I'm quitting!

Chapter 10: The young man lacked martial ethics and ambushed me, an old man in my thirties.

Outside the woodshed on the back hill, a golden light suddenly appeared, and a rich aroma of wheat wafted in the wind.

Three rings of spiritual wheat cake light dangled from Xianyunzi's back, slowly rotating, and with each rotation, a wisp of pale golden aura wafted out.

Dan Xuanzi followed closely behind, his face rosy, his eyes clear, and his whole body radiating a long-lost vitality.

Inside the woodshed, Lin Xiaofan was meditating when a cloud of dust fell from his head.

He frowned slightly: "This oppressive aura... no way... it's happening again?!"

Maqiu poked its head out from the foot of the bed, gently patted the back of his hand with its little paws, and a string of text bubbles appeared above its head:

"I'll help you drive them away with this sesame ball."

Before Lin Xiaofan could respond, the fluffy little body had already darted out of the wooden gate.

Outside the door, Shi Tiandi, who was under the hay, was awakened by the smell of wheat. He opened his eyes groggily and saw two golden figures standing in front of him.

He shuddered, hurriedly scrambled to his feet, straightened his clothes, and knelt respectfully: "Greetings, Sect Leader! Greetings, Elder Dan!"

Dan Xuanzi's gaze swept over him like lightning, his brows furrowing slightly as he pondered: Strange... A few days ago, this kid's Dao heart shattered and his aura weakened, yet today he is sleeping soundly here, full of energy and spirit... Could it be... that he received guidance from Senior Lin?

Xianyunzi's golden wheel gleamed, and his voice boomed like a bell: "Brother Shi Tian! As a true disciple, how can you be so disheveled and filthy? What kind of decorum is this! Do you even know that this is Senior Lin's secluded cultivation place?" His gaze fell on the bits of grass and withered leaves covering Brother Shi Tian's body, and his face darkened. "Get out of here at once!"

Shi Tiandi kowtowed several times, bowed and retreated, but his heart was full of doubt: his whole body was sore and weak... how could I be sleeping in the wilderness?

Maqiu was now standing on the threshold, its small body blocking the doorway, its front paws on the ground, giving Xianyunzi a low warning: "Squeak—squeak squeak!" (Go away!)

Dan Xuanzi was the first to notice the little creature: "This beast... seems to be Senior Lin's spirit pet?"

Xianyunzi followed closely, his gaze fixed on the Stardust Rat: "I've heard since my early years that it understands the trajectories of stars and feeds only on the spiritual herbs of heaven and earth. Ordinary cultivators rarely even get a glimpse of it, yet you were able to recruit it for your own use. That's quite an extraordinary ability."

"Senior brother, look at where its claws are pointing. Does it suggest that we need to let go of our attachments and return to our true nature?"

Maqiu spun around in a panic, then pointed frantically at the distant bamboo grove, its cries growing increasingly urgent: "Squeak squeak squeak!" (Go over there! Not here!)

Xianyunzi stroked his beard and sighed, "Junior brother, this beast points directly to the green bamboo, clearly enlightening us—bamboo has joints yet remains humble, and people should be like that! Senior, even your tamed spirit beasts are well-versed in the Great Dao, yet we are still trapped in superficial appearances. Shame on us, shame on us!"

Seeing that the two were getting more and more absurd, Maqiu simply plopped down on the threshold, crossed its little paws over its chest, and glared at them angrily: "Squeak!" (Completely unyielding!)

Xianyunzi and Danxuanzi exchanged a glance, their eyes flashing with shock.

"It sits with its arms crossed, neither humble nor arrogant; this is the supreme principle of 'not being elated by external gains, nor saddened by personal losses'! Junior brother, today... perhaps we can obtain the true essence."

Inside the room, Lin Xiaofan sat cross-legged on the couch, and finally couldn't help but let out a soft laugh.

"Oh, you've finally seen what 'wickedness' in people' really means."

He straightened his robes, got out of bed, took a deep breath, and pushed open the wooden door.

The little ball immediately jumped onto his shoulder, its tiny paws gripping his collar tightly, and a text bubble flashing above its head: "They...are scary!"

Lin Xiaofan gently rubbed the little guy's head with his fingertips, soothing him in a low voice.

Outside the door, Xianyunzi bowed deeply, his golden light suddenly intensifying behind him, and incense smoke condensed into auspicious clouds that swirled around him: "Senior Lin! Your help to Junior Brother Danxuanzi break through illusion and achieve Nascent Soul is a debt of gratitude akin to being reborn!"

Dan Xuanzi bowed his head, his posture extremely respectful: "This junior previously used a mortal mind to speculate about immortals, truly like a frog in a well looking at the sky!" He took out an ebony box from his sleeve, his fingertips trembling slightly, "However... this junior still has a knot in his heart that has not been untied."

The lid of the box was opened, and a completely black pill lay quietly inside.

