Chapter 17

In the quiet waiting, night fell, and everyone sat in meditation, waiting for the treasure to appear. Lin Fan quite liked the three of them, but at the same time, he didn't like them much. These three had no experience in the world, and at the very least, they should have been cautious and polite. If this treasure fell into the hands of the four of them, who would it belong to?

At midnight, a squirrel appeared on Lotus Flower Mountain. It nimbly darted through the forest and quickly reached the summit where the four were resting. The squirrel slowly approached Lin Fan's bag, then used its front paws to open it and check inside, but found nothing. It then circled around Lin Fan.

After a moment, the squirrel returned to Lin Fan's bag, used its front paws to grab a few ink brushes, and ran down the mountain. An incense stick later, the squirrel reappeared and stole all the yellow papers from Lin Fan's bag in several trips.

The next morning, Lin Fan was shocked to find his things missing: "There was a thief."

"A thief?" Everyone stopped their meditation and came over to check.

"My yellow papers and ink brushes are gone." Lin Fan had a bamboo tube with holes, filled with ink, and the brushes were inserted into the holes to avoid the awkwardness of grinding ink in a hurry.

"This..." As the leader of the group, Gu Yan didn't know what to say. The yellow papers and brushes were not valuable, and for a thief to climb the mountain in the middle of the night just to steal these items was too much to ask. Gu Yan asked, "Could you have left them outside when you went out yesterday?"

"Impossible." These were essential tools; how could he not check them?

Bai Mu said, "The array I set up is called the Ji Tu San Jue Array, derived from the Luo Shu Nine Palace Diagram using the Xuan Kong Fei Xing Pan. It's a dead array, and whether it's a mortal or a Great Luo Golden Immortal, no one can enter without my detection."

Ye Wushuang laughed, "Then the thief isn't human."

"Not human?" Lin Fan seemed to understand something and looked around thoughtfully. "Senior Brother Gu Yan, I'm going to the nearby market."

"Okay, come back soon." Gu Yan nodded.

The nearest market to Lotus Flower Mountain was fifty miles away. Without his yellow papers and ink brushes, Lin Fan could only use the most basic magic, riding the wind, which allowed him to travel only twenty miles per hour (five kilometers per hour), but at least it was a straight line, saving him the pain of walking.

After flying for a while, Ye Wushuang could still see Lin Fan's back: "Is it okay? Blood Shadow Sect members are around, and Brother Lin Fan has no means to defend himself..."

Mentioning the Blood Shadow Sect made Gu Yan's eyebrows twitch. His biological father was once the head of the Tian Xing Sect of Yun Qing Gate, but was later seduced by a demoness and became a member of the Blood Shadow Sect, eventually becoming the leader. This left a huge shadow on his childhood and current life. Gu Yan said, "I'll patrol the area, you stay here." He hoped to find Blood Shadow Sect members and learn the reason his father betrayed Yun Qing Gate and the righteous path.

...

Lin Fan flew leisurely, ignoring the sympathetic looks from the disciples on the mountain. Some were even worse, flying their swords next to Lin Fan: "Why are you crawling, Daoist brother?"

Lin Fan replied, "To achieve naturalness, to return to simplicity."

The onlookers rolled their eyes and left in frustration.

Ximen Shuai found it amusing in the forest. This was all his doing. He was a bit afraid of the four disciples of Yun Qing Gate, so he had the beast steal Lin Fan's yellow papers and ink brushes. This way, Lin Fan would definitely go to the nearest market. Ximen Shuai always considered himself patient, and there were still many righteous and independent disciples in the area who might have connections with Yun Qing Gate, so he followed slowly. However, he didn't expect Lin Fan's speed without the talismans to be so slow that Ximen Shuai regretted not leaving at least one for him.

After two hours, Lin Fan finally flew out of the Jiu Lang Mountains. Ximen Shuai set up a barrier on the inevitable path to check if anyone was secretly following to protect Lin Fan. The answer was no; only Lin Fan was there. Seeing this, Ximen Shuai generously appeared, flying up from the forest to block Lin Fan's path: "Little brother, the green mountains remain, and the clear water flows, we meet again..."

Lin Fan quickly descended, heading for the mountain side. Ximen Shuai followed: "Little brother, you took the things, and I took the blame, isn't that unfair?"

Lin Fan said, "You wanted me to take the blame, and you to take the things."

"Um... you must have misunderstood." Ximen Shuai said, "I wanted the Blood Shadow Sect members to take the blame, and I to take the things."

What the hell, you're so shameless. The so-called "let the Blood Shadow Sect take the blame" meant killing him and framing the Blood Shadow Sect, then taking the things.

Ximen Shuai accompanied Lin Fan as he descended, patiently saying, "We are both cultivators, I don't want to make things too difficult for you. Just give me the things." Originally, Ximen Shuai wanted to beat Lin Fan up, but seeing his current flying speed, Ximen Shuai realized for the first time that bullying the weak was really wrong.

Lin Fan asked, "What if I don't give them to you?"

Ximen Shuai opened his fan, gently fanned, and smiled, "Then I'll strip you naked." You don't even have a Qiankun Ring, so the things must be on you.

Lin Fan was shocked, "Do you want to...?"

"..." Ximen Shuai's face turned black, and he gritted his teeth, "I only like women."

"..." Lin Fan looked regretful, "Actually, I've liked you for a long time."

Ximen Shuai got goosebumps and cursed, "You damn pervert." He formed a fist with his right hand, infused it with true qi, and struck Lin Fan's face. Lin Fan was hit hard and quickly fell into the forest.

Ximen Shuai wiped his fist on his clothes and then chased after him. To his shock, Lin Fan was gone. This was impossible; it had only been a blink of an eye. Ximen Shuai looked around the forest, sensing Lin Fan's presence. With his high cultivation, he could easily see through illusions.

He quickly flew around and was very sure that no one was in the area. How could Lin Fan have disappeared? Suddenly, Ximen Shuai sensed that a barrier he had set up eight miles ahead had been breached. He rushed over but still didn't see Lin Fan.

Another barrier closer to the market was triggered. Ximen Shuai had a realization and flew quickly to the spot, landed, and placed his left palm on the ground. It was earth遁 (earth遁 is a term for earth element technique, often translated as "earth escape" or "earth遁"). Ximen Shuai recited the spell, raised his left hand, and a true qi net the size of half an acre shot out, covering the ground. Ximen Shuai shouted, "Quickly!"

The net rose, forming a small net that pulled a person out of the ground. It was none other than Lin Fan.

Lin Fan was caught in the true qi net and was also shocked. This was one of his best escape techniques, and even the sect leader might not easily catch him. He had acted first and circled around, so how could this guy have chased him all the way? Lin Fan didn't know that Ximen Shuai had set up barriers, and his every move was clear to Ximen Shuai.

PS: During the new book period, please give me recommendations!

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