Chapter 243: Hidden Master Lin
After looting all of Jing Xu's treasures, Ning Daoran quickly dealt with the finishing work. He burned Jing Xu's body to ashes, and even fed Jing Xu's soul to Xiaoqing.
Afterwards, he burrowed into the earth and left. Before leaving, he perfectly repaired the gap in the restriction that was eaten by the fire-eating ants, using the same refining method as the previous formation master. He then used the power of the Changqing Jue to completely wipe out the breath of the fire-eating ants and himself.
He returned to the cave through earth escape and continued practicing.
…
Half an hour later, there was a commotion outside the cave.
The news that Jindan master Jing Xu died suddenly in the cave spread quickly in the city.
Ning Daoran frowned. He had done a clean job, so the news shouldn't have spread so quickly. This could only mean that Jing Xu must have left a soul token somewhere else, and the token had been broken just after Ning Daoran killed him.
evening.
"Senior Ning..."
Outside the cave, a sound transmission note flew in, which was a message from a late foundation-building cultivator patrolling the city: "Senior Jing Xu, who is in the Jindan stage, died suddenly in the cave. I wonder if you know this news?"
"Is this true?"
Ning Daoran responded: "I don't know..."
"I see. Then I won't bother you anymore."
At night, the streets were still noisy. Many cultivators from the White Dragon Immortal City and warriors from the Zhenxian Tower came. They began to inspect the caves in the city from house to house, especially those great cultivators who were capable of killing Jing Xu, almost all of them were questioned.
The death of a Foundation Establishment cultivator like Jinshan was a death, and Bailong Immortal City would not care too much. But the death of a Jindan cultivator like Jingxu in the city was a big deal, and other Jindan cultivators would also be terrified, so Bailong Immortal City had to pay attention to this matter.
Not long after, the city lord Long Zhuojun brought two Jindan and another Baodan realm warrior to inspect the caves of Lin Man and Tianshan Old Man, and then came to Ning Daoran's cave.
Ning Daoran, dressed in a green shirt, served the spiritual tea and sat down in the pavilion. He said calmly, "If the city lord has anything you want to ask, just ask. I will answer all your questions."
"Okay, thank you for your cooperation."
Long Zhuojun clasped his fists and said, "I heard that Fellow Daoist Ning and Jing Xu had some disagreements because of Master Lin Fu, and even had some verbal disputes. I wonder if this is true?"
"It is true."
Ning Daoran said, "The neighbors all know about Fellow Daoist Jing's harassment of Master Lin. I happened to see him when I returned from the sea that day, and we talked a little. It wasn't a big deal, but I felt that it was inappropriate for Fellow Daoist Jing, as a Jindan senior, to harass Master Lin like this."
Long Zhuojun nodded.
At the side, the Jindan stage cultivator's lips moved silently, as if he was saying something to Long Zhuojun.
"Fellow Daoist Ning."
Long Zhuojun asked again: "Fellow Daoist Jing died in the cave this afternoon. I wonder where you were at that time?"
"Qingxiefang."
Ning Daoran said, "I spent almost the entire day in Qingxiefang discussing the purchase of formation materials with the owner Zhao Yuanlong, and only returned to the cave after sunset."
As he spoke, he took out a storage bag and poured out the materials in the bag one by one: "These are the materials I bought in Qingxiefang. Zhao Yuanlong can testify to this. I have not left the market all day."
"I see……"
Long Zhuojun nodded, looked at the Jindan cultivator beside him, and stood up and said, "I have finished asking questions. I will leave now. I hope you don't mind disturbing your cultivation."
"You are so polite, Lord."
Watching Long Zhuojun and others leave, Ning Daoran frowned and continued to practice.
…
Main street in the city.
A Jindan cultivator who hid his face in his cloak said, "Jing Xu once told me that Master Ning Zhen may have many secrets. Moreover, he was very close to Lin Man. Jing Xu's death... this person is most likely responsible."
"You heard it, too."
Long Zhuojun transmitted his voice, "This person has been in Qingxiefang buying materials all day. We have already sent people to investigate this matter. Zhao Yuanlong was indeed with Master Ning all day. After all, he is a Jindan, not a Yuanying, so it is impossible for him to send a clone to kill Jing Xu."
"If it wasn't this person, who else could have killed Jing Xu?"
The Jindan cultivator said in a low voice: "City Lord, Jing Xu was working for the City Lord after all. His death... I hope the City Lord will consider it more. No matter who it is, he cannot kill people so recklessly in the city."
As he spoke, he frowned: "City Lord, could it be someone from the Immortal Killing Tower?"
"Impossible?"
Long Zhuojun paused for a moment. "Although Jing Xu's behavior was improper and he was widely criticized, his name was not on the wanted list of the Immortal Killing Tower, so there would be no reward for killing him. Besides, Jing Xu's body was burned to ashes. The other party's purpose was definitely not to reward him, but to kill him for revenge."
The Jindan cultivator remained silent.
"Remember, don't mess with the people from the Immortal Killing Tower."
Long Zhuojun said calmly: "The Immortal Killing Tower has a group of old monsters in the Nascent Soul stage. Their strength is the best in the Eastern Wasteland. We, a mere White Dragon Immortal City, cannot afford to provoke them."
"Don't worry, City Lord. How dare I?"
"That's good."
Long Zhuojun looked back at the other person, a hint of coldness flashing across his eyes.
…
A few months later.
Jing Xu's death seemed to have disappeared without a trace, and no clues could be found out. The incident was gradually forgotten by people.
This day is the Dragon Boat Festival.
