Chapter 342: A Massive Crisis

The planned task could be completed in about an hour, leaving over two days—a real challenge.
Practicing in the vicinity meant only one-seventh of the speed achievable at the inn. If all that time were spent collecting Perfume Essence, just a thousand iron boxes would hold millions of pounds of it. Although a mobile counter could accommodate more of the same material, at Old Ding’s pace and with careful handling, it wouldn’t take more than two or three days to mine it without leaving traces. Yet, even if this much Perfume Essence were sold as a beverage, millions of pounds would suffice for a year or two. After that, sending a few guard teams would be enough—there was no need to bring back tens of millions or even hundreds of millions of pounds at once.
After putting all the Perfume Essence ice cubes into the iron boxes and tossing in the crushed ice leveled by Yun Lan, Lin Dong pondered for a moment before coming up with an idea.
“Elder, how about you go down the mountain to pick someone up?”
“Pick someone up?” Old Ding was puzzled.
“I mean the person who introduced us to the general location of Wuyou Cave when we first came. By estimating her speed of traveling while using all her spiritual energy and the shortest route to Wenyan Mountain, we should be able to guess her current location,” Lin Dong explained. “With your formidable mental strength, finding her shouldn’t be a problem.”
“Okay, bring her here?” Old Ding had no objections. After all, you can’t refuse something given freely—those five jars of top-quality wine weren’t given for nothing.
“No need. Just take her straight to Baisha Peak,” Lin Dong shook his head. “Yun Lan and I will head to Baisha Peak first. By the time we arrive, you should be able to get there soon as well. This is the fastest way.”
Old Ding remained silent, took a sip of thyme, and used the time to recall Yu Linglong’s strength and possible routes. Then, in a flash, he disappeared from the ice surface.
“Let’s go!” Lin Dong raised his hands and moved toward Yun Lan.
“What’s the matter?” Yun Lan looked at Lin Dong’s seemingly surrender-like posture in confusion, not understanding his intention.
“Of course, you’ll take me,” Lin Dong chuckled. “With my strength at the ninth level of the Mental State phase, no matter how fast my Floating Step is, it can’t match your speed at the third level of the Mental Reversal phase while carrying someone. Maybe even Old Ding will reach Baisha Peak before us. Or perhaps we can find Wuyou Cave before they do. The more time we can save, the better.”
“Can’t we just stroll there slowly?” Yun Lan was reluctant. It was rare to go out, and with just the two of them, it would be more comfortable to walk leisurely.

“Let’s take our time exploring Bai Sha Peak when we get there!” Lin Dong shook his head slowly. He wanted to stroll around leisurely with her too, but he was even more eager to lead a guard team of thousands of powerful fighters to Tian Jian Sect to propose marriage. Of course, without affecting his relationship with Yun Lan, every minute and second should be spent developing the inn and improving his strength. He had to do whatever it took to save time.
“Okay, let’s go!” Yun Lan didn’t insist. She stretched out her delicate hands, wrapped them around Lin Dong’s waist, and suddenly flew toward Bai Sha Peak, which they had learned about earlier.
The wind whistled in their ears, and the air was filled with a pleasant fragrance. Lin Dong’s right hand instinctively moved to rest on Yun Lan’s shoulder. Her skin was smooth and soft, prompting his fingers to crave further exploration…
“Lin Dong, stop it now!”
A playful scolding sounded in his ear. Lin Dong snapped out of his daze and glanced around, realizing that their bodies were swaying mid-flight, with a high risk of falling.
“Yun Lan, what happened?” Lin Dong was alarmed. He quickly turned to look at her. Beneath her sheer sleeves, her snow-white neck was flushed with a rosy hue, like a rainbow. This sight shocked him even more. With Yun Lan’s strength, even flying swiftly over rugged terrain, she should be able to maintain stability.
If this was the case, something must have gone wrong.
“Look at your hand,” Yun Lan said angrily.
His left hand was empty, hanging in mid-air, while his right hand…
Lin Dong gently touched it. It was soft, and after feeling around to determine where it was on Yun Lan’s body, a sinister glint appeared in his eyes, rivaling the brightness of the sun in the sky.
“Lin Dong…”
Yun Lan wished she could push him away so he would fall onto the rocks below and come to his senses.
This guy had lost focus again.
“Ah?”
Lin Dong suddenly realized what he was doing. He smiled, loosened his grip slightly, and moved his hand to his waist.
Yun Lan sighed in relief, though still annoyed. “Do you realize that in the secular world, if I were to indulge you like this, I’d be despised by millions?”
“It’s not that serious, right?” Lin Dong was startled and shook his head repeatedly. “It was just an impulse. We weren’t being affectionate in public. Even in the secular world, there are many worse people than us.”
“Nonsense!”
“It’s true. Not to mention anything else…” Lin Dong smiled. “Think about Wang Bin and Yi Yi. They stayed at our inn for a while, and we only had one guest room. A man and a woman alone—few people have as much self-control as I do. There aren’t many as proper as me.”

