Chapter 559 - Another Way to Make a Fortune

Inside a quiet meditation room in the Emotionless Sect, Ling Ya sat cross-legged with his eyes half-closed. Wisps of qi swirled faintly around him, giving him the appearance of a transcendent being beyond the mortal world.

As if sensing something, he slowly opened his eyes and glanced into the distance. A flicker of curiosity passed through his eyes. “Hm?”

Li Mao’s dead.

Like Zhong Yu, Li Mao had Ling Ya’s methods left on him as well. It wasn’t to protect them, but just to keep track of their movements. That mark had vanished. Either someone had erased it, or the man was dead. He leaned toward the latter.

Rather than concerned, he was just curious. Who in the Tiannan Realm would dare lay a hand on my disciple?

Just as that thought crossed his mind, a trace of chaos rippled through his aura, aggravating his injuries. His face paled, and his brow furrowed slightly.

Not far away, Leng Yushu gasped. The breathtaking beauty quickly rushed over, filled with concern. “Master, are you alright?!”

Her voice was like the clear tinkling of a mountain spring, pure and moving.

Ling Ya waved a hand with a smile. “It’s nothing. It’s just a minor injury. With a bit of time to recuperate, I’ll be fine. No need for concern.”

Leng Yushu tearfully bit her lip. “Master... you’re clearly injured, and yet you still helped me cultivate... I-I’ve failed you...”

Ling Ya seemed somewhat gratified and sighed. “Silly girl. I’m already happy enough that you’re thinking of me.”

Leng Yushu suddenly clenched her fists. “Gu Chen is such a villain! Why would he torment someone as kind as you?! Once I get stronger, I’ll definitely teach him a lesson for you!”

A strange glint flickered in Ling Ya’s eyes. “He has his convictions, and I have my principles. He wants to uphold justice and eradicate evil. Of course, I have to give him that opportunity.”

Leng Yushu was taken aback. “Master, what are you talking about?”

Ling Ya dropped the subject of Gu Chen entirely. “Never mind. You don’t have to worry about such matters. As for you, you’re too kind and innocent. That’s fine within the sect, but if you walk the outside world with that kind of temperament, you’ll suffer greatly. The human heart is far more treacherous than you imagine!”

Leng Yushu nodded, but then asked in confusion, “I know, but are there really that many bad people in this world?”

Ling Ya chuckled. “Good and evil are only a matter of perspective. People judge good and evil solely by the standards in their own hearts. They’re unaware that one man’s hero is another man’s villain. At the root of it all, it’s just a difference in beliefs. If you dwell too much on this, you’ll sink to a lower level. Not only will it not benefit your Dao heart, but it will also harm your Dao path.

“Just remember, no matter how high your cultivation, it cannot match human greed. No matter how many methods you have, they cannot match human cunning. No matter how fierce your divine abilities, they cannot match human wickedness! You should always remain cautious of others.”

Leng Yushu wrinkled her nose, her gaze clear and innocent. “Then what about you, Master? Do I have to be wary of you too?”

Ling Ya laughed heartily. “Especially me!”

***

As a qualified, professional, and seasoned scavenger, Gu Han stuck to his usual style. Not a blade of grass was left standing in his wake. Anything he could take, he took. Anything he couldn’t take, he fed it to the dog. After all, Xiao Hei wasn’t picky, and it served as a temporary extra meal. Besides, the taste of spirit herbs was far superior to that of mountain gates and such.

Compared to the Lin Clan, the Qilian Sect was somewhat wealthier. He harvested three saint herbs and as many as five half-saint herbs. As for Transcendent Substance, there were two to three thousand drops. One of the saint herbs even turned out to be a rare tea tree!

The spirit tea that Chongming and Xiao Hei had been drinking earlier was brewed from the leaves of this very tree. Although its effects couldn't be compared to those of an actual saint herb, it was available in an endless supply. With proper care, its value far exceeded an ordinary saint herb.

Only then did Gu Han’s regret over missing out on the spirit tea fade. Aside from these, the most precious find was a Soul Crystal the size of a thumb. It was bigger than the one from the Lin Clan.

He hesitated for a moment. “Master Rooster, about this Soul Crystal... can I owe you for now?”

