Chapter Twelve: A Grudge Settled with Pleasure

  A sleepless night, the next morning.

  Ding Yan pushed the door open and went out, locked the wooden door with his backhand, looked at this small village like a paradise on earth, and a hint of nostalgia flashed in his eyes, but it quickly disappeared.

  With a wave of his sleeve, he left without bidding farewell to anyone...

  Yesterday night, Ding Yan had already refined the last remaining material into a dan medicine and put it in his sleeve. Afterwards, he re-sealed the earth fire. At this time, there were less than two years left before the next elder's seclusion. Within these two years, Ding Yan decided to attempt to break through to the scattered immortal rank, to experience the power of the heavenly tribulation of this world. If successful, with the identity of a scattered immortal, the jade token leading to the mortal realm would naturally be within his grasp. If he failed, there would still be time to return to the Lotus Flower Valley and obtain the jade token later.

  As for the possibility of an extraordinary strong person on the island, Ding Yan also tried to pay attention, but there was no discovery.

  The wooden raft drifted away with the ocean current.

  Ding Yan sat on the wooden raft, closed his eyes to cultivate, and stabilized his cultivation that had surged due to the foundation-establishing elixir. The path of cultivation was most important for its foundation; even Ding Yan, who possessed a cultivation from his previous life that could transcend calamities, did not dare to be the slightest bit careless.

  When he came to, it was already sunset, and the raft had drifted to who-knew-where.

  Watching the sunset's afterglow, Ding Yan felt a tinge of melancholy in his heart.

  Recalled many past events.

  When I became a disciple of the Qiankun Sect, it was like when my primordial spirit condensed, and also like when I entered the ancient ruins, was struck by the immortal artifact and fell. Until finally, my thoughts stayed at a certain moment, a fleeting shadow flashed in my mind.

  "Although I survived, but... the Qiankun Sect... can I still go back? Can I see her again..."

  He closed his eyes and lay down quietly.

  At that time, he was still the Supreme Elder of the Qiankun Sect, and his Shifu's sister was the First Seat of Qingzhu Peak in the Qiankun Sect.

  "I'm dead, will my sister be sad? Maybe... " Ding Yan muttered.

  The wooden raft swayed gently, and Ding Yan closed his eyes, starting to rest.

  It was already nighttime when Ding Yan woke up again, he didn't know how long had passed.

  Looking at the starry sky, Ding Yan sighed with emotion.

  After cultivating for a thousand years, there are still some things that cannot be let go of.

  "This is Zhu Ji Dan, let's call it Mo Fan Dan from now on..." Withdrawing his thoughts, Ding Yan took out a white porcelain bottle from his sleeve and placed it in the palm of his hand.

  Inside the porcelain bottle was precisely the one pellet of Foundation Establishment Pill that Ding Yan had refined last night.

  After drifting for one night, until the dawn of the second day, Ding Yan finally saw land.

  It was a bustling port, and in the distance, one could see the crowded docks. Although it was a place of cultivation, there were still many people living ordinary lives, rising with the sun and resting with the sunset. These people mostly only had first or second layer Qi refinement, generation after generation, they had long forgotten their identities as cultivators.

  When Ding Yan arrived at the dock, it was already dawn.

  With a light leap, after landing on the shore, Ding Yan's figure quickly disappeared into the crowd...

  Cheng Xi is the slum of Yunhai City, where people living here are mostly small characters with no background and cultivation qualifications. Every year, many sects' elders will visit this place to find some children with good qualifications and recruit them into their sects. It's said that Fu Qinghai, the number one young master of Motian Sect, was discovered by the sect leader in such a slum.

  Ding Yan walked on the bluestone street, with low eaves houses on both sides. The children sitting under the eaves of the houses would occasionally reveal a hopeful gaze when they saw Ding Yan.

  Slum area, except for those high-ranking scattered immortals who come here to collect apprentices, basically no one will come here. After Ding Yan appeared here, these people all took him as a scattered immortal coming down to collect apprentices.

  Ding Yan let out a soft sigh and walked past that street without stopping.

  After he landed, he originally wanted to find a quiet place to spend his mundane life, but unexpectedly the place where he landed was a city under the jurisdiction of Huashenmen. There were many disciples of Huashenmen guarding the entrance and exit of the city, and they had to pay a certain amount of jade stones to enter or leave the city.

  If it were another sect, Ding Yan would have passed by directly, but Huashenmen was an enemy sect with a vendetta against Lianhuagu. Any disciple of Lianhuagu who entered their territory would be killed without mercy. Ding Yan's body had once been one of the top ten disciples of Lianhuagu, and in Huashenmen, he naturally had a file ready. What made him even more annoyed was that this city belonged to Huashenmen's main cities, and inside the city, there was a real loose immortal sitting in town!

  In this case, forcing one's way in is definitely not feasible. Heaven knows whether this loose immortal has set up any restrictions or the like.

  "Uncle, buy a flower." Just as Ding Yan was lost in thought, a timid voice interrupted his train of thought.

  A little girl about seven or eight years old, looking pale and thin, wearing a patched-up old dress, with two braids on her head, a pair of big eyes full of hopeful gaze, staring at Ding Yan.

  Ding Yan sighed softly, stopped in his tracks, walked to the little girl's side, squatted down, patted her head and asked.

  "What's your name?"

