Chapter 5

The past was absurd and laughable, and indeed wrong, Lin Yuan could hardly bear to look back.

Zhang Liechen, however, refused to admit it, "I was just talking off the cuff at the time, who knew you would actually do it?"

Lin Yuan raised his hand to stop him. If the other party wouldn't take responsibility, it was fine; he didn't want to talk about those absurd things anymore, "Let's not talk about it. She came to me to settle the debt, and this matter needs to be resolved."

Zhang Liechen was suspicious, "Did you really borrow her a million pearls?"

Borrow? Lin Yuan's thoughts drifted. Saying 'borrow' sounded better, but it was more like Qin Yi, seeing him short on cash back then, had given it to him forcefully, and it was probably given secretly. Qin Daobian probably didn't know, otherwise, after Qin Daobian's intervention, how could he not have reclaimed the million pearls?

Seeing that he didn't speak, it must have been true. Zhang Liechen extended his hand, "Where's the money? Where did the million pearls go?"

Where did they go? Lin Yuan remembered that not long after leaving Buque City, the million pearls were gone.

Shortly after leaving Buque City, he encountered bandits on the road, and all his money was stolen, nearly costing him his life. Fortunately, he met a mysterious person who came to his aid.

The mysterious person treated his injuries and took him as a disciple, using a unique technique to cleanse his meridians and rebuild his body, giving him excellent cultivation potential and teaching him powerful techniques. He then guided him to Xian Du, helping him pass the exam to enter Ling Mountain, becoming a student at the top academy in the immortal world.

That mysterious person could be said to have changed his life, but he still didn't know who that mysterious master was.

They had never met again since their parting back then.

"Spent it," Lin Yuan said, brushing it aside. There were some things that didn't need to be known by Uncle Chen. Returning to the main topic, "Some things are in the past, and I don't want to be unclear with Qin Yi anymore. The Qin family won't publicize their family's disgrace, and there probably weren't many people who knew about the incident back then. I don't need to bring it up again, ruining her reputation and affecting her relationship with her man."

"Man?" Zhang Liechen countered, "What man?"

Lin Yuan was taken aback, "She hasn't married?"

Zhang Liechen found it amusing, "Married? You forgot, she's about your age. According to the laws of the immortal world, she hasn't reached the age for marriage yet."

According to the laws of the immortal world, one must be at least 500 years old to marry.

The original intention of this law was because the immortal world had spiritual elixirs that could slow aging, and a person's lifespan, if nothing went wrong, could reach 1,000 years.

If people married and had children too early, with such long lifespans, the immortal world would face the problem of overpopulation.

Only after marriage could a couple legally have children; otherwise, they would be severely punished.

Once married, both parties would be strictly bound by the law and could not remarry.

Divorce was possible, but the consequences of divorce were that one could not remarry or have children again. Once divorced, it meant giving up the right to have children.

Of course, before the age of 500, romantic relationships were not restricted. The Immortal Court didn't care about such matters, as desire was hard to control, and there were few truly desireless people. Without some leniency, problems would arise.

This leniency, which seemed to encourage everyone to choose their partner carefully, actually had the subtle benefit of controlling population growth.

How many unmarried men and women could remain together for hundreds of years without getting tired? After hundreds of years, most people would become indifferent to marriage. Many would prefer to just have relationships, and unless they met someone they truly wanted to be with, they generally wouldn't form a marital bond, thus naturally controlling population growth.

Lin Yuan was momentarily distracted, remembering that Qin Yi was indeed about his age. He asked, "No male partner either?"

Zhang Liechen shook his head, "Not before, not now. After you, she never found anyone. She seems to have been busy with the Qin family's internal business, with no interest in other things."

Lin Yuan: "She can't stay single forever, she will find someone eventually. I find it awkward to face Qin Daobian again, and I won't go to the Qin family."

Zhang Liechen: "You don't need to worry about Qin Daobian; he has already retired. Qin Daobian is quite old, and his lifespan is probably reaching its limit in a hundred years. Two hundred years ago, he retired, and he has only one daughter. His early retirement was to help his daughter take over. Now, Qin Yi is the head of the Qin family. In other words, Qin Yi is the richest woman in Buque City, with a great reputation. You didn't even know this?"

She has become the richest woman in Buque City? Lin Yuan silently shook his head; he really didn't know.

Zhang Liechen chuckled, "It seems you only had ulterior motives with Qin Yi back then, just wanting to use her, with no real feelings. After going to Xian Du, you didn't pay any attention to Qin Yi at all."

Did he not pay any attention at all? Lin Yuan's thoughts drifted. He remembered that at first, he did pay attention, but as time passed and he had other things to deal with, he gradually forgot and stopped paying attention.

He didn't want to talk about these things much, so he carefully examined the business card in his hand and found that Qin Yi was indeed the president of the Qin family's chamber of commerce.

He looked up and said, "Those things don't matter. I need to pay her back now. Uncle Chen, lend me a million pearls."

Zhang Liechen rolled his eyes, "Where am I supposed to find a million pearls?"