Yun Lan was speechless, somewhat skeptical, yet unable to think of any counterarguments for the time. She had traveled extensively and understood worldly matters better than most sect disciples. But when it came to relationships between men and women, she only knew the basics, slightly more than an ordinary lady of high birth.
“Can’t speak, huh? If you still don’t believe me, I’ll take you to the banyan forest two li north of the city when we have time. It’s said that each banyan tree there has a large hole dug into it, and every ten steps, you’ll encounter a big banyan tree with its hole covered by leaves.” Lin Dong tilted his body slightly and wrapped his left arm around Yun Lan’s waist, pressing most of his body against hers.
Yun Lan became flustered by Lin Dong’s actions and couldn’t think straight. She casually asked, “Why dig holes in the banyan trees? Why is there one with a hole covered by leaves every ten steps?”
“Of course to hide people,” Lin Dong said with a laugh, resting his head on Yun Lan’s shoulder. After clinging to her, he said contentedly, “The banyan forest north of the city is said to be over two thousand years old. Each banyan tree is huge, dark inside. Dig a hole, hide two people in it, then cover the hole. Unless you meet someone who’s idle and has nothing to do, there’s no more hidden, safe, and atmospheric place than this. We should go try it sometime.”
A blush appeared on Yun Lan’s cheeks. She no longer dared to continue the conversation and focused on channeling her spiritual energy through her meridians to fly as fast as possible through the mountains.
Lin Dong raised his eyebrows slightly, leaned close to Yun Lan’s neck, and blew gently.
Fine, almost invisible hairs on her neck stood on end. Yun Lan felt a chill run down her spine and an unbearable itching all over her body, but she didn’t dare stop Lin Dong again.
Their flight path became unstable once more, as Lin Dong was busy teasing Yun Lan and ignored it once again.
“We’re here!”
Her body stopped abruptly. The next second, Yun Lan’s voice of relief reached Lin Dong’s ears.
Turning around, Lin Dong said disappointedly, “That’s it?”
“If we go any longer, I’ll be disgusted to death by your disgusting actions,” Yun Lan said through gritted teeth.
“We must visit the banyan forest someday. After that, you’ll understand how refined I am,” Lin Dong said, licking his lips. It was a pity that good times passed so quickly; he had only just figured out just how delicate Yun Lan’s skin was when they arrived.
Yun Lan wisely chose silence. Her mind gradually dispersed, her brows slightly furrowed as her gaze suddenly turned to the right.

“Amazingly, you were able to detect us. At such a young age, you already possess such strength—impressive.” From behind a row of pine trees on the right, two elders dressed in martial attire stepped forward slowly.

Yun Lan remained calm on the surface, but was inwardly shocked. Earlier, she had only been able to sense the presence of the second elder, while being completely unaware of the first. This clearly indicated that this person’s strength was at least one realm higher than hers.

Only someone with a strength one realm above could hide to such an extent that she couldn’t detect them.

The first of the two elders was around sixty years old. Though his black martial robes gave him a gloomy appearance, they couldn’t conceal his extraordinary and ethereal aura. With just a little insight, one could tell that his status alone was extraordinary.

The elder slightly behind him was of a similar age, with darker skin. Under his snow-white eyebrows, his gaze toward Yun Lan and Lin Dong showed hesitation.

Both Lin Dong and Yun Lan had seen this second elder before—he was Chang Qianren, the second elder of the Huan Yu Sect, who had been chasing Yu Linglong when they entered Lingnan City.

“Vous two must be the extraordinary talents who intercepted our Huan Yu Sect’s Wu Dun Beast and our guests, right?” The leading elder’s sharp eyes scanned Lin Dong and the others.

“And so what if we are?” Lin Dong remained calm, though his shock was no less than Yun Lan’s.

