Chapter 14

Hearing these words, Lin Haoming was somewhat surprised. Apart from the servant boy, there was no one else here. Lin Haoming casually asked, "What? Senior Brother Wang is planning to lease this place out?"

Wang Chen, seeing it was Lin Haoming, nodded, as they had done business before. He said, "My cultivation has reached the peak of the ninth level, and I'm not yet thirty years old. As long as I break through, I can directly enter the Inner Sect. Otherwise, I wouldn't be willing to give up this place."

"Since that's the case, why isn't anyone willing to take over?" Lin Haoming asked, somewhat puzzled.

Wang Chen subconsciously felt that Lin Haoming had some background, so he didn't hide it and said with a bitter smile, "You know how big my business is. For ordinary Outer Sect disciples, suddenly having thousands of spirit stones in their hands can easily lead to greed. If someone runs off with the goods, I would be in big trouble. And those who wouldn't be tempted by these things are mostly focused on breaking through to the Great Perfection and becoming Inner Sect disciples, and they don't want to come here."

Saying this, Wang Chen suddenly looked at Lin Haoming, his eyes brightening. "Junior Brother, are you willing to take over? I think you know the situation here. To be honest, I can take a ten percent cut from the sales. In a month, it would be at least thirty to fifty spirit stones."

"Senior Brother Wang, aren't you afraid I might be tempted by greed?" Lin Haoming asked with a smile.

"Hehe, someone who can spend hundreds of spirit stones at once, if they still want to be greedy, then I, Wang Chen, must be blind. I'm just afraid that Junior Brother might not be interested in this income, and I'm worried about wasting time here!" Wang Chen laughed heartily.

Listening to Wang Chen, Lin Haoming was somewhat tempted. He thought for a moment and said, "Senior Brother Wang, to be honest, I actually manage the Futo Cave. If I come here, what if the people in charge of Futo Cave don't let me go?"

"Ha! I thought it was something serious. When you first came, you should have seen the real owner behind this place. To be honest, Senior Sister Xie is highly regarded in the Inner Sect. As long as she says a word, even the disciples of Golden Core Ancestors would vie to help. The people managing the Futo Cave wouldn't dare to disobey." Although Wang Chen was an Outer Sect disciple, he already looked down on ordinary Inner Sect disciples.

Seeing Wang Chen speak with such confidence, Lin Haoming would have immediately agreed if it weren't for the fact that the person behind this place was Xie Ruolan.

However, just as Lin Haoming was hesitating, a fragrant breeze suddenly came.

Lin Haoming turned around and saw Xie Ruolan, dressed in light green palace attire, with her hair casually tied back, looking fresh and elegant, like a celestial being, standing at the entrance of the cave.

"Senior Sister Xie!" Wang Chen immediately greeted her respectfully.

Xie Ruolan's gaze swept over Lin Haoming, and she said coolly, "Is he the one you found to replace you?"

"This... this, I just mentioned it, and Junior Brother hasn't given an answer yet!" Wang Chen said, somewhat awkwardly.

At this moment, Lin Haoming looked at Xie Ruolan. At such close range, he could feel from her faint aura that her cultivation had advanced since the last time they met, and she was probably now at the Great Perfection stage of the Qi Condensation period.

Xie Ruolan also looked at Lin Haoming, her star-like eyes glowing with a hint of purple. She then said coolly, "Does this Junior Brother have some hidden reason for not showing his true face?"

Hearing Xie Ruolan's words, Wang Chen was also surprised. He had met Lin Haoming several times and didn't know that the other party had changed his appearance.

Lin Haoming didn't expect that Xie Ruolan had cultivated some spiritual eye technique that could see through his disguise. With no choice, he rubbed his face and returned to his true appearance. Since she had already seen through it, not changing back would likely cause trouble.

Seeing Lin Haoming's appearance, Xie Ruolan's eyes suddenly showed a hint of surprise, and then the corners of her mouth curled up, a smile appearing on her face. "It's you! I didn't expect to see you again!"

Lin Haoming knew that Xie Ruolan had recognized him. After all, he was thirteen years old at the time, and although five years had passed, his appearance hadn't changed much. On the contrary, Xie Ruolan had changed a lot. When he first met her, she was a little girl with a runny nose and two small braids.

Since he had been recognized, Lin Haoming had nothing to say. He forced a smile and greeted Xie Ruolan, "Senior Sister Xie!"

Hearing this title, for some reason, Xie Ruolan felt an inexplicable excitement. She would never forget how the brat in front of her used to boss her around. She couldn't forget the words he had once said to her.

"The Ancestor gave you to me, so you belong to me. Whatever I want you to do, you must do. That's your fate!"

Because of these words, when she learned that the Ancestor had fallen and she was free, Xie Ruolan vowed that she would never let anyone control her fate again.

Looking at the former Ancestor's descendant, who now obediently called her Senior Sister, she felt a sense of retribution. She suddenly had a thought: she would make this brat pay back everything he had done to her.

"Junior Brother Lin, it's been a few years, and I didn't expect your cultivation to have reached the eighth level of the Qi Condensation period. That's quite surprising!" Xie Ruolan's beautiful face still wore a dignified smile.

"Hehe, it's all thanks to the Ancestor, who left me some resources. Otherwise, with my talent, I wouldn't have achieved what I have now!" When the Ancestor fell, Lin Haoming was thirteen, and Xie Ruolan was eleven. He didn't believe that Xie Ruolan knew much about the past, so he deliberately said this.

Sure enough, Xie Ruolan didn't suspect anything. Instead, she looked at Lin Haoming and felt that the brat had changed a lot over the years. He no longer had the shadow of a spoiled rich kid. It seemed that after the ups and downs, he had completely transformed.

"You have self-awareness, and I trust Wang Chen's judgment. If you're willing to stay, you can get the same benefits that I gave Wang Chen!" Xie Ruolan said with a faint smile.

Lin Haoming didn't expect that Xie Ruolan would still be willing to let him stay after knowing his identity. This made him somewhat surprised, but also somewhat delighted. He knew that if he stayed, he wouldn't have to leave the sect. As Wang Chen said, if Situ Ping and Zhou Zhiye wanted to deal with him, they would have to consider his strength. Although he was once an Inner Sect disciple, he knew that Inner Sect disciples were divided into different ranks. Situ Ping and Zhou Zhiye, while not the lowest, were definitely no match for Xie Ruolan.

Thinking about this, Lin Haoming immediately agreed, "Thank you, Senior Sister, for your care. However, Junior Brother has some trouble at the Futo Cave. If I come here, I will need your help."

"Oh! What kind of trouble?" Xie Ruolan asked coolly.

"Senior Sister, you know that I used to have considerable wealth. But after the Ancestor fell, I was extorted until I had almost nothing left. Recently, to cultivate, I sold off the few things I had left. Even so, I'm still being coveted by two Inner Sect disciples in charge of the Futo Cave. I'm afraid they won't let me leave this fat target," Lin Haoming explained his situation.

Hearing this, Xie Ruolan couldn't help but laugh, covering her mouth. Her beautiful eyes swept over Lin Haoming's current serious expression, and she couldn't help but say, "You consider yourself a fat target?"

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