Chapter 4

Chapter 004: A Ghost Seeking Death

Perfect Returning Yuan Dan!

Rare, extremely rare.

Otherwise, back then, he only had one Perfect Returning Yuan Dan, and that was given to Yue Hongling.

But now, it seems, no need to give it to her.

Lu Ye stood up and heard auspicious light bursting forth within the Grand Dao Sect, followed by the sound of Dao bells ringing and spiritual beasts howling.

“Ninety-second generation disciple of the Grand Dao Sect, Bai Qiulan’s apprentice Yue Hongling, after seventeen days of Gathering Qi, has shattered the Grand Dao Sect’s Gathering Qi record, awarded a bottle of Supreme Returning Yuan Dan, three precious weapons, a spot as a true disciple, and the option to choose two supernatural abilities!”

Upon hearing this, Lu Ye chuckled.

Her cultivation speed is pretty impressive; he spent fifteen days, just two days faster than her.

After all, she’s a Great Emperor. In the Gathering Qi realm, even with his System and his past life as a Celestial Lord, it still takes a good bit of time.

But a Supreme Returning Yuan Dan?

Yue Hongling probably wouldn’t even look at it. He needed to hurry up and grab that Perfect Returning Yuan Dan for himself.

Moreover, calculating the time, Chu Ling should be returning to Chu Sword Villa soon.

Lu Ye couldn’t help but imagine how ecstatic those folks at Chu Sword Villa would be when they see the long-missing Chu Ling.

Outside Chu Sword Villa.

Raggedly dressed, Chu Ling gazed at the familiar villa in the distance, tears streaming down her face.

I’m home!

She’s finally home!

Countless days and nights spent missing her parents, longing for her brother.

They had always treated her so well; after discovering she was a natural sword body, the villa master and his wife regarded her as their daughter, caring for her more than their biological daughter and giving her only the best.

And now, she was finally back.

The villa looked as beautiful as it had years ago when she left, not the dilapidated state she had seen on her last return.

In this life, she would certainly cultivate well, with the ability to protect the villa and her family!

Filled with excitement, Chu Ling walked toward Chu Sword Villa.

At that moment, everyone in Chu Sword Villa wore somber and tense expressions, guards on high alert, hands tightly gripping their sword hilts, ready to fend off any potential threats from their comrades.

The conflict within Chu Sword Villa grew more intense by the day.

Everything stemmed from the disappearance of that damned maid!

Because of her absence, the ancestor had turned his focus on forging the Magic Sword onto the young master.

The villa master and his wife had only this one son; how could they allow the ancestor to forge the sword? Thus, the conflict between the villa master and the ancestor began to escalate.

As the forging reached a critical moment, tensions intensified.

Some guards were loyal to the ancestor, while others supported the villa master, and everyone could sense a fierce battle was imminent.

The storm was brewing.

At this moment, the ragged Chu Ling arrived outside the gates.

“Who let this beggar in? Chu Sword Villa isn’t a place for you; hurry and leave!” A kind-hearted guard named Chu Si didn’t want to drag anyone into the conflict and directly chased her off.

“I’m not a beggar! I’m the young lady, I’m Chu Ling!” Chu Ling exclaimed excitedly.

The four guards at the gate were all astonished.

“You are… who?”

“Chu Ling! I am Chu Ling!”

“You, you, you…”

The four guards stared at her, disbelief written all over their faces. Wait a minute, you escaped from the demon cave, and now you’re back with such a radiant smile? Are you crazy?

“How dare you, wild girl, impersonate the young lady? Scram at once, or don’t blame me for drawing my sword!” Chu Si drew his long sword, yelling angrily.

The other three guards turned to look at Chu Si, eyes turning dangerous.

“Chu Si, you don’t remember me? I’m Chu Ling! When I was little, you used to hold me and give me treats. You don’t remember?”

“I just left not long ago, look at my face…”

“Chu Ling is back!”

One guard suddenly ran into Chu Sword Villa, shouting with all his might!

“Chu Ling is back!”

“The natural sword body, Chu Ling, is back!”

“Ancestor, Ancestor, Chu Ling is back!”

Instantly, the atmosphere at Chu Sword Villa burst into a frenzy, everyone’s expressions changed wildly as they hurried over.

Chu Si looked at Chu Ling, unable to suppress a pained close-eyed expression.

That person… that person…

“Bang!”

A figure in a brocade robe took deep steps, each one leaving a mark on the bluestone ground. Even while walking out the gate, they stumbled and nearly fell.

Chu Ling gasped.

But the figure stabilized and immediately embraced Chu Ling.

“Ling’er, Ling’er, you’ve returned! You’ve finally returned! Your father missed you so much!”

He was so happy that his body trembled, his tiger-like eyes turning red.

This was Chu Xiong Tian, the villa master of Chu Sword Villa.

“Ling’er!”

Another exclamation rang out, as the villa master’s wife, Zeng Shuiyue, rushed out, joining the embrace.

“You little girl, where have you been for so long? Not a single word from you! Do you even know we were on the verge of panic?”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry! I was taken to the Grand Dao Sect, and they wouldn’t let me contact you. Now I’ve snuck back, and I’ll never leave you and dad again!” Chu Ling replied, equally overwhelmed with emotion.

In her parents’ embrace, she felt warmth like never before.

The young master of Chu Sword Villa, Chu Shifei, watched the returning Chu Ling, disbelief plastered on his face.

He couldn’t help but slap himself.

Ouch!

At that moment, his legs felt weak.

She’s back, she’s back, thank goodness, the scapegoat is back.

He nearly died!

…

Outside the Grand Dao Sect.

After expressing his congratulations to Yue Hongling, Lu Ye chose to leave.

His destination was an ancient tomb more than a thousand kilometers west of the Grand Dao Sect, which had not yet appeared in the world. It was expected that, in a month’s time, an accidental battle would unlock the tomb’s formation, allowing it to resurface.

Inside was the grave of a refining void expert from a long time ago.

The two most valuable items inside were the remnants of the Nine Lives Undying Heavenly Canon and the Perfect Returning Yuan Dan, while everything else had turned to ruins with the passage of time—only these two treasures remained.

Without stopping,

After two days of travel, Lu Ye arrived at the site.

There was a formation here; however, it was damaged. To Lu Ye, even if it had been intact, it wouldn’t have posed any resistance.

Step by step, he easily made his way in, and his figure disappeared.

Almost ten minutes after his disappearance, Yue Hongling appeared.

She was all alone.

She couldn’t let anyone else know about the Perfect Returning Yuan Dan.

For many, such a dan was not precious, even useless.

But for her family with a younger generation preparing for dan formation, it was worth its weight in gold.

She also easily entered the formation.

But just as she stepped inside, her expression changed.

Someone had gotten in before her?

Who?

She hurriedly rushed deeper; for her, a former Great Emperor, the things set up by a refining void expert, plus the erosion of time, wouldn’t pose much resistance at all.

Suddenly, she halted.

Huh?

She was trapped.

Yue Hongling slapped forward, the space before her slightly trembling.

This wasn’t a formation that a refining void expert could set up.

It was a formation laid by someone who’d come before.

Since this ancient tomb hadn’t yet appeared, logically, no one should have come here.

And now that someone had come, it could only mean…

“Senior Brother, I know it’s you! Show yourself!”