Chapter 650: Mission (II)
As Lin Zheyu stepped out of the courtyard, a member of the Martial Hall approached and said respectfully, "Vice Hall Master Xiao, the alliance leader asked you to see him once you emerged from seclusion."
Lin Zheyu was momentarily taken aback. The elusive alliance leader, who was rarely ever seen, was finally willing to meet him. Despite having joined the Martial Alliance so long ago, he had never once met the alliance leader, making the man an exceedingly mysterious figure.
"Did the alliance leader say what he wanted to discuss?" Lin Zheyu asked curiously.
"No. But I would guess it has something to do with the Woo Family," the burly man replied.
"The Woo Family?" Lin Zheyu asked in confusion. "Did they come looking for me?"
It was only natural for him to suspect as much. Given the Woo Family's vindictive nature, beating the younger generation would inevitably bring out the older generation. Since they could not find the culprit who killed Woo Yiyan, they would come after Lin Zheyu regardless of whether he had anything to do with the matter.
"That's right. Some time ago, Woo Jin, the Fifth Elder of the Woo Family, came to Yanwu City and caused a disturbance. He wanted to take you back to the Woo Family for questioning, but the alliance leader turned him away. Oh, Senior Xia Ping was there as well," the burly man said.
He secretly studied Lin Zheyu out of the corner of his eye, wondering whether the death of Woo Yiyan, the Woo Family's genius, truly had something to do with him.
"I see. Did they fight? Was anyone injured?" Lin Zheyu asked.
"Senior Xia Ping exchanged a few moves with him, but it was only a clash of martial wills. Senior Xia Ping won. He originally intended to challenge that old bastard from the Woo Family to a battle to the death, but the alliance leader stopped him in time," the man explained.
"That's good to hear. Thank you for telling me, fellow friend." Lin Zheyu cupped his hands toward the man in gratitude.
"You're too courteous, vice hall master."
Lin Zheyu asked about the major events that had recently occurred within the Martial Alliance, then his figure flickered and vanished from the spot.
The alliance leader was at the Discussion Pavilion. Ever since his meeting with Woo Jin there, during which no one knew what they had discussed, Qin Hu had not left.
When Lin Zheyu arrived at the Discussion Pavilion, he found Qin Hu leisurely sipping tea. His expression was serene, his eyes slightly narrowed, and a faint smile rested on his face. He appeared to be an utterly ordinary middle-aged man. There was not the slightest trace of a powerful aura about him, making him seem no different from an ordinary person.
Lin Zheyu studied Qin Hu briefly before cupping his hands in greeting. "Greetings, alliance leader."
In Qin Hu's presence, Lin Zheyu did not dare probe him directly with his spiritual sense or golden Heavenly Eye, as doing so would be extremely impolite. However, Lin Zheyu's perception was extraordinarily powerful. Even without actively probing someone, he could still gauge the strength of another cultivator's aura. Yet he could sense nothing at all from Qin Hu. It was as though the unremarkable man before him was merely an ordinary middle-aged man who kept himself in good physical condition.
"Come, have a seat. I got this spirit tea from a friend in the Wei Family. Here, try it and see if it suits your taste," Qin Hu invited with a smile.
"Then it would be rude of me to refuse." Lin Zheyu smiled and made no attempt to stand on ceremony as he sat down across from Qin Hu.
It was indeed excellent tea. Its flavor was rich and mellow, its fragrance intense, and its aftertaste pleasantly sweet. The instant it entered his stomach, a refreshing coolness spread straight into his mind.
Lin Zheyu praised. "Excellent tea!"
"Haha, I'm glad you like it. Unfortunately, even if you do, I don't have any extra to give you," Qin Hu said with a hearty laugh.
"Has the Flamefire Token been useful?" Qin Hu asked with a smile.
"The Flamefire Token has been an enormous help to me. Thank you for granting it to me, Alliance Leader." Lin Zheyu cupped his hands and expressed his sincere gratitude.
Without the aid of the texts in the Martial Alliance's Library Pavilion, it would have been far too early for Lin Zheyu to create the Primordial Chaos True Art with his current foundation in martial cultivation.
"There's no need to be so formal. Just call me Qin Hu. If you hadn't delivered that item to Feng Xuanji last time, I fear my chances of surviving this ordeal would have been slim," Qin Hu said with a wistful sigh, his eyes deep and unfathomable.
The Heavenly Dao Sect was a peculiar sect. Its members believed in fate and placed great importance on karmic affinity. Qin Hu had dispatched more than twenty martial artists to deliver the mysterious Little Black Box and had even attempted to deliver it himself. Yet no matter what they did, none of them had been able to find Feng Xuanji.
