Chapter 1718: Debts Must Be Repaid

While Li Yan had intended to make connections after entering the Inner Valley, his focus on passing the first two ranks meant he spent most of his time cultivating and refining. He had met some people, but they were merely nodding acquaintances. He realized that with his current status, he couldn’t yet attract the people who could truly help him.

He needed to raise his alchemy rank. For the past few years, he had been a nobody in the sect. Cheng Kuanghan, after finding a backer, had been treated as a lackey, but as a veteran of the world, he endured it. Yet, every time he was ordered around, he hated Li Yan even more.

He had looked for the twins too. To his shock, they had been chosen by a Heaven-rank Grandmaster to be medicinal attendants after only six months. They might just be attendants, but they were beyond his reach. All his hatred focused on Li Yan. He had originally planned for the four of them to enter together so they would be a force to be reckoned with, but he had to crawl to others alone.

He had looked everywhere he thought Li Yan would be, but never saw him. He could have gone to the residence, but that would involve the Law Enforcement Hall. Li Yan’s lack of visibility made Cheng Kuanghan’s anger fester. He had simply looked in the wrong places. Li Yan had spent his time at the basic lectures for entry-level disciples, always with his aura hidden. Cheng Kuanghan never suspected those places because he assumed Li Yan was at least a decent Alchemist and would attend lectures for Yellow-rank Grandmasters or better. It was only today that he finally spotted him.

After Yu Erlu’s shout, it wasn’t just the seven of them watching; everyone nearby looked over. Interest flared—cultivation was boring, and internal conflict was entertainment.

“It’s Yu Erlu and his crew, hehehe…”

“That guy is alone and looks like a newcomer. How did he annoy them?”

“He’s probably new. It’s common to see them bullied!”

The whispers continued. They knew Yu Erlu. He was a Mysterious-rank Alchemist, but the nickname “Yu Erlu” came from his habit of failing every exam on the first try and passing on the second. He was proud of the name, seeing it as a sign of heavenly resilience. His faction was strong, backed by Grandmasters. He loved shaking down new disciples for benefits.

Li Yan sat in the square, ignoring the seven people on the tree. After an hour, when he took to the sky, he saw the tree was empty. He flew toward his residence, his expression calm. He maintained a steady pace. After half a tea session, the forest below became dense; he was nearing the residential area. The sun was setting, casting a somewhat piercing orange glow that mingled with the cool evening breeze. Aside from a few cultivators he passed earlier, no one else was around.

Suddenly, Li Yan plummeted like a boulder into the forest below. The moment he hit the canopy, he became as weightless as a feather. He drifted into the leaves without disturbing a single one. Within the forest, the light was a murky cyan. Li Yan descended, and before hitting the ground, he tapped a branch and shot forward like an arrow. He became a faint blur of green smoke, nearly invisible in the dim woods.

“Daoist Li, your speed is indeed impressive, but can you outrun people in every direction?”

As Li Yan shot forward, a voice erupted from the path ahead. He came to a dead stop, his figure solidifying from the blur. He stood in a thicket. To his front, back, left, and right, several figures appeared, surrounding him. He had sensed the tails earlier and dove into the forest to lose them, but they knew they were spotted. They had accelerated in the air and spread out to form a perimeter.

Li Yan looked at the man who stepped from behind a large tree—the burly Cheng Kuanghan. Surrounding him were six others, three men and three women. All had malicious smiles.

“Daoist Cheng, you’ve already tried this once. Are you determined to make things difficult? I recall that last time…” Li Yan said plainly.

Cheng Kuanghan cut him off. He didn’t want to hear about the exam. It didn’t matter who attacked first; Li Yan had played dirty, ruining his companions’ chances and costing them a fortune in spirit stones.

“Daoist Li, hiding isn’t going to solve anything. It’s time to pay back the spirit stones you owe us.”

“Hiding? Spirit stones? How much?” Li Yan’s face showed a flicker of confusion.

“Kid, how can you forget so quickly? You begged me for a long time before I lent you thirty thousand high-grade spirit stones. What, you dare to deny it?” From between two trees, the horse-faced Yu Erlu stepped forward, his eyes flashing with a predatory light.

The moment he spoke, before Li Yan could respond, Cheng Kuanghan’s eyes flickered toward Yu Erlu with dissatisfaction. He had already paid these people to help, but Yu Erlu was being greedy, trying to seize the upcoming spoils for himself. He knew Li Yan was a Spirit Transformation cultivator; his treasures and possessions might be worth ten or twenty thousand spirit stones. But Yu Erlu opened his mouth and claimed thirty thousand.

‘Damn it, once Zhou the Second and the others enter the Inner Valley, or I find a better backer, I’ll teach this greedy bastard a lesson…’ Cheng Kuanghan fumed internally, but he didn’t dare speak out against Yu Erlu’s crew. He would just have to make sure he got half of whatever they squeezed out of Li Yan.

“Debts must be repaid. Even if you argue until the heavens fall, Daoist Li, you must hand over the spirit stones, or else…” As Cheng Kuanghan spoke, he began to walk toward Li Yan. They could just attack, but even thugs liked to pretend they had a reason, claiming the moral high ground. This was a residential area, and though remote, people still passed by. He spoke loudly to ensure anyone listening heard their “justification.”

As Cheng Kuanghan moved, the other six closed in. They saw Cheng Kuanghan moving first and assumed he was trying to get the first bite of the spoils. Yu Erlu signaled his crew via transmission: ‘If Daoist Cheng gets too reckless and takes a risk, make sure you “help” him! We don’t want him to get hurt.’

‘Hehehe… of course. We took his money.’

‘I’m afraid of the Law Enforcement Hall; I won’t let him strike too hard!’

‘I’ll take the ring off the kid’s finger…’

The transmissions rang through their minds, excluding Cheng Kuanghan. As the seven closed in, Li Yan didn’t move. He didn’t even release a ripple of spiritual power. This made Cheng Kuanghan freeze. He suddenly remembered the seductive woman being poisoned during the exam.

‘Did the kid set a trap? I’ve been watching him; he hasn’t made a single hand seal aside from talking…’