  "My name is Xiao Yan." The little girl's big eyes sparkled "Uncle, would you like to buy some flowers?"

  Ding Yan nodded and took out the remaining jade stones from his bosom, handing them all over to Xiao Yan.

  Xiao Yao was taken aback, then hastily said "Uncle, Xiao Yao only needs one...". As she spoke, the little girl hurriedly handed over the flowers and extra jade stones in her hand.

  "Take them all away." Ding Yan said.

  The little girl shook her head and said, "One piece of jade can buy many, many steamed buns for Xiaoyan, and my brother won't have to go hungry..."

  A single word is heard, and a wave of heartache follows.

  In his eyes, it was clear that the little girl in front of him had gone without food for almost two days.

  "Do you have another younger brother?" Ding Yan asked.

  For some reason, as he looked at the little girl, Ding Yan's memories that had long been sealed were once again stirred.

  At that time, he was just a child, a small beggar living on the verge of subsistence, fighting with wild dogs for a steamed bun, and being bitten all over his body. If it weren't for his master, he would have starved to death in the wilderness and become a pile of white bones. How could there be a future genius in the cultivation world, the Supreme Elder of the Qiankun Sect?

  After cultivating for over a thousand years, Ding Yan asked himself, he absolutely couldn't be considered a good person, but towards the weak, within his capabilities, he would still stretch out a helping hand without hesitation.

  "My little brother is ill." Xiaoyan's eyes dimmed.

  Just then, a loud noise came from behind, and when he looked up, someone was riding a horse, the person in front was wearing brocade clothes and jade clothes, and at first glance, it was a noble person. The people behind him were also full of noble air, riding horses and flying, without any consideration for the people who had been knocked down along the way.

  "Get out!"

  The young man in brocade clothes at the front raised the whip in his hand and swung it towards Ding Yan.

  Ding Yan furrowed his brow and hugged the little girl as he dodged to one side.

  At this moment, the young man in fine clothes seemed to have done it on purpose. The whip in his hand turned with a swing and landed directly on the little girl's forehead.

  Blood splattered everywhere!

  A lively life, vanished in an instant...

  Ding Yan was stunned, looking down to see the little girl in his arms still smiling after receiving the jade stone, her big eyes filled with gratitude towards Ding Yan. But all of this was frozen in that instant...

  Fresh blood stained Ding Yan's long shirt red.

  "Haha, caught another fish! Tonight at Fengyuelou, you guys are definitely treating me..."

  "That scoundrel actually dodged, otherwise I would have caught a fish too."

  ......

  The sound of horseshoes echoed far away, and from the noisy sounds, it could be faintly heard that these young people in luxurious clothes were galloping horses in the slums, actually taking lives as a game, poisoning living beings, and trampling human lives!

  Ding Yan slowly closed Xiaoyao's eyes, shut his eyelids, took a deep breath, and when he opened them again, a strong killing intent burst out of his eyes.

  "Uncle, would you like to buy some flowers?"

  "Uncle, Xiaoyao just needs one piece..."

  "A piece of jade can buy many many buns for Xiaoyao, and little brother won't have to go hungry..."

  Xiao Yao is dead, how will his sick brother survive?

  A chance encounter is due to cause and effect!

  After a thousand years of cultivation, Ding Yan's mind had long been calm and peaceful, his murderous intentions hadn't stirred for ages. Yet in this instant, he only wanted to crush those scum into dust and ashes, to comfort the departed souls.

  "Xiao Yao's revenge will be taken by me." As he spoke, Ding Yan no longer hid his cultivation. In an instant, a shocking aura burst out from his body.

  The great perfection of refining Qi!

  One step out, and the figure disappeared.

  Born as a man, one should be content with the favors and grudges! Everything done, only seeking to have no guilt in heart.

  At Ding Yan's speed, it only took a few breaths to catch up with the group of young horsemen. Along the way, Ding Yan saw another good name lying in a pool of blood among the poor people.

  These poor people's cultivation is extremely low, and it's rare for them to reach the third layer of Qi Refining. As for these young men in fancy clothes, their cultivation is generally above the fifth layer of Qi Refining. With just one strike, very few can survive.

  "Die!"

  Ding Yan suddenly jumped up, his right hand stretched out and slapped the forehead of the young man in front.

  Ding Yan remembered that Xiao Yao was killed by this person!

  Pfft!!!

  The young man who was hit had no time to react, and he died instantly. His brain burst open, and the horsehide he was sitting on also knelt down with its four legs bent.

  "Fewer winds!"

  "Who are you!"

  The young man behind shouted loudly and stopped his horse, exclaiming in surprise.

  "You actually killed Feng Shao!"

  "You're done for, whoever you are!"

  "Fire the signal!"

  These young people, growing up in this city, have never been afraid of anyone. Now that their close friend has been killed, instead of thinking about escaping, they are threatening. One of the young men even took out a signal flare and fired it into the sky.

  Ding Yan stood in the middle of the road, his long gown stained with blood, his black hair fluttering in the wind.

  He didn't waste any words with these people, and took a step forward. Under his feet, a thick earthy energy converged into his body through the soles of his feet.

  "Earth Style: Rock Palm!"

  A mighty energy burst forth from Ding Yan's palm like a mountain, a thick and heavy power that spread out from his palm.

  Pffft! Pffft!!

  With one palm down, the three people in front were directly slapped into pieces by Ding Yan.

  Blood-soaked streets!