In the words of the Heavenly Dao Sect, they lacked the necessary karmic affinity. Lin Zheyu alone had succeeded in delivering the Little Black Box to Feng Xuanji.
"Oh?" A trace of surprise arose in Lin Zheyu's heart.
Qin Hu had left much of what he said deliberately vague. Although Lin Zheyu was curious, Qin Hu clearly had no intention of elaborating, so it would be inappropriate for him to press the matter.
"I've already settled the matter with the Woo Family for you. Regardless of whether you had anything to do with Woo Yiyan's death, you bear no trace of the Woo Family's bloodline curse, so the matter has nothing to do with you," Qin Hu said calmly. His meaning was clear. Even if Lin Zheyu had been involved, he would be presumed innocent without any evidence.
Lin Zheyu cupped his hands in gratitude and said, "Thank you, Alliance Leader."
"Still, you shouldn't let down your guard. The Woo Family is notoriously vindictive. They may not make a move against you openly, but there is no telling what they might do in secret."
Qin Hu shook his head, a trace of disdain appearing in his eyes. He clearly looked down on the Woo Family for such behavior.
"Thank you for the warning, Alliance Leader," Lin Zheyu replied gratefully.
"All right, let's get down to business. I assume you've heard about what has been happening at the demon cave recently. The situation there has taken a turn for the worse, and the demon realm's attacks on the node guarded by the Martial Alliance have grown increasingly fierce.
"Bai Lin was previously responsible for defending it, but he has been injured and will be unable to continue guarding the demon cave for the time being. Everyone else is either occupied with another assignment, in seclusion, or not strong enough. That leaves you as the most suitable candidate." Qin Hu took a sip of spirit tea before asking calmly, "Are you willing to go?"
"When would I need to leave? I still have a few matters to take care of, so if it is too urgent, I'm afraid I won't be able to accept," Lin Zheyu replied after a moment of thought.
The demon cave was already part of his plans. Divine patterns had originally been derived from the demonic patterns of yao, making demonic patterns no less important than the shamanic patterns of the Shamanic Dao. The demon cave was an ideal place to hunt yao and study demonic patterns. However, powerful experts abounded there, including not only those from Great Wei, but also ancient yao, barbarians, members of heretical sects, yao, and many others.
Such an environment was unsuitable for Lin Zheyu to push beyond his limits and obtain Origin Force. He had originally planned to wait until he developed a technique that would allow him to unite his essence, qi, and spirit, elevate his soul to that mysterious frequency, and obtain Origin Force without havin/g to push beyond his limits. Only then would he go and guard the demon cave. Unfortunately, he had yet to succeed.
The mysterious frequency his spiritual soul reached during sublimation as he pushed beyond his limits was simply too profound. Despite studying it countless times with his spiritual Heavenly Eye, Lin Zheyu had still been unable to grasp it.
Unless he pushed beyond his limits, there was no way for him to elevate his spiritual soul to that mysterious frequency. This time, however, that was not why Lin Zheyu wanted to delay his departure. He needed time to dispose of some of the 'stolen goods' in his possession, then purchase large quantities of the treasure herbs required to cultivate the Primordial Chaos True Art.
"It's not particularly urgent. A major offensive broke out recently, and Great Wei dispatched a large number of elite troops from the Demon-Suppressing Army as reinforcements. There shouldn't be any problems for the next two or three months," Qin Hu said.
"That's good. Two months will be enough. I'll accept the assignment," Lin Zheyu replied with a nod.
"Good, then it's settled. Although you've been part of the Martial Alliance for so long, this is still our first time meeting. Do you have any questions regarding martial cultivation? I may be able to offer you some guidance," Qin Hu said with a faint smile.
Lin Zheyu's expression brightened upon hearing this. While developing the Primordial Chaos True Art, he encountered numerous difficulties and was forced to find indirect ways around them. Only after overcoming those obstacles had he finally managed to create the technique in its current form.
"Thank you, Alliance Leader. I happen to have encountered a few problems and would appreciate your guidance." Lin Zheyu cupped his hands, then began explaining the difficulties he had encountered one by one, progressing from the simpler questions to the more profound.
At first, Qin Hu answered with ease. Gradually, however, he began spending longer and longer contemplating each question, his heart filling with confusion.
Qin Hu could not help but grumble inwardly, Just what kind of path has this brat embarked upon? Why are all his questions so strange and unusual? They're far too difficult...
He had already spent several hours pondering the final question. He wanted to admit that he did not know the answer, but felt that would be too embarrassing. Yet when he tried to offer some insight, he had no idea where to begin.