Chapter 325: Just Say It, and I’ll Give It

F-Rank’s rewards were pretty ordinary—each person only got a single Spirit Nurturing Pill as a consolation prize.

They were completely baffled, though.

None of them had any clue how they managed to clear this mission.

“Could it be that Brother Shi Xin took down Jiu Xingkong all by himself?”

Ji Nian said instinctively.

Zhang Shuzhou and the others exchanged glances, then shook their heads with a smile.

“I admit Brother Shi Xin’s skills are impressive. He might not be in the top ten of the Divine Realm Level Ranking, but he’s probably close.

And he’s definitely stumbled into some lucky breaks—his base stats are no joke, especially his Agility; it’s got to be sky-high.”

“But.”

Zhang Shuzhou shook his head lightly: “Based on the dungeon difficulty the system gave us, Jiu Xingkong’s strength is at the very least Upper Sixth-Rank.

Shi Xin couldn’t have taken him out one-on-one.”

The others nodded in agreement.

“Whatever the case, we cleared this dungeon without losing anything, and we even got a Spirit Nurturing Pill out of it.”

Zhang Shuzhou’s eyes glinted:

“Most importantly, we’ve bought ourselves nearly a month more to train and level up!”

“Exactly!”

The group’s eyes lit up.

Everyone had access to the basic White Bone Cavern Dungeon.

But this Devour Heaven Palace dungeon was theirs alone.

With the remaining time, they could focus on grinding levels or training their internal techniques and martial arts techniques.

“Should we head into the city to find Shi Xin?”

One player suggested: “Should we regroup?”

“Jiu Xingkong’s dead, but we’re still wanted by the Heavenly Wolf Guard on that side. We can’t go into the city.”

Ji Nian said: “Let’s push deeper inland. With Jiu Xingkong gone, the Heavenly Wolf Guard will probably chase us even harder.

Shi Xin’s identity hasn’t been exposed, so there’s no need to worry about him.”

……

Yang Ling had already returned to the courtyard where he was staying.

Zhang Hongyu and the others were startled at first, then grew a bit suspicious.

“Senior Brother Yang, weren’t you just going after Jiu Xingkong?”

As he spoke, he noticed a black bag in Yang Ling’s hand, with a faint hint of bloody scent wafting from it.

“Could he have gone to the butcher’s market for meat?”

The group exchanged skeptical looks, not even considering any other possibility.

After all, the round trip had been way too fast.

Yang Ling tossed the black bag to Zhang Hongyu:

“Inside is Jiu Xingkong’s head.”

The courtyard fell into dead silence.

Zhang Hongyu found it hard to believe. He instinctively reached in and pulled out a head with blood oozing from its seven orifices.

Part of Jiu Xingkong’s skull was caved in from the kick.

His eyes were wide open, smeared with a layer of blood, making him look utterly savage.

Zhang Hongyu’s body trembled in fright, nearly losing his grip.

The others crowded in to examine it, unable to suppress a sharp intake of breath.

There was no doubt—this was Jiu Xingkong’s head!

They couldn’t be mistaken!

Judging by the state of it, Jiu Xingkong had been beaten to a pulp right before death!

“Senior Brother Yang… did you kill him?”

Zhang Hongyu stammered.

The others’ gazes toward Yang Ling had completely changed.

In the Rong State’s martial world, excluding the first-rate sects, Jiu Xingkong was firmly among the top of the Second-Rate ranks as the strongest Upper Sixth-Rank!

For their Senior Brother to bring back his head in such a short time meant his strength far exceeded what they’d imagined.

Even the three strongest chief disciples of Devour Heaven Palace probably wouldn’t be a match for him.

“Back to the sect.”

Yang Ling didn’t say another word.

……

Rong State, Yunwen Provincial Capital, Suyang Prefectural Capital.

“So the Devour Heaven Palace was here… no wonder the Swallowing Heaven Golden Sword ended up in the Great Yan Sword Sect’s auction…”

Yang Ling suddenly understood.

He had arrived at a familiar place—the Great Yan Sword Sect.

But at this time, the plaque hanging above the mountain gate read: Devour Heaven Palace.

Until now, he’d never imagined that the Great Yan Sword Sect’s grounds had once been the ruins of the Devour Heaven Palace.