Although he couldn’t discern the leading elder’s strength, he could tell from his tone that his status in the Huan Yu Sect was far higher than Chang Qianren’s.

Chang Qianren’s strength might not be sufficient to be a second elder in a minor sect of a major sect, but he surely had other advantages to fill the role—after all, his status was undeniable.

Judging from the leading elder’s tone, even the senior elder, who might have a slightly higher status, couldn’t compare—there could only be one such person: the sect master.

A sect master second only to that of a major sect would, unless they had other advantages like Xiao Tianchi or Chang Qianren, possess a strength that was definitely at least at the fourth level of the Xin Ni stage.

If that were the case, things would get very troublesome.

Dai Qingyi, the master of the Huan Yu Sect, stroked his snow-white beard gently and smiled kindly as he asked, “If that’s the case, you must have learned the location of Wu You Cave from our guests from the Huan Yu Sect, and came to Bai Sha Peak specifically to find it, right?”

“Smart!” Lin Dong gave Dai Qingyi a thumbs up, already deciding to delay things as much as possible. Only when Old Ding arrived could all the crises be resolved. Otherwise, unless they could scare Dai Qingyi into not attacking, this was the territory of the Fantasy Rain Sect—whether it was familiarity with the terrain or the ease of gathering experts, as long as Dai Qingyi reached the fourth level of the Heart Reversal stage, he would be enough to keep them both here. Once he surpassed the fourth level of Heart Reversal, just Dai Qingyi and Chang Qianren together would be sufficient.

“If that’s the case, I wonder if the two of you could reveal a little?”
Dai Qingyi’s tone was gentle, like a spring breeze, but Lin Dong could tell he had concerns.
As the sect leader, none of them were simple people. No matter what, Lin Dong didn’t believe that this Sect Leader Dai was truly as amiable as he appeared.
His concerns were undoubtedly for himself and the mysterious forces behind Yun Lan.
Lin Dong’s mind raced, and soon he smiled. “I suppose you must be Sect Leader Dai of the Fantasy Rain Sect?”
“I didn’t expect you to have heard of me too,” Dai Qingyi nodded slowly.
“Sect Leader Dai is renowned throughout Lingnan Commandery. We’ve only been here for a few days since arriving in Lingnan Commandery, yet we’ve already heard of your remarkable deeds. I’ve always admired you greatly,” Lin Dong said with a smile.
“That’s good!” Dai Qingyi’s signature smile appeared again. “Since you know who I am, young man and lady, you shouldn’t worry that I’ll keep Wuyou Cave to myself once I know about it, right?”
“So, Sect Leader Dai intends to share some with us?” Lin Dong asked, eyes wide.
“That depends on whether the information you reveal is true,” Dai Qingyi said. Clearly, he also wanted to buy time to consider the pros and cons. He promised, “If it’s true, I assure you, you two will definitely get your share.”
“How much is that share?” Lin Dong pressed.
“Thirty percent, I guess!” Dai Qingyi said with a smile.
“What treasures are there in Wuyou Cave? If there are just a few spirit swords and only thirty percent is given…” Lin Dong said leisurely, “then our trip wouldn’t be worth it at all.”
“They’re all personal belongings left behind by close friends of the fifth-generation sect leader of our Fantasy Rain Sect,” Dai Qingyi replied calmly. “To be honest with you, their significance lies most in our sect. As for treasures, you two can take whatever you desire, as long as you leave behind the remains of our fifth-generation sect leader’s friends.”