Lin Man sent a sound transmission note to invite Ning Daoran to her house for a chat, claiming that she had cooked a delicious meal herself. This made Ning Daoran and Dadu Lu extremely nervous. Lin Man was indeed gifted in the art of talismans, but her cooking skills were… hard to describe. Her cooking was no different from refining pills…
Lin Man once stewed pig's trotters for Ning Daoran, but when the dish was served, Ning Daoran only saw pieces of black charcoal. He used chopsticks to search in the charcoal, but unfortunately Lin Man's stew failed to produce any elixir.
It is better to be prepared. Before the visit, Ning Daoran and Dabenlu made some preparations.
In the evening, a man and a deer entered Lin Man's cave residence as guests.
Ning Daoran was holding two bamboo baskets in each hand, each filled with hot meals that had just been prepared.
Strings of rice dumplings were hung on the antlers of the big stupid deer, swaying with its steps.
There is no mistake in the poem, post, content, and read the book on 6, 9, and bar!
The years of cultivating immortals were long and boring. Ning Daoran attached great importance to things like festivals. If he no longer had this sense of ritual, he, a cultivator of immortals, would soon forget the years.
"Fellow Daoist Ning, why are you so polite?"
Lin Man welcomed the man and the deer into the cave, where a table of dark cuisine was already set in the pavilion.
The corner of Ning Daoran's mouth twitched. He could almost smell the fragrant aroma of herbs and trees. He almost couldn't help but congratulate Lin Man on his further progress in alchemy.
"Old Deer and I have also prepared some food, Master Lin Fu, you don't have to be polite."
Ning Daoran put the dishes cooked by himself and Dabenlu on the table, and finally there was something edible on the table.
Lin Man smiled slightly with dimples, didn't care, and started to taste the rice dumplings made by Ning Daoran.
There is only glutinous rice in it, but the reed leaves used are all reeds grown on the edge of Lingpu Cave. They are extremely full of spiritual energy and have a strong herbal fragrance. They taste great when eaten.
Lin Man ate three in a row. After years of fasting to build her foundation, she didn’t mind eating a little more.
Ning Daoran never fasts. Eating and drinking are the most important things in life for him and Bai Lu. He waves his chopsticks and eats to his heart's content.
After the meal, as usual, the big stupid deer washes the dishes.
Ning Daoran and Lin Man started talking about business.
…
"Master Lin Fu."
Ning Daoran was holding the spiritual tea. Although he was over a hundred years old, he still looked like an eighteen-year-old boy. After years of nurturing with the Changqing Jue, he had developed a very honest aura and an immortal demeanor.
"I have some materials here. I wonder if Master Lin is capable of refining some third-grade high-quality talismans for me?"
"oh?"
Lin Man's eyes lit up, and she smiled and said, "The requirements for talisman paper for a third-grade top-grade talisman are extremely high. It is only possible to refine a third-grade top-grade talisman with materials from a third-stage late-stage monster. If fellow Taoist really has materials from a third-stage late-stage monster, Lin Man might give it a try."
Ning Daoran couldn't help but secretly complain, "You are so good, Lin Man, you have really pushed the talisman art to the third level upper grade!" He originally just wanted to test it out, but he didn't expect Lin Man to really agree.
Given Ning Daoran's understanding of Lin Man over the years, she would never have said something like "maybe she could give it a try" if she wasn't absolutely sure.
"good."
He stretched out his hand and flicked it, and immediately, monster materials flew out of the storage bag. There were large chunks of green monster skins and pieces of indigo scales that looked like colored glass. They were all the products of the third-stage late-stage Green Dragon Monster King.
"this……"
Lin Man's beautiful eyes were bright. She had never seen so many high-level monster materials. These materials were too precious and were only sold piece by piece in the past markets and auction houses. Ning Daoran was definitely the first person to take out half of a third-stage late-stage monster in one go.
"And some more."
Ning Daoran also took out some of the tough skin and scales of the red carp. They were surrounded by the spiritual energy of water and fire. Although they were slightly inferior to those of the green dragon, they were still the materials of a late third-order monster. Looking at the White Dragon Immortal City, this thing was also a treasure.
"Fellow Daoist Ning..."
Lin Man blinked her beautiful eyes: "Daoyou actually trusts Lin Man so much... He just took out the materials of the Green Dragon Demon King and the Red Carp Demon King. Aren't you afraid that Lin Man will leak the secret and cause trouble for Daoyou?"
"No."
Ning Daoran sat upright and said, "First of all, I trust you, Lin Man. If you were the kind of person who coveted wealth and fame, I would not have such frequent contact with you.
Secondly, Ning can kill two third-level late-stage monsters at the same time, so he is not afraid of trouble. If Master Lin Fu really betrayed me, with Ning's ability, I believe it would not be difficult to track down and kill Master Lin Fu.
Master Lin is a smart man, how could he do such a short-sighted thing? On the contrary, if he cooperates with Ning, it will actually be beneficial to Master Lin's practice of talismans."
Lin Man smiled dimples: "Fellow Daoist Ning is indeed a thorough person. To be honest, my talisman cultivation has indeed only recently reached the third-level upper grade. Just as you said, cooperating with you can indeed improve Lin Man's talisman cultivation."
"In this case, Master Lin Fu must not cheat me of my spirit stones anymore. I will still charge you 500 spirit stones for each of these third-grade top-grade talismans you refine. What do you think, Master Lin Fu?"
“…”
Lin Man pursed her red lips, her beautiful eyes filled with helplessness. She almost had some feelings for this guy, but one sentence brought her back to her original state. He was still the black-hearted formation master. Yes, it was still him! (End of this chapter)