Dan Xuanzi's voice was low and hoarse: "A hundred years ago, I was known as the 'Nine Cauldrons Pill Saint,' but I failed miserably when refining the life-saving pill... Since that day, I have never opened the furnace again." He pointed to the pill with a bitter smile, "This is the defective product from back then. I caress it day and night, and the more I look at it, the more I feel that my Dao heart is dead."

Lin Xiaofan lightly tapped his chin with his fingertips, thinking to himself: I haven't even refined a proper pill, yet I'm instructing you, a pill master?!

He remained in a pensive state, but as he paced back and forth, he caught a glimpse of "Awakening Level 86%" floating above Dan Xuanzi's head.

Just one step away from victory? Then give him another push!

He abruptly snatched the black pill, and Xianyunzi cried out in alarm, "Senior, beware of the pill's poison!" Before he could finish speaking, Lin Xiaofan had already raised the pill high and slammed it hard against the bluestone: "Break and then rise again!"

Click!

A crisp sound rang out, and the shockwave sent the sesame ball burrowing into Lin Xiaofan's collar.

Where the black shell cracked, golden light burst forth, and crimson patterns darted about like swimming fish.

Dan Xuanzi trembled violently: "The Hundred... Hundred Gyps Rejuvenating Pill?!"

He knelt on the ground, his hands trembling as he peeled away the remaining ash to reveal the radiant elixir beneath: "So, back then... it was successfully refined..."

Lin Xiaofan's mouth gaped open: This works?!

Dan Xuanzi, tears streaming down his face, laughed three times, looking up at the sky: "A hundred years of obsession, nothing but a handful of ashes!"

The "Awakening Level" number above his head jumped rapidly: 92%...98%...100%!

[Rebelliousness Value +300]

Dan Xuanzi turned around and bowed deeply to Lin Xiaofan: "Senior, you truly have divine insight, seeing through the mystery with just one glance."

Lin Xiaofan's lips twitched slightly: "It's...it's nothing."

Xianyunzi, watching from the side, was dumbfounded and exclaimed, "Senior, your four words 'destroy and then establish' are truly exquisite! What's even more remarkable is that there are only a handful of people in the world who dare to 'destroy'!"

"Uh...actually I..."

Just as Lin Xiaofan was about to explain, he suddenly felt a familiar aura pressing down on him.

He turned his head to look at the bamboo forest, only to be met with a furious shout: "Lin Xiaofan! Today is your death day!"

A dark figure burst forth, carrying a sharp gust of wind, and landed three zhang away from the group.

Xianyunzi's expression changed slightly, then he shouted in a deep voice, "Zhao Yi! You mustn't be disrespectful to your senior!"

As the morning light slanted in, Lin Xiaofan could finally see who it was—Deacon Zhao.

He finally made his move.

His gaze swept quickly around, but he couldn't see a single helper. Suspicion arose in Lin Xiaofan's heart: Alone? And of all times, with both the sect leader and the Pill Master present? Where did this person get his confidence?

He secretly activated the Eye of Truth—

"Zhao Yi; Elder of Qingyun Sect."

Not a corrector?

Zhao Yi sneered, "Old man, you're truly blind to call a mere brat 'senior'!"

He walked forward with his hands behind his back, approaching step by step: "If you are incompetent, you should give up the position of sect leader as soon as possible, so as to save this old man from trouble."

"presumptuous!"

Xianyunzi's spiritual pressure surged, and in a flash, he was in front of Zhao Yi, grabbing his throat with one hand and lifting him off the ground.

His fingers tightened, and a cold glint appeared in his eyes: "Zhao Yi! Considering your many years of service, even if you haven't achieved anything, you've still put in the effort, and I've tolerated you time and time again. I never expected you to become so arrogant!"

Zhao Yi's face turned purple, but he showed no fear. Instead, a smile tugged at the corners of his lips as he managed to utter a few words with difficulty: "Old... thing... you... are... too slow..."

Before the words were finished, the void suddenly distorted.

This feeling is...!

"Sect Leader, retreat immediately!"

Lin Xiaofan shouted loudly, but was still half a step too late.

Whoosh—!

Several crimson data chains burst forth from the void, piercing Xianyunzi's body like venomous snakes.

"Well…!"

The oppressive aura surrounding Xianyunzi instantly dissipated, and the light and flame of the disc behind him suddenly dimmed. With a crisp sound, it shattered into countless golden dust particles.

"Damn it!" Lin Xiaofan stared intently at the mark above Xianyunzi's head, which flickered violently before finally settling on—

"Pseudo-Corrector No. 96".

A dense stream of data surged from Xianyunzi's eyes, swallowing the last bit of clarity in his pupils. He loosened his grip, and Zhao Yi fell to the ground, while he himself stood frozen in place, his face contorted, as if making a final struggle with the strange power within his body.

Zhao Yi staggered back a few steps, rubbing the bruise on his neck, and sneered, "Fool... did you think I came here to die? Today, your position as sect leader and your Heavenly Spiritual Root will both change hands!"

He paused, licking his chapped lips with the tip of his tongue.

"Of course... there's also the item the 'employer' wanted."

After saying that, he slowly turned his head, his cold gaze falling on Lin Xiaofan.