In the main meeting hall.

Yang Ling stood at the head of eleven people, all standing straight and tall.

Over a dozen Tai Chi Chairs were set up inside the hall, all occupied.

Every one of them was a mountain chief of a certain peak within the Devour Heaven Palace.

Their cultivation levels were all at the Fifth-Rank.

Most were Lower Fifth-Rank, a couple were Middle Fifth-Rank, and only one was Upper Fifth-Rank, sitting in the foremost seat.

“According to the backstory Zhang Hongyu and the others shared, the Devour Heaven Palace at this time has one Palace Master and thirteen mountain chiefs.”

“Each mountain chief corresponds to a Fifth-Rank expert. In the martial world, they’re called Lesser Masters, capable of severed limb regeneration.”

“As for that Palace Master, the leader of the Devour Heaven Palace, they should be a Fourth-Rank Grandmaster?”

Yang Ling kept his eyes forward but was constantly observing everyone in the hall.

Behind each mountain chief stood a few disciples—these were likely the elite mobs of the Devour Heaven Palace.

Among them, a few had cultivation levels reaching Upper Sixth-Rank, and since Yang Ling’s arrival, the three had been staring at him.

“Lin Zhen, chief of Flying Dragon Mountain; Huo Yunzhu, chief of Stone Cavern Mountain; Chi Ling, chief of Pudu Mountain.”

Yang Ling had a clear picture in his mind. If he got the chance to become the Palace Master’s personal disciple, these three would be his biggest obstacles.

Luckily, he’d already checked their stats. Only Lin Zhen was comparable to Jiu Xingkong.

The other two were weaker, on the same level as Mingxin.

“I still have enough time to practice the Great-Grade Azure Dragon Force a bit.

Even if I can’t reach Flawless Proficiency, just getting to Comprehensive Mastery will net me 15 free attribute points and a 60-point Boost to Strength.”

Thinking this, Yang Ling grew even more composed.

He had enough leverage now!

“That must be the chief of Qingyun Mountain… looks like he’s about to kick the bucket.”

Yang Ling’s peripheral vision landed on an old man who looked to be around seventy or eighty.

The man had a frail build, with base stats at the Lower Fifth-Rank level, similar to Xu Wuji’s tier.

But his vitality and spirit were far weaker than Xu Wuji’s. Yang Ling suspected his Vital Qi might already be running low.

Just then, footsteps echoed.

Everyone in the hall involuntarily lifted their heads to look at the newcomer.

The newcomer was a woman in her forties, still graceful and alluring, dressed in a purple Daoist robe. She walked straight to the main seat and sat down.

“We pay our respects to the Palace Master!”

The mountain chiefs and their attending disciples all bowed with clasped hands.

“The Sect Leader of the Devour Heaven Palace, just like King Zhao—I can’t see her status panel… she must be a Fourth-Rank Grandmaster.”

Yang Ling was also bowing.

“Yang Ling, chief disciple of Qingyun Mountain.”

The Devour Heaven Palace Master parted her vermilion lips, her voice cold and clear.

“Your disciple is here.”

Yang Ling stepped forward.

“You’ve got Jiu Xingkong’s head? Bring it here for me to see.”

Yang Ling immediately approached with the black bag.

The Devour Heaven Palace Master took out Jiu Xingkong’s head from the bag, examined it up and down, and a smile crept onto her face:

“Not bad, this is indeed Jiu Xingkong’s head.”

At this, the chief disciples from the various mountains showed mixed expressions.

Some wore amused smirks.

Others kept their faces blank.

A few looked grim.

Among them, Lin Zhen of Flying Dragon Mountain, Huo Yunzhu of Stone Cavern Mountain, and Chi Ling of Pudu Mountain were glaring at Yang Ling, their hostility undisguised.

“Yang Ling, you’ve rendered great service to our Devour Heaven Palace by killing that annoying bald monk.

Speak up—what reward do you want? Just say it, and I’ll give it.”

The Devour Heaven Palace Master said with a smile.

Instantly, the atmosphere in the hall turned a bit tense.

Yang Ling’s heart was unsettled. Anything he wanted?

“Your disciple wishes to become the Palace Master’s personal disciple!”

Yang Ling answered without hesitation.