To awaken Qian Ye and restore him to the state when the two first met, the more Soul Crystals, the better. But whether it was the Lin Clan or the Qilian Sect, the Soul Crystals they had were pitifully few. Clearly, this stuff was even more precious than saint herbs. He didn’t dare place all his hopes on the Lingyun Merchant Association and the Kunling Relic Site. If he could save up more, he would.

Chongming seemed speechless. It’s just this little bit, and the kid’s still being so stingy!

“Kid, this stuff isn’t all that useful to you right now.”

Gu Han sighed. “Master Rooster, I want to use it to save someone.”

Chongming paused for a moment. “Who?”

“A... friend.”

“Are they very important?”

“Yea... Very important.”

Chongming laughed coldly. “Put it away quickly. Just the sight of this stuff makes me want to vomit. It’s been over a thousand years, and I still can’t forget that foul stench...”

A warmth spread through Gu Han’s heart. I guess Master Rooster’s still on my side.

Just as he was about to leave, Xiao Hei jumped in front of him and spat out a storage ring. Gu Han was taken aback, not quite understanding. This storage ring seemed like the one he had given to Ah Gou.

Did this dog have a change of heart and want to hand over its entire stash to me?

Chongming thought for a moment. “It says to split the spoils.”

Gu Han was speechless.

“Woof!”

“It did most of the work.”

“Woof!”

“Don’t you even think about hogging it all!”

“Woof woof!”

“Eighty-twenty split!”

The rooster and the dog worked together with seamless coordination, flawlessly in sync.

Gu Han smiled. “Master Rooster, don’t worry!”

He certainly wouldn’t shortchange Xiao Hei. Without Xiao Hei, forget killing Li Mao, just the old ancestor would have had him running for his life with nowhere to hide. The greatest contributor to this battle was undoubtedly Xiao Hei. Compared to Fatty, he still had a bit of a bottom line and a conscience. He felt an eighty-twenty split was a bit unfair.

After a moment’s thought, he said, “Xiao Hei really did put in a lot of work. Giving it only twenty percent is a bit too little—”

Xiao Hei was furious. “Woof woof woof!”

Chongming said with utter seriousness, “You got it wrong. Twenty percent’s yours.”

Gu Han was once again speechless. At that moment, he suddenly found himself thinking exactly what Chongming had thought earlier. Thoughts like “this dog has no conscience” and “I miss Ah Gou” all came flooding back.

If I give it, I can’t bear to. But if I don’t, I’d probably get bitten.

After wrestling with it for a moment, he decided he couldn’t just completely become this dog’s tool. He had to put up some resistance. Gu Han took out the relic site tokens. Counting the two he already had, there were nine in total. Their colors varied in depth, but it was extremely heavy, with a substantial heft to them.

“Xiao Hei, can you find these?”

According to what that cultivator had said, there were a total of one hundred and eight of these tokens. Only eighty or ninety could be found at the moment. Clearly, the remaining ten or twenty were bound to be hidden in extremely obscure places. After all, the Tiannan Realm was far larger than the five domains. Even Ling Ya couldn’t possibly search every single inch of ground without missing anything.

Xiao Hei twitched its nose and responded with a tone of utter disdain. Gu Han didn’t understand the bark, but he understood the meaning. It was child’s play to Xiao Hei. Ah Gou’s abilities leaned toward stealth and assassination where tracking people was just a side benefit. But Xiao Hei was different. As a dog, aside from eating, tracking people and sniffing out scents was an innate talent deeply ingrained in its bones.

Gu Han was deeply moved, and a sudden idea for a new way to make money struck him. With that thought, he tauntingly cocked an eyebrow. “I don’t believe it! So many people couldn’t find them, and you think you can? No way!”

Xiao Hei was enraged. “Woof!”

Gu Han thought for a moment, then took out a row of storage rings. Packing eighty percent of the resources into each of them, he proceeded to line them up in a row. “How about this? Let’s make a bet. For every token you find, I’ll give you one storage ring. If you can’t find any, then everything in here is mine! You on?”

Xiao Hei let out a frenzied howl, looking as though it had been insulted. “Woof woof woof!”

Gu Han understood again that Xiao Hei was saying it had already won.

“Let’s go then?”

Chongming shot Gu Han a sidelong glance, and for the first time, a flicker of doubt stirred in his mind. He even cons the dog. He isn’t all that different from Fatty’s!