“The conditions are good, but the problem is, how can I trust what Master Dai says?” Lin Dong was troubled. “Master Dai knows too that what one hears from hearsay isn’t necessarily true. Besides, though Master Dai is highly renowned, he isn’t exactly known for his integrity.”
“What if I swear in the name of the sect master?” Dai Qingyi still smiled. “Then you shouldn’t doubt anymore, right?”
“In that case, I’ll rely on Master Dai.”
Lin Dong nodded with a smile, but inwardly he dismissed Dai Qingyi’s words. To become a sect master, putting the sect’s interests above everything is a necessary condition. Even You Beide, the sect master of the smallest sect Lin Dong had ever seen, the Xingli Sect, met this requirement. Of course, there were exceptions—Yun Cangqiong, for instance, who valued Yun Lan more than the Tianjian Sect. But even Yun Cangqiong, famous for his boldness and villainy in the Great Han Kingdom, would likely not mind ruining his reputation if it meant gaining huge benefits and didn’t involve Yun Lan.
If the Wuyou Cave could prompt the Huanyu Sect to make such a huge effort, the benefits inside surely weren’t as simple as Dai Qingyi had described. Lin Dong was sure Dai Qingyi wanted to see if he could deceive a pair of innocent young people.
Forcing Dai Qingyi to swear and then breaking his word, humiliating a sect master like this would create a serious feud with the Huanyu Sect. But for Lin Dong, every second of delay was valuable.
“Very well…” Dai Qingyi raised his index and middle fingers, his expression serious, as he declared, “I, Dai Qingyi, swear here that if these two can tell me the location of the Wuyou Cave, I guarantee they may take anything in the cave except the remains of the fifth-generation sect master’s close friends. If I break this oath, I am willing to…”
Amidst his long list of curses, Lin Dong took a quick glance at Yun Lan when the two weren’t looking. The message in Yun Lan’s eyes made his heart sink.
He could tell from her gaze that this Master Dai’s strength was unfathomable.
At that moment, Lin Dong regretted bitterly having put himself and Yun Lan in such danger just to save an hour or two. This deal was even worse than spending millions of silver coins for a piece of rags.
“Sect master, if we’ve made up our minds, we must act quickly,” Dai Qingyi continued his endless curses. A little behind him, Chang Qianren said with a cold glint in his eyes, “I can tell they’re just stalling us. And they’re not trying to escape—they’re waiting for reinforcements.”
“Waiting for reinforcements?” Dai Qingyi’s expression darkened slightly.
“Yes!” Chang Qianren affirmed.

“But…” Looking at Lin Dong’s beaming smile and Yun Lan’s calm expression, Dai Qingyi struggled with indecision. He had no doubts about Chang Qianren’s judgment. Yet even now, he still hadn’t decided what to do with Lin Dong and the others.
“There’s no need to hesitate. Whether they are disciples of peak experts or heirs of great sects,” Chang Qianren clearly made his decision earlier than Dai Qingyi. “If they hadn’t come to Bai Sha Peak, we could endure it. But since they’ve come here to open the Wuyou Cave, we must seize it as soon as possible before the forces behind them arrive. Even if it means attracting powerful enemies and risking the destruction of our sect, we must take the gamble!”
“Notify all the elders and disciples to come here!” Dai Qingyi gritted his teeth, his veins bulging on his forehead.
Chang Qianren stretched out his right hand, and a small red cylinder appeared silently. Pulling off the lid at the top, a strange sphere rushed into the sky with a sharp, shrill whistling sound.
“Let’s go!”
Yun Lan suddenly grabbed Lin Dong’s shoulder and turned to dash away.
“It’s not that easy to escape! With your talents, it will take you thirty to fifty years to become formidable in the Great Han Nation. But it’s a pity you targeted the Wuyou Cave that our Huan Yu Sect has been searching for for hundreds of years.”
Dai Qingyi’s eyes gleamed viciously; he no longer carried any trace of his serene, immortal aura. His legs bent slightly, and he instantly transformed into a streak of black light, chasing after them.
In less than half a minute, Yun Lan stopped. Ahead, Dai Qingyi stood with a spiritual sword, staring straight at them.
Lin Dong took out the Ruyi Stool, feeling helpless. He didn’t need Yun Lan to explain—he could see it himself. Although carrying him slowed Yun Lan down a bit, she was already fast by nature. The fact that Dai Qingyi could catch up in less than half a minute, even with advanced movement-based spiritual techniques, meant his strength was likely already at the fifth level of the Xin Ni phase.
The higher one climbs, the harder it is to advance to each subsequent level—some may even take decades. Those with weaker talents might never break through in their lifetime. Similarly, the gap between them grew increasingly apparent. At the fifth level of Xin Ni, as long as his spiritual techniques weren’t too poor, his formidable strength would be enough to defeat Yun Lan, who was only at the third level.
Yun Lan no longer hid her identity. She drew out the Lan Chen Sword. After a brief hesitation in her eyes, she said firmly, “I’ll hold him off. You go and defeat Chang Qianren as quickly as possible.”
Just as Yun Lan hadn’t left Lin Dong alone, Lin Dong didn’t object to her facing the powerful Dai Qingyi either. Nodding firmly, he turned without hesitation and rushed toward Chang Qianren, who was closing in fast, his gaze filled with growing hostility.