The next day, Chen Yun and Zhang Qian left Tao Lin with the farewells of Zhang Chengfan, Wang Shiwei, and others.

    Along the way, the two saw many refugees looking pale and thin.

    Chen Yun always kept in mind the purpose of this descent, and distributed the 100 two silver coins given by Wang Laozhi to the people.

    During this period, all the silver coins were given away.

    He then began to take out ten strings of copper coins to give to the refugees.

    It took almost a day without a break for the silver and copper coins to be given out.

    Suddenly, Chen Yun felt a sense of lightness, as if he had shed some heavy burden.

    At this moment, he dimly understood the teacher's arduous intentions.

    Wealth and fortune are indeed a burden on the path of cultivation, and only by letting go can one be lightened.

    …

    Yesterday, White Cloud Mountain Villa.

    A black qi suddenly appeared and entered the villa under the bright sunlight.

    Shortly after, the black qi condensed into a vague human silhouette.

    Not afraid of the sun, one can imagine how high the cultivation level of the personage condensed from this black qi must be.

    He stood six feet tall, his face was square, he had a one-foot-long beard, and his hair was gray. He looked to be about fifty years old.

    If anyone here knew him, they would recognize that the person condensed from the black qi is Zhang Qing, a leader of the Yellow Turban Rebels higher than Bi Qu, who commands the military of a whole prefecture.

    Zhang Qing is truly remarkable. According to rumors, he is the descendant of Zhang Bao, one of the three major leaders of the Taiping Path. He has trained in the complete "Taiping Doctrine," although he has not become an immortal because of his ordinary talent. However, with the help of secret techniques for corpse-resurrection, he has become a corpse-resurrection immortal.

    What is a corpse-resurrection immortal?

    It is rumored that when a cultivator has nearly exhausted the lifespan of their physical body and cannot ascend to immortality, they entrust their life force to artifacts, such as weapons, staffs, and the like, in order to continue living.

    Generally speaking, the cultivation level of a corpse-resurrection immortal is not too weak, at least equivalent to an elite mage.

    Some highly accomplished corpse-resurrection immortals are even approaching ghostly immortality.

    Zhang Qing is considered relatively weak among corpse-resurrection immortals, but he still possesses the power equivalent to an early-level elite mage, with the strength to split mountains and crack stones.

    As the teacher of Lin Feiyun and Liu Guibai, he had not visited his disciples for a long time. Today, when he was passing by, he decided to drop by to visit them.

    "Ha ha, my two obedient disciples, your master has come to visit you."

    Zhang Qing entered and laughed heartily.

    Perhaps because of the noise, Lin Feiyun quickly ran out from inside and knelt down on the ground, bowing three times and saying, "Feiyun has seen his teacher."

    Zhang Qing looked at her in surprise, frowned and said, "Feiyun, why did you change your body? My secret technique can only allow people to change their bodies. Now you have changed your body. If you can't ascend to immortality in the future, there will be no opportunity for corpse-resurrection."

    When mentioning this matter, Lin Feiyun raised her head, her eyes red with tears, and said, "Master, you don't know. I was..."

    She carefully explained the conflict with Chen Yun one by one.

    After listening, Zhang Qing burst into anger and scolded, "What did the Master say to us? Chen Yun is the disciple of Zhong Liquan. How dare you go and provoke him?"

    Lin Feiyun lowered her head and said nothing.

    Zhang Qing was about to continue scolding.

    Suddenly, he seemed to sense something and looked towards the east.

    The next moment, Zhang Qing's face contorted, and he trembled, "Guibai is dead!"

    "Ah?" Lin Feiyun raised her head in disbelief, "Has Master Lu died?"

    Of course, she knew that her master had left a secret technique in her and Master Liu's spirit world. If someone died, they would be instantly sensed by her master.

    Zhang Qing wept with old tears, "Grandmaster has only two disciples: you and Guibai. I had hoped that one day you both would ascend to immortality. Who would have thought that today, I have to bury my black-haired disciple in a foreign land! Who? Who killed my apprentice, and I demand retribution with his blood!"

    As he spoke, Zhang Qing's entire body was filled with black qi surging, almost filling the entire villa. It was clear how angry he was.

    Lin Feiyun, seeing her master angry, trembled in fear.

    However, she still lifted her head weakly and said, "Master, I know who killed Master Liu."

    "Who?" Zhang Qing suddenly turned his gaze towards her.

    In ancient society, disciples were considered as sons.

    Now that Liu Guibai has died, it is almost like a son's death for Zhang Qing. How could he not be angry about it?

    Lin Feiyun guessed, "Before that, Master Lu knew that I was destroyed by the little thief Chen Yun. As he loved and protected his brother, he went to argue with the little thief. Perhaps Master Lu's death was also caused by the little thief's dark scheme!"

    Upon hearing this, Zhang Qing fell silent, the swollen black qi receded from his body, and he remained silent.

    No one else might not know about the fear of Zhong Liquan, but could Zhang Qing not know?

    For disciples like Lin Feiyun and Liu Guibai to physically confront Chen Yun, it is a minor conflict between juniors. As long as they don't cause fatal harm, Zhong Liquan, with his status, wouldn't personally intervene.

    If he, Zhang Qing, bullies the young Chen Yun and causes him any harm, Zhong Liquan will be furious. He might not just crush Zhang Qing's bones and scatter his ashes, but he might also destroy the Taiping Path from its roots.

    That's why Zhang Qing knows that if Chen Yun killed his beloved apprentice Liu Guibai, he wouldn't dare to make a sound on this side.

    Lin Feiyun saw that Zhang Qing didn't speak, so she dared not say anything.

    After a long time, Zhang Qing did not say a word.

