Courtyard House: My Time Travel is a Bit Too Strong

Especially the Imperial Preceptor, Pudu Cihang, whose cultivation level firmly holds the rank of Grandmaster—

It would be truly foolish not to use such readily available assistance.

Having made up his mind, Lin Quan spoke up during the quiet moment when Yi Ye Zhi Qiu was silent:

"Fellow Daoist, do you have a specific destination in mind when you descend the mountain this time?"

Without a second thought, Yi Yezhiqiu patted his chest and declared loudly:

"We cultivators should naturally slay demons and subdue evil spirits, uphold righteousness and dispel wickedness!"

Lin Quan smiled slightly: "What a coincidence—I happen to know of a great demon's whereabouts."

"See that man? Fu Tianchou, a high-ranking official of the Great Zhou Dynasty, has been framed by treacherous officials and fallen to this state."

"The world is rife with evil spirits and chaos, and the root cause lies in the imperial court—"

"There is a great demon sitting beside the dragon throne, usurping power."

"Right now, the Great Zhou is in complete chaos. Of all the troubles, half of them are caused by this old monster stirring up trouble behind the scenes..."

As soon as Lin Quan finished speaking, Yi Ye Zhi Qiu's eyes lit up, and he involuntarily leaned forward slightly.

He was originally a direct disciple of Kunlun Mountain. When he came down the mountain, his master gave him three talismans and a Qingfeng sword, instructing him to slay evil spirits and uphold morality. Subduing demons and monsters was the life he was carrying on his shoulders!

Now I hear that the root of all unrest in the world is entrenched in the imperial court, disguised as the Grand Preceptor, secretly absorbing the dragon's energy...

If he doesn't know, then so be it;

Now that a hearing has been held, how can we pretend to be deaf and dumb and just turn around and leave?

A thought flashed through his mind, and he immediately cupped his hands in greeting, speaking as quickly as a taut bowstring: "Fellow Daoist, please wait! Tell me in detail about this demon's background—"

Lin Quan's lips curled slightly, a smile that didn't reach his eyes, but had already quietly surfaced.

Qiao Jingjing and the others stood to the side, their eyes met, and they lowered their eyes and covered their lips in tacit understanding.

That barely suppressed smile, like ripples spreading across spring water, quietly crept up to the corners of his eyes and brows.

Anyone with eyes can see that Lin Quan is using words to lure people in!

But Lin Quan didn't care at all, and just nodded slightly to Yi Ye Zhi Qiu: "Come on, let's talk somewhere else."

Yi Ye Zhi Qiu opened his mouth, his Adam's apple bobbed, but he didn't utter a single word. He just nodded slightly and followed Lin Quan to the corner.

After standing still, Lin Quan cut to the chase and said, "The Great Zhou National Preceptor, Pudu Cihang, is actually a thousand-year-old centipede spirit in disguise."

"Its body is a thousand joints, its poisonous flames corroding its bones. It steals the dynasty's fortune by borrowing the power of the court, all for the sake of shedding its skin and transforming into a dragon—just one step away from becoming a true dragon!"

"The entire court of officials has probably already had their marrow extracted and their souls refined by it, turning them into living puppets..."

"It's only a hair's breadth away from taking the form of a dragon, and with our current level of cultivation, we can't even lift its eyelids."

Lin Quan spoke frankly, without uttering a single falsehood.

Upon hearing this, Yi Yezhiqiu's face instantly darkened, and he even paused for a moment.

His eyes surged with surprise like a tidal wave, then quickly solidified into a cold, hard, iron-blue expression.

A thousand-year-old centipede, devouring dragon energy, controlling the court... I've never even seen such a monster before, let alone heard of it. It's only mentioned in three lines of small print in the forbidden scrolls of the Kunlun Scripture Pavilion!

Lin Quan is right—it's not that we don't want to manage it, it's that we really can't.

Even with his clear sword mind and innate Daoist talent, he felt a chill run from the soles of his feet straight to the top of his head.

Seeing his expression, Lin Quan's smile deepened, but his tone remained light: "What do you think, fellow Daoist? Should we act on behalf of Heaven and pull out this poisonous fang?"

"As long as we take down Pudu Cihang, at least half of the muddy waters of the Great Zhou can be cleared up."

With a "whoosh," Yi Ye Zhi Qiu suddenly looked up, her pupils contracting sharply, as if she had been nailed to the spot.

