Chapter Ninety-Five: Spare My Life, Immortal Master

In the room, beside the desk, He Song held his breath and focused his mind, easily drawing a low-grade Thick Earth Talisman.

Only then did he let out a long breath. He sat down, emptied his thoughts, and began to consider the road ahead.

When he had met Su Yan, He Song had already made his decision: he would not use his talent for formations to join the Thick Earth Sect.

That would have made him far too conspicuous.

If anyone were to uncover his secret, he would most likely be imprisoned at once and tortured until he revealed the method of immortality.

But he had no such method.

Moreover, He Song did not wish to let anyone else control his life or death.

Out in the wider world, before he had the strength to resist, the best course was simply to remain a carefree wandering cultivator.

At the very least, outside the sect he would not have to fear having his secret discovered by Golden Core True Lords or Nascent Soul Ancestors.

Since that was the case, the matter of how to deal with the more than twenty-two thousand jin of spirit rice stored in his small cargo pouch now became the first problem He Song needed to think about.

And since he had chosen not to go to the Thick Earth Sect, the resources he would need for cultivation in the future would have to be earned by his own hands.

These two matters had to be handled together, and done without alerting the Thick Earth Sect.

As He Song pondered, an idea quickly surfaced in his mind.

He wondered whether, among common folk, there might be some martial art capable of altering one’s build and appearance. If there were, then combined with the Breath-Concealing Art, it might be worth trying.

If he could truly change his stature and features, then conceal his aura with the Breath-Concealing Art and wear a black robe...

He Song felt that, so long as he was careful and usually traveled underground without being detected by other cultivators, even if he sold spirit rice within one of the immortal markets or immortal cities under the rule of the Thick Earth Sect, it should not draw much attention.

Even if it did arouse suspicion, it would likely not be traced back to him.

Using his identity as a garden caretaker to secretly dispose of the spirit rice had already been rejected by He Song long ago.

If he were to sell the rice that way, he would certainly be welcomed with great ceremony into the Thick Earth Sect and made an inner disciple.

By then, all his plans would be thrown into disarray.

Having spent more than a decade in the immortal market, He Song had also seen many people who disliked being in the public eye.

These people would usually wear black robes and use the Breath-Concealing Art to hide their presence as they moved through the market and conducted their business.

In this way, they could conceal their identities.

The world of cultivation was not without cautious people.

There were indeed many cultivators who dressed in black robes and carried not the slightest trace of aura.

Still, to be even more careful, He Song intended to alter his build and appearance as well before doing so.

That way, after selling the spirit rice, although the Thick Earth Sect would certainly learn of it, so long as he hid well enough, they would likely never trace it back to him.

Once he had made up his mind, he acted at once and left the immortal market through the earth from within his quiet chamber.

In the Great Li Dynasty, at Salt City, He Song emerged from underground and observed the surroundings for a moment before quickly seizing a burly man who looked fierce, clearly knew some martial arts, and had a murderous glint in his eyes.

Just after He Song arrived, he saw this man committing murder.

And the victim was only an ordinary commoner. Before He Song even had time to intervene, the commoner was already dead.

Naturally, He Song felt no goodwill toward him at all. Seeing that no one was nearby, he dragged the man straight underground and brought him here.

He tossed the burly man into a dark corner and casually pointed a finger. A streak of spiritual light instantly pierced the man’s right palm.

Amid the butcher-like screams, He Song spoke in a calm, distant voice.

"I ask, you answer. Answer too slowly, and you die. Answer wrongly, and you die. Hesitate, and you die as well. Do you understand?"

In the corner, the burly man, who felt as though someone had grabbed him by the collar and dragged him around underground, was already terrified out of his wits.

The methods of an immortal master!

The means by which he had just traveled through the earth must have been the methods of an immortal master!

How had he been so unlucky as to be targeted by one?

Having been born in the Great Li Dynasty, he naturally knew that immortal masters existed in this world. In this small Salt City alone, he had heard of several people who had become immortal masters.

The propaganda of the Great Li Dynasty had also made him quite familiar with such figures.

Facing an immortal master who stood right before him, had casually pierced his palm, and intended to question him, he was naturally filled with terror.

"Please spare me, Immortal Master, please spare me! I understand, I understand! Please ask, Immortal Master, please ask."

Seeing that the burly man seemed already half dead with fear, He Song did not continue to torment him and went straight to the point.

"Do you know whether there is any martial art in this world that can alter one’s build and appearance?"

The reason He Song had come among common folk to search for such a martial art was not without cause.

No matter what kind of spell it was, as long as a cultivator cast it, spiritual power would surely be involved.

But martial arts were different. There would be no spiritual energy at work, and to deceive other cultivators, such a method would clearly be far more effective than a spell.

That was why He Song had come here.

Who would ever imagine that someone would go so far as to learn a mortal martial art simply to hide his face and body, all while being a cultivator?

For an ordinary cultivator, if one wished to change one’s appearance and build, it would be enough to find a spell and learn it.

"Yes, yes, yes, Immortal Master!" The burly man nodded frantically, afraid that if he answered too slowly, he would be killed.

"Where?"

He Song’s eyes lit up.

He had thought he would need to catch several more tongues before he could learn what he wanted.

He had not expected that the first one would already know of such a martial art.

"I do not know for certain, but I have heard that there is a lecherous thief roaming near Salt City lately. According to the notices posted by the authorities, that man possesses the ability to change his build and appearance."

The burly man seemed to glimpse a chance at survival, and hurriedly told He Song everything he knew.

"What is his name? What does he look like? Where is he now?"

He Song continued to question him.

Since there was already a target, He naturally needed to learn something about him so that he could find him as quickly as possible.

"I do not know that, but he should still be somewhere around Salt City and has not yet left." After saying this, the burly man looked at He Song with a trace of yearning for life in his eyes.

Yet after hearing those words, He Song merely frowned.

"Too slow."

As the faint voice fell, He Song casually pointed.

In an instant, a blazing fireball appeared out of nowhere and struck the burly man squarely. The terrifying heat quickly reduced him to ashes.

The man did not even manage to let out another scream before he had turned into a heap of cinders.

"This was my first time killing with my own hands. Not bad. Still, this Fireball Technique really is excellent for destroying the evidence. Brother Wei did not deceive me."

Glancing at the ashes on the ground, He Song waved a hand and collected them into his storage pouch, planning to dispose of them somewhere later.

After clearing away all traces in the area, He Song nodded in satisfaction.

From that moment on, there was no remaining sign that either he or the burly man had ever been there.

And from the very beginning, He Song had never intended to let this man live.

It was one thing that a martial artist had a murderous glint in his eyes; after all, there was plenty of killing on the rivers and lakes.

But this man had not only had a fierce look in his eyes, he had murdered an ordinary commoner right in front of He Song. He had likely killed many innocent mortals.

Falling into He Song’s hands could be considered heaven’s retribution.

Besides, the man already knew that He Song was investigating a martial art capable of changing one’s appearance and build. If anything were to happen in the future, he might well turn around and bite He Song in the back.

All in all, he had brought it upon himself.