    After several minutes, he finally let out a long sigh, "Find a way to bring back Guibai's body. I will bury him properly. You must not go and trouble Chen Yun anymore; let this matter be as it is."

    As it is.

    Lin Feiyun had suffered a major defeat at the hands of Chen Yun, losing her physical body. How could she just let it go?

    It's just that even her teacher dare not provoke Chen Yun, and she was at a loss for what to do for a moment.

    Lin Feiyun was really unwilling to give up.

    Suddenly, her eyes lit up with a crafty idea, "Master, you can't do anything to Chen Yun, but that doesn't mean you can't avenge Master Liu. If the news of Master Liu's death spreads today, and you don't make any gesture in response, wouldn't it be a loss of face?"

    Zhang Qing sighed again, "How could I not know this? But Zhong Liquan is powerful. His disciples include Liu Dunbin, He Xiangu, Han Xiangzi, and many other immortal apprentices and descendants. Moreover, Zhong Liquan's master is Dong Wanggong. Even if I have any resentment, how could I dare to cause trouble for his disciples like hitting a stone with an egg?"

    Lin Feiyun said, "I'm not asking Master to cause trouble for Chen Yun."

    Zhang Qing was taken aback, "Feiyun, what do you mean by that?"

    Lin Feiyun winked, "As I know, Chen Yun is now going to Luoyang to visit his close friend Lin Chen. He has another friend, Zhang Qian, accompanying him. Although these two were long-term laborers at the Daoist Temple before, they have now served their five-year term and been dismissed, having no connection with the temple. However, they are good friends with Chen Yun. If Master were to kill these two in front of Chen Yun's face, it would surely cause him great sorrow. Moreover, since you have not acted against Chen Yun yourself, there is no reason for Zhong Liquan to find trouble for you because of ordinary people. In this way, not only can we avenge Master Liu's death, but Chen Yun will also experience the pain of losing a loved one. Moreover, your honor will be preserved as well. Isn't this a three-fold benefit?"

    Upon hearing this, Zhang Qing's face, which had been previously downcast, suddenly brightened.

    Zhang Qing did not immediately promise anything to Lin Feiyun but simply said lightly, "Let's talk about this later. Master has something to take care of first."

    After speaking, the black qi dispersed abruptly, disappearing into thin air in an instant.

    Lin Feiyun's face, however, showed a hint of a smile.

    She knew her master's temper better than anyone. Zhang Qing was extremely good at face-saving and cherished Liu Guibai deeply. Now that she had heard a way to restore some dignity and indirectly avenge Liu Guibai's death, there was more than a half chance that he would do it.

    She was really curious to see what kind of a humiliated expression Chen Yun would have if he saw his two closest friends, Lin Chen and Zhang Qian, die in front of him.

    Indeed, she knows that her master dares not provoke the disciples of Zhong Liquan. But Zhang Qian and Lin Chen are no longer associated with the Daoist Temple in any way. Therefore, even if they were killed, Zhong Liquan would have no reason to interfere. She is not afraid that her master will bring trouble upon himself.

    Of course, today her master has spoken out, Lin Feiyun knows that she has been unable to avenge the destruction of her physical body this lifetime.

    "Master Liu's cultivation was far below mine, but he was at least a seventh-level mage, and he had the secret technique of corpse-resurrection. As long as he didn't have his soul scattered, he would have a chance to be reborn through transmigration. How could he suddenly die?"

    Lin Feiyun couldn't understand it at all. She thought that Chen Yun had used some evil scheme again to kill Master Liu, without realizing that these days, Chen Yun's strength had greatly increased and he had killed Master Liu himself.

    ……

    On the other side, along the official road.

    Three or four days later, Chen Yun and Zhang Qian were only about a thousand miles away from Luoyang, and they estimated they could arrive tomorrow evening.

    In the past few days, the road had been calm and quiet, with no events happening except for some military turmoil.

    At this moment, the sky was dotted with stars.

    Chen Yun and Zhang Qian found a dilapidated granary to temporarily stay in.

    "Chen brother, we'll reach Luoyang City tomorrow," Zhang Qian said with great enthusiasm. "When your junior sister sees your cultivation, she will be very surprised, ha ha."

    While putting down his luggage, Chen Yun casually covered the dilapidated wooden door with his hand and smiled, "I wonder if my junior brother has found a wife and established a family in Luoyang after being here for so long."

    Zhang Qian took out dried food from his backpack, "If he has a family, that's good. I can hold the nephew."

    Chen Yun wiped the sweat from his brow, "Brother Zhang, Master Liu has only been down the mountain for a short while, hasn't he? If he had a nephew in such a short time, his head might be turning green with envy."

    "Green with envy" means feeling jealous.

    Chen Yun thought that there was no such thing as wearing a green hat now, so he explained it a bit.

    After hearing the explanation, Zhang Qian suddenly understood and laughed heartily, "Right! Right! A woman needs to carry a child for ten months before giving birth. Master Liu has only been down the mountain for a few months, so it's indeed impossible for him to have a child."

    As they talked, they ate their dry food.

    Suddenly, a strange wind blew in, slamming the doors and windows.

    "Hmm?" Chen Yun felt something was off and hurriedly looked outside.

    As soon as he turned his head, he saw a swarm of black qi covering the entire dilapidated granary!

    For a moment, the entire dilapidated granary became dark and dim.

    Chen Yun was about to release his spiritual awareness to investigate the situation.

    Suddenly, Zhang Qian's scream of "Ah!" came into his ear.

    Immediately afterward, a sharp voice, like a wolf's howl from a middle-aged or elderly man, echoed, "Hah, little one, I'll take your companion away now. If you want to save him, come to Luoyang City!"

    As soon as the words fell, the black qi recoiled.

    When Chen Yun regained his vision, Zhang Qian was no longer beside him!

    (Chapter Ends)