longer concealing his aura, revealing the terrifying power of a ninth-level Qi Refining cultivator.

"May I ask what brings you here, fellow traveler?"

A man dressed in a Taoist robe, bending over, sensed the presence and immediately came out of the mansion to greet them with a smile.

Behind him were several servants dressed in black and white, following closely behind.

This person is Zhang Qian.

He was the first to sense the terrifying aura emanating from Song Chen and immediately came out to show goodwill.

Zhang Qian lowered his head, secretly sizing up Song Chen, thinking to himself, "This person is incredibly strong! I probably couldn't withstand even a single blow from him!"

Thinking of this, they became even more respectful.

Song Chen didn't look at Zhang Qian, but instead gazed at the mansion, his face showing concern as he asked, "Is this the Zhang family mansion?"

"I heard that the head of the Zhang family has been missing for a long time. Is that true?"

Zhang Qian noticed Song Chen's expression and felt a glimmer of hope. He immediately burst into tears.

"Yes! My father hasn't been with the Zhang family for four years!"

He raised his hand behind his back, and the servants behind him also began to cry and wail.

"Yes! Ever since the master was invited to defend against the tidal bore, he hasn't returned!"

"My lord! I heard we've encountered a powerful demon at the Foundation Establishment stage..."

Song Chen remained expressionless, his worry vanished, and asked:

"What's happening to the Zhang family's agents in various markets?"

Zhang Qian paused slightly, a hint of displeasure in his voice, before agreeing, "It's all good! It's all good! It's just..."

"Just what?" Song Chen narrowed his eyes.

Zhang Qian was in tears, crying even harder than before:

"But something major happened in Huanbei, and my Zhang family's representative couldn't take action, resulting in a significant reduction in profits; we're practically starving!"

Song Chen asked in surprise, "What's the big deal?"

For the past four years, Song Chen has been focusing on his cultivation, but he has not been working in isolation. He occasionally inquires about news from the outside world, but most of this news is related to Wanjing City on Fenghe Island, and very little about the outer islands. As a result, he knows nothing about any other towns and cities except Wanjing City!

Zhang Qian looked puzzled, and even his tears seemed to freeze for a moment:

"Fellow Daoist, are you unaware? This is a matter of utmost importance concerning the entire Wandaobo!"

Song Chen raised an eyebrow, curious:

"I have been in seclusion for the past few years. I just came out of seclusion and heard about the Zhang family's affairs, so I rushed here. Please tell me more about it."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Qian was overjoyed: "Isn't this an old friend of my father's!"

"There was a demonic cultivator in Huanbei who attempted to establish his foundation, but failed. He was attempting it using some kind of Soul Path, and he died along with 60% of the people on the island!"

Song Chen's expression remained unchanged, but he swallowed hard, and a figure inexplicably flashed through his mind.

"I see... That's truly frightening!"

The two exchanged a few more casual pleasantries, mostly about trivial matters, and at first glance, they really did seem to have a bit of a kinship connection!

Seeing that the atmosphere was right, Zhang Qian wiped away his tears and forced a smile:

"May I ask your relationship with my father?"

Upon hearing this, Song Chen smiled.

The sun was perfectly obscured by the clouds, and his thick, black hair cast a just-right shadow, making his smile appear both eerie and fierce.

Looking at this smile, Zhang Qian felt a bead of cold sweat appear on his forehead: "Fellow Daoist?"

"Don't be nervous, I have some connection with the Zhang family head," Song Chen said calmly.

Zhang Qian breathed a sigh of relief: "Fellow Daoist, you really scared me to death just now!"

Song Chen's smile widened even more: "What are you afraid of? I'm not going to eat you!"

Zhang Qian wiped away a cold sweat, realizing that it was true; in broad daylight, it was impossible to actually make a move, and that they really treated the Lower Sword Sect as a mere decoration!

"Indeed! Does fellow Daoist have anything else? If not, I'll take my leave now."

Song Chen remained silent, simply observing Zhang Qian before him.

Zhang Qian was puzzled.

At this time.

A man, having traveled a great distance and sweating profusely, arrived at the Zhang family mansion and shouted:

"Second Young Master! Just now, the lights at the Wind Crane Island outpost went out! The blood lamps of the Steward and Madam Jiang also went out!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Qian jumped up: "What? Where's my brother? How is he?"

The male cultivator quickly replied, "Young Master's blood lamp is still lit, he should be alright!"

Zhang Qian nodded, his face full of worry, and turned to walk towards the mansion, looking as if he had important business to attend to.

"Fellow Daoist, I apologize! I have urgent matters to attend to at home, so I must take my leave now!"

Song Chen remained motionless, standing in place, watching the large group of people walk inside.

"Where's the blood needle? I want the murderer to pay with his blood!" Zhang Qian shouted angrily.

Without a word, the male cultivator placed a blood-red pointer in his hand and offered it before Zhang Qian:

"Here I am! Second Young Master!"

Zhang Qian took the blood needle, his face contorted in a grimace.

This blood needle is an essential item for all major families. It is made from a drop of blood essence from a family member and has the effect of identifying people who share the same blood essence.

Generally speaking, murderers will carry some of the victim's blood and vital energy.

This makes the tracking method invincible, but it is limited by the fact that the ownerless essence and blood have a limited lifespan. After one day, it will be completely depleted, dissipate into the world, and cause the pointer to become ineffective.

Zhang Qian angrily looked at the pointer.

He wanted to see just who dared to kill a member of the Zhang family!

No matter how Zhang Qian fiddled with it, the pointer kept pointing behind him.

This left him somewhat puzzled.

In most cases, the direction of the blood needle will change as the holder moves, which is one of the main reasons why the Zhang family used blood needles to locate the murderer.

Precise!

But something is wrong right now. The pointer is not changing at all and keeps pointing behind Zhang Qian. It's obviously broken!

Zhang Qian clicked his tongue in disapproval and cursed, "Damn it! He messed up at the crucial moment!"

"What's wrong?" Song Chen walked up behind him without him noticing.

"I apologize for the faux pas, fellow Daoist. These blood needles were originally intended to locate the murderers who killed my family, but now they've failed. I'm heartbroken that I can't avenge my family!"

Zhang Qian spoke freely, revealing the frustrations in his heart.

Song Chen smiled and said, "Perhaps I can fix it!"

"Really?" Zhang Qianlong was overjoyed, and his goodwill towards Song Chen increased even further!

Zhang Qian felt something was off.

He noticed that the servant beside him was looking at Song Chen with extreme fear and a sense of distance, for some reason.

"What are you doing? Is this how you thank your benefactor? Your salaries will be halved this month!"

Upon discovering this, Zhang Qian immediately expressed his anger, then smiled at Song Chen and said, "Don't mind it! The servants in the house are just being ignorant!"

"It's nothing! It's nothing!" Song Chen waved his hand, revealing a sinister smile.

Zhang Qian took out the blood needle: "Fellow Daoist, look, no matter how you position this blood needle, it always points to..."

Song Chen turned his head, his gaze turning cold as he stared at Zhang Qian.

Zhang Qian seemed lost in thought, his back drenched in sweat, and his hands began to tremble violently.

Song Chen didn't care at all, a smile playing on his lips, and leaned close to Zhang Qian to ask:

"Who are you referring to?"