Li Qingshan made his way down the Pavilion of Heavenly Tomes in satisfaction. The workers that had once been extremely enthusiastic towards him now avoided him like the plague, only finding the courage to discuss quietly after he was long gone. However, with how sharp his ears were, he heard every single word. Basically all of them treated him as someone who was about to die.

  Li Qingshan smiled. He did not blame them for their snobbiness. Apart from direct disciples like Le Tian and Pi Yangqiu, there was probably no one left in the Myriad sect who was still bold enough to have any contact with him.

  However, he discovered he was wrong as soon as he emerged from the Pavilion of Heavenly Tomes. A male cultivator stood at the entrance, staring straight at him as soon as he emerged, like he had been waiting there specially for him.

  Li Qingshan felt a little puzzled, as the appearance and stature of the cultivator was abnormally ordinary. It was not the kind of ordinary where he would not be recognised if he was in a group of people, but the kind of ordinary where his appearance and stature was the average of everyone in the group, a kind of ordinary devoid of all special characteristics. Actually, at a closer glance, he even seemed quite handsome.

  The badge on his chest indicated he was an inner disciple. However, a Yin Soul cultivator without any special characteristics like this instead made him seem particularly strange. On top of that, he seemed to be looking at him in great resentment.

  Li Qingshan stopped. “The fuck you looking at?” Unfortunately, the person’s reply was not, “You got a problem with that?”, which left him slightly disappointed.

  “Li Qingshan, to think you would have a day like today!” The ordinary face twisted into a rather familiar expression of resentment, and the fluctuations in his voice were rather familiar too.

  Li Qingshan experienced a flash of thought. “Don’t tell me, let me think… You’re Shen Yushu!” Haha, how have you ended up like this? You’re much uglier compared to before.”
As if Li Qingshan had hit him where it hurt, Shen Yushu’s face became even more twisted. “Li Qingshan, you destroyed my body! I’ll never forgive you!”
He had not obtained this body through possession. A Yin Soul was extremely unstable, so he did not have much time at all to find someone suitable to possess. Even if he were fortunate enough to find one, not only was it unethical, but it would lead to sizable side effects too.

  This was a body bug specially nurtured by the Spiritual Beast garden in the Myriad sect. Normally, they were shaped like bugs, but as long as a secret technique was used on them, they would assume a human shape very quickly. Their skeletal structure and blood vessels were no different from a mortal’s, except they were born without souls. They were specially nurtured for cultivators to possess when their bodies were destroyed.

  However, body bugs only differed by genders. When it came to anything else, it was as ordinary as it could be. They possessed no special abilities, nor did they have any flaws, so they met the requirements of most cultivators.

  “Never forgive me?” Li Qingshan stood with his hands on his hips. “Come and bite me then!”
Shen Yushu had never been Li Qingshan’s opponent. Coupled with the fact that he had yet to adjust to his new body and Li Qingshan had undergone the fourth heavenly tribulation now, he stood even less of a chance. He sneered. “Hmph, you won’t be able to stay cocky for long. I’ll wait for the news of your death in the Hundred Herbs garden!”
Before he had finished what he was saying, a huge hand reached over as if it was going to wrap around him. When he returned to his senses, Li Qingshan had already grabbed him by the throat, lifting him into the air.

  Li Qingshan pulled him up close, turned his ear towards him, and asked, “What did you say? Could you repeat yourself?”
Shen Yushu became extremely shocked. The half of Li Qingshan’s face towards him suddenly became as vicious as a beast’s in his eyes, shining with a scarlet, bloodthirsty light. How could he still manage to say anything? He became filled with regret. He should not have come to taunt him. He was going to die for sure anyway. Otherwise, if he decided to go crazy before he died and dragged him down for nothing, would he not just die for nothing?

  The disturbance attracted quite a lot of attention, but no one dared to interfere. There had never been a lot of people who could interfere between the disputes of two inner disciples, let alone the fact that one of them was Li Qingshan right now.

  Li Qingshan said in disdain, “You’re just a mere scoundrel!” He studied him up and down. “Hopefully, you can still be of some use.” He simply set him down, turned around, and left.