Those eyes clearly asked: Do you think I'm stupid, or do you think I have too much time on my hands?

Although he had just left the mountain gate, his eyes still held the purity of morning dew in the mountain stream, but that foolishness had long been dulled by three years of arduous training in Kunlun—dull, but not in his mind.

Even wild jackals know to avoid tiger dens, so why would he blindly rush into the dragon's mouth?

Seeing his frustrated and helpless expression, Lin Quan's ears burned slightly, and her smile faltered.

Ignoring all that, Yi Yezhiqiu gritted his teeth and decided to go all out: "To be honest, fellow Daoist..."

"According to what you just said, if I rush up now, I'm afraid I won't even be able to withstand a wisp of its demonic energy, and I'll turn into a dried-up corpse on the spot."

"I swore to vanquish demons and monsters, but I didn't swear to go and die."

Upon hearing this, Lin Quan's lips curled up, and his smile finally relaxed.

He stopped pressing for answers and changed the subject: "Then let's retreat first."

"it is good."

The group set off immediately. At Lin Quan's call, they filed out and stepped out of the overgrown, abandoned village.

With Qiao Jingjing's mental power paving the way and guiding the way, their steps were light and agile, and they didn't even raise a speck of dust.

In just half a day, the group arrived at the only small town a hundred miles away from Zhengqi Manor.

When Lin Quan and his group stepped into the town, they were met with a deathly silence and a chilling, corroded atmosphere.

Looking around, the houses were dilapidated, the streets and alleys were empty, and even the dust stirred up by the wind hung lazily in the air, refusing to fall to the ground.

The townspeople all looked ashen-faced and had empty eyes, like clay or wooden sculptures whose souls had been taken away.

No, it's worse than clay sculpture—it's a numbness that has been repeatedly crushed by time and suffering, a numbness that has long since lost its ability to feel pain.

When life loses its hope, the heart withers away. Humans are nothing more than breathing shells.

"well……"

Lin Quan's throat tightened, and he didn't utter a sound, but a heavy sigh had already been suppressed in his chest. The people behind him also lowered their eyes, some clenching their fists, and some quietly turning their faces away.

In chaotic times, human life is as cheap as autumn grass, easily broken by the wind.

Lin Quan shifted his gaze to Fu Qingfeng's face: "Qingfeng, what are you and Qinghe thinking?"

Fu Qingfeng paused, then slowly shook his head, his fingertips unconsciously digging into his palm: "It feels like there's a wet wad of cotton stuck in my chest."

"This is the world where evil spirits run rampant and officials suck blood."

"Evil creatures wreak havoc in the heavens, corrupt officials suck the marrow from the earth, and mountain spirits devour people..."

"Fate? It's long since worthless. We live one day at a time; every breath we take is an extra moment of endurance."

"Let's settle down first."

Before he finished speaking, he nodded slightly to Qiao Jingjing. She closed her eyes and focused her mind, her spiritual power spreading out like a fine spider web, and in a moment she locked onto the only shop in town that still had a wine flag hanging.

He exchanged a few honest words for a piece of silver, and with the boss's introduction, bought a small house with intact blue bricks and uncollapsed courtyard walls for one hundred taels of silver.

As soon as she stepped across the threshold, Qiao Jingjing flicked her fingertips, and her spiritual power swept through the hall and rooms like a gentle breeze—dust fell to the ground, cobwebs snapped in pieces, and the stove and windows were instantly spotless. The whole process took only a few dozen breaths.

Lin Quan then turned to Fu Qingfeng and said:

"You sisters can stay here for now."

"Rice, oil, salt, needles, thread, medicine—just ask if you need anything."

"Um."

Fu Qingfeng answered lightly, yet with remarkable composure.

Those trivial matters were nothing more than a matter of turning one's hand over one's hand in the eyes of Lin Quan and his companions.

Swah——

With a slight thought, Lin Quan flicked his sleeve, and pots, pans, coarse cloth bedding, oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar were piled up in half of the side room.

Fu Tianchou stood under the corridor, opening his mouth several times as if to speak, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down, but in the end he could only swallow a bitter taste.

Along the way, he had long since come to understand: his daughter was close to Lin Quan and the others, but in their eyes, he, as their father, was nothing more than an outsider who needed to be polite and courteous.