Lin Yuan: "Given your stinginess, I don't believe you haven't saved a million pearls over the years. Lend it to me, and I'll pay you back as soon as possible."

Actually, a million pearls wasn't much to him; he could afford it, but he couldn't easily take it out.

A million pearls wasn't a small amount for ordinary people. Given his current state and his past in Xian Du, suddenly taking out so much money would be hard to explain and could cause unnecessary trouble.

So, he needed a legitimate way to transfer the money, hoping Uncle Chen could front the money, and he would secretly pay him back later.

Zhang Liechen waved his hand, firmly refusing, "Don't talk to me about 'as soon as possible.' Talking about money hurts feelings. My rule is never to lend money to anyone. Not to mention I don't have it, even if I did, I wouldn't dare lend it to you. When I was seeing her off, she warned me not to get involved in this matter.

You should know that in the immortal world, my small medical clinic is hard to run. My business is doing well now, all thanks to her support. Because of her, all the Qin family employees come to my clinic for their minor illnesses. If I don't listen to her, not only will my business be cut off, but she has a lot of power in Buque City. It would only take a word from her to cause me trouble. She just needs to say a word, and there will be plenty of people to cause me problems.

She can hold the position of the richest woman in Buque City; do you think it's just for show? I advise you not to oppose her. Bow to your fate. If you anger her, you won't be able to run or stand your ground in Buque City, and I won't dare to take you in.

If she holds a grudge over the past and really wants to get you, do you think paying back the money will clear everything up?"

Lin Yuan frowned and said nothing.

Zhang Liechen's gaze fell on the bloody wound on his leg, "The Demon Poison, suppressing it with your magic won't work. If you delay, more of your cultivation will be sealed. Do you still want to treat it? If so, lie down over there." He pointed to the single bed in the treatment room.

Lin Yuan turned, limped to the bed, and lay down.

Zhang Liechen went out for a while and then returned with a black iron gourd. Standing in front of the lying Lin Yuan, he reminded him again, "My treatment will also remove the seal on your cultivation, and you will lose nearly half of your years of hard practice. Are you sure you want me to proceed?"

Lin Yuan calmly said, "Go ahead."

Zhang Liechen: "It will be very painful, endure it."

Lin Yuan nodded.

Zhang Liechen moved to the position of his injured leg, pulled out the stopper of the purple-gold gourd, and immediately a buzzing sound came from inside. A cloud of green mist quickly emerged and swirled in the treatment room. Lin Yuan's magical eye saw that it wasn't green mist but countless tiny insects, almost invisible even to his magical eye.

Zhang Liechen held the gourd with one hand and cast a spell with the other, gradually controlling the direction of the green mist.

Once he had full control, he suddenly pointed at the wound on Lin Yuan's thigh.

The green mist, like a snake, flew down and entered the wound, as if the wound was sucking it in.

"Ugh..." Lin Yuan let out a painful groan, his body trembling uncontrollably.

Zhang Liechen: "These little insects will enter your bloodstream and meridians to devour and clear the Demon Poison. Don't resist with your magic."

Lin Yuan followed his advice and gave up resistance. Despite the warning and mental preparation, he still couldn't imagine the unimaginable pain.

As the green mist completely entered the wound and penetrated his body, Lin Yuan's body trembled more violently, sweat pouring down his body, his hands gripping the bed tightly, his body gradually stiffening.

Zhang Liechen suddenly reached out and pointed at Lin Yuan, who rolled his eyes, his head tilting to the side, and immediately fell unconscious...

At night, on the highest mountain in Buque City, where the city lord's residence was, the lights were bright.

After seeing off Zhu Li, Heng Tao returned to the main hall and reported to Luo Tianhe, "City Lord, we have received news from Xian Du. The background of that Luo Kang'an has been investigated."

Luo Tianhe was holding a plan that Zhu Li had given him.

Zhu Li didn't disappoint him. She had not only arrived but also brought a plan for setting up a communication platform in Buque City.

Luo Tianhe looked up, "What's the situation?"

Heng Tao turned to a table, pressed a button on a metal disk, and inserted a small, prismatic crystal column into the disk. Instantly, a light screen appeared, showing a scene of intense battle and loud explosions.

Luo Tianhe was very familiar with this scene, and probably no one in the immortal world was unfamiliar with it—the scene of the remnants of the previous dynasty attacking Xian Du.

Heng Tao adjusted the playback speed, fast-forwarding to the scene of two giant figures battling, then returned to normal speed.

Two streaks of light, moving as fast as lightning, collided with great force, causing the surrounding space to collapse and the ground to shake violently, as if the sky was falling and the earth was collapsing, with an intensity that was hard to describe.

The two streaks of light stopped and revealed their forms, clearly two giant spirits in fierce battle.

One was a giant spirit with a handsome face, wearing a purple-gold crown, cloud-riding boots, and golden armor, holding a halberd, looking mighty and majestic. This was Yang Zhen, the first war god of the Heavenly Court, known as the Second Lord.

This giant spirit was a replica of the Second Lord's true form, custom-made for him by the Heavenly Court.

The giant spirits of the Heavenly Court's army were mostly identical, but only