  Shen Yushu stumbled backwards; his legs gave way, and he fell back on his bottom.

  The watching cultivators could not help but sneer inside, They’re both inner disciples, yet isn’t the difference a little too big? That Li Qingshan might be arrogant, but he still has confronted first senior brother and first senior sister directly. He really is worthy of his reputation.

  Li Qingshan returned to the Hundred Herbs garden to take back in the Yin Demon, as he planned on grasping the path of great liberty and practising the various techniques. He also wanted to see Ruan Yaozhu again so that he could get an accurate estimate of how much time he had left from her.

  Under the golden-leaved bodhi tree, the Yin Demon flew into his body, and the thought clones all vanished. He gazed at the mountains and rivers in the depths of the Hundred Herbs garden. Originally, he thought he had found a peaceful place for cultivation, but there was far too much trouble waiting for him, so he was unable to remain there for long.

  Ruan Yaozhu came to the hill alone. “I’ve already submitted a request to the Direct Disciple hall. Senior brother Le and senior brother Pi will assist me. However, Ge Xing and the others will do what they can as well, so we can only buy you a month at most.”
Li Qingshan clasped his hands and bowed. “I’ll be troubling you, senior sister.”
Before he knew it, they had already become much more distant, which made him a little melancholic inside, but he did not feel any regret. Since they were not people of the same path, there was no point in trying to cling together and repeat a mistake of the past. This was how he would be paying her back.

  Ruan Yaozhu lowered her head and said nothing, turning back to how simple-minded and quiet she seemed when they first met.

  Li Qingshan said, “Oh right, I just saw Shen Yushu again. He’s changed very much.”
Ruan Yaozhu looked up, casting a questioning gaze at him.

  Li Qingshan patted the tree trunk. “Originally, I wanted to work hard to pay you back, but with this, I might never have the opportunity to cultivate under this tree again. You still need someone to handle the matters of the Hundred Herbs garden. He’s the best choice.”
Ruan Yaozhu furrowed her brows. She was slightly unhappy.

  Li Qingshan smiled. “But don’t worry, I’ll never forget about the kindness you’ve shown me. I’ll definitely pay you back in the future.”
A hint of anger flashed across Ruan Yaozhu’s face, but she still forcefully composed herself. She said indifferently, “Is there anything else?”
“Nothing.” Li Qingshan scratched his head. “I’m leaving then.”
Before he had even finished what he was saying, Ruan Yaozhu had already drifted away.

  Li Qingshan sighed with a smile and left the Hundred Herbs garden in the opposite direction. He saw a figure flying over from the surface of the ocean. Even when he hid his aura as much as possible, how could he hide from his senses? He was Shen Yushu.

  Heh, he sure knows how to pick the time!

  He wanted to teach him another lesson, but with some further thought, he decided against something as pointless as that.

  That was fine too. The Hundred Herbs garden would turn back to how it was before very soon, like he had never visited the place before.

  Shen Yushu noticed Li Qingshan from afar and suddenly stopped, only to see Li Qingshan rising up in the air and whistling away. Only after hesitating for a good moment did he continue onwards, arriving above the shore of the island and tidying up his clothes.

  Gazing at the extremely familiar sight, he was filled with confidence. I, Shen Yushu, have returned! Originally, he wanted to wait for Ruan Yaozhu to receive him in person, but he simply did not have the patience for that. He was in a rush to fill in this job. It was far too important to him.

  Ruan Yaozhu, oh Ruan Yaozhu, who else can you still use without Li Qingshan? Don’t you still have to rely on me at the end of the day? You must regret it very much right now!

  In the Hundred Herbs dwelling, Ruan Yaozhu meditated peacefully. Flowers bloomed beside her, filling the dwelling with fragrance.

  However, the nine-coloured deer knew this was a sign that she felt anything but peaceful inside, and her powers were leaking. She had finally chased away that damned Li Qingshan, but his existence had left a mark. Hopefully, it would fade away with time!

  She said carefully, “Yaozhu, that Shen Yushu wants to come in.”
“Tell him to piss off!”