When Lin Qianshu heard his request, her expression shifted slightly—but she quickly regained composure.
"A few years ago, my master refined a single batch of Meridian-Nourishing Pills to heal my Seventh Martial Sister. Only two remain."
"But I have the authority to decide this matter. I can sell you one for fifteen hundred spirit stones."
Chen Nianzhi's eyes brightened—this was five hundred stones cheaper than he had budgeted for.
"Thank you, Senior. Truly."
"It's just business," Lin Qianshu replied with a small shake of her head. "No need to thank me."
"Wait here. I'll bring the pill."
Moments later, she returned with the Meridian-Nourishing Pill. The transaction was efficient and clean. After verifying the pill's authenticity, Chen Nianzhi couldn't help smiling.
"No matter what you say, Senior, I must thank you for this favor."
Lin Qianshu did not answer—she only offered him a gentle smile and said, "Go."
As Chen Nianzhi left Tianxu Pavilion, she glanced at his retreating figure, then turned and flew toward the peak of Tianxu Mountain.
At the summit, she landed outside a cave residence and bowed deeply.
"Disciple greets Master."
"Come in."
A voice echoed from within, and the defensive array opened. Lin Qianshu stepped inside and saw, seated ahead, a stunning young woman who looked no older than seventeen or eighteen.
Though she appeared youthful, this was the foremost Purple Mansion expert of Chu—Daoist Jiang.
Her true name was Jiang Linglong. Her origins were mysterious; rumor claimed she had come from the distant Eastern Sea.
Gifted beyond compare, she had mastered alchemy, formations, artifact smithing, talismans—skills ordinary cultivators spent a lifetime to grasp only one of. In all of Chu, her breadth of achievement was unmatched.
She looked young only because she reached Foundation Establishment early—her appearance had never changed since.
Jiang Linglong gave Lin Qianshu a faintly curious look.
"You came to see me. For what purpose?"
Lin Qianshu bowed again."Disciple acted on her own initiative and sold a Meridian-Nourishing Pill without your prior approval."
"This is no grave matter." Jiang Linglong smiled lightly. "Who bought it?"
"I didn't ask, but I can guess. In Yu County, the ones in dire need of that pill would only be the Chen clan."
"The Chen clan…" Jiang Linglong mused. "Three years ago, they bought a Foundation Establishment Pill from me. I wonder if they succeeded."
Lin Qianshu shook her head with a sigh."It seems not. Otherwise, they wouldn't have sent a mere Qi-Refining cultivator to buy medicine."
"The Chen family truly has endured hardship." Jiang Linglong sighed softly. "Sixty years ago, during the beast tide… for the sake of a single Violet Sun Jade, Wei Chongyang of Qingyang Sect stood by and watched, letting over a hundred Chen cultivators die under the beast horde."
"Later, that Violet Sun Jade passed from hand to hand until it eventually reached me. In a sense, the karmic debt of my Purple Mansion breakthrough is tied to the Chen clan."
Their conversation revealed a secret that would have terrified Chen Nianzhi.
He had long suspected the Chen clan had been framed in the past beast calamity—but he would never have imagined that Qingyang Sect was involved.
Qingyang Sect—one of the three great sects of Chu, guardians of a Golden Core elder. Compared to them, the Chen clan was barely more than a colony of ants.
"Though their tragedy was not directly your doing, and the Violet Sun Jade came from a Purple Mansion ape I slew…"
"Your selling them a Meridian-Nourishing Pill at cost is repayment enough for that old karma."
Jiang Linglong's expression softened."You did well."
—
After obtaining the pill, Chen Nianzhi did not linger. That very day, he set out toward Yu County.
Between Tianxu Mountain and Yu County stretched a hundred-thousand-li wilderness. Although no Purple Mansion beasts lived there, low-level beasts were everywhere—endless in number.
Despite two centuries of sweeping campaigns by Chu's great powers, the wilderness still teemed with monsters. Some regions even hid the occasional Foundation Establishment beast.
Avoiding territories that might harbor second-tier monsters, Chen Nianzhi spent several months traveling seventy or eighty thousand li.
One day, he stopped at the foot of a great mountain.
"This should be the place."
He compared the mountain range before him to the map in his hand and nodded slightly.
On his return route, he had deliberately taken a detour. He intended to investigate the cave estate marked on the complete map he had pieced together.
"There's a spirit vein here."
"According to the map… the cave should be somewhere on this mountain."
Pocketing the map, he began climbing.
Halfway up, the spiritual energy thickened. Following its source, he soon arrived before a weathered cave dwelling—its entrance overgrown with weeds.
"There's still an active formation inside…"
Chen Nianzhi's brows knitted together.
If this formation had been left behind by a senior cultivator, its depth was impossible to judge. With his current cultivation, barging in recklessly could be fatal.
The thought made him pause, unease rising.
"I'm carrying a Meridian-Nourishing Pill. The clan head's healing depends on this—I can't take unnecessary risks."
"With the formation's danger unknown, better to return to Qingyun Mountain… I can come back after reaching Foundation Establishment."
With that, he turned to descend the mountain.
That single moment of caution… spared him from disaster.
Inside the cave, three figures watched Chen Nianzhi with cold, murderous eyes.
Among them was the tall, thin cultivator who had sold him the first half of the map.
Seeing Chen Nianzhi preparing to leave, the thin man finally lost patience and turned anxiously to the leader.
"Big Brother, the fat sheep's right in front of us—are we seriously letting him walk away?"
"Damn it, the brat's too cautious," the leader snarled. "To hell with this."
With a curse, he strode out of the cave and hurled a flying sword at Chen Nianzhi.
The instant the blade whistled through the air, Chen Nianzhi reacted on pure instinct—activating his small green shield.
A sharp metallic clang rang out as the shield flared open, blocking the flying sword.
Whipping around, he saw the three men charging toward him.
His eyes narrowed—when he spotted the thin man among them, a chill ran through his heart.
"Luring prey… ambush… murder for treasure."
In just a heartbeat, he pieced together everything—and his blood ran cold.