Mo Tianwen's expression visibly panicked.
How could anyone speak carelessly about a matter like this?
Qin Ze, this brat, had truly grown tired of living.
"Qin Ze, stop spouting nonsense and tell us what you know. If you keep playing games, watch out—" Before Mo Tianwen could finish, Lei Longhu stopped him with a gesture.
"Tell me what you know right now," Lei Longhu said.
Qin Ze looked at the two men before him and spoke slowly.
"I already told him. If you want me to talk, bring me a hundred Earth Spirit Pills first."
"If my information turns out to be true, I'll have further demands."
Mo Tianwen was so angry his face turned pale.
Out of regard for Qin Ze's parents, he had tried to let the boy off the hook time and time again.
He never expected this brat to court death on his own, leaving him completely powerless to help.
Mo Tianwen turned and said, "Exalted Lord, this Qin Ze said the exact same thing to me just now. He's definitely lying. Since he's nothing more than an abandoned member of the Qin Family, how could he possibly know the whereabouts of the Eldest Miss?"
Lei Longhu's eyes filled with anger. He slowly turned his head—not to Qin Ze, but to Mo Tianwen.
Mo Tianwen's heart skipped a beat.
Then he heard Lei Longhu say, "For the sake of a mere hundred Earth Spirit Pills, you would rather let my daughter remain in danger than try even a chance, is that it?"
Hearing this, Mo Tianwen froze in place.
Only then did it suddenly dawn on him: from his own perspective, his first reaction upon hearing the news was to judge whether it was true or false.
Yet for Lei Longhu, true or false didn't matter—he had to go and investigate either way.
What if it really was true? Rejecting the information over a mere hundred Earth Spirit Pills would leave him filled with eternal regret.
"Why aren't you going to get them right now!" Lei Longhu's voice bordered on rage.
Frightened, Mo Tianwen hurried out of the reception hall.
As he ran, a strange feeling arose in his heart. He couldn't shake the sense that Qin Ze was entirely confident of the outcome.
Could he have understood this logic all along?
Yet the boy was merely a sixteen-year-old kid.
Inside the reception hall, Lei Longhu looked at Qin Ze.
A moment later, he said slowly, "Boy, I choose to believe you for now. Those Earth Spirit Pills just now are nothing. If what you say is true, I will give you an even greater reward."
"But if you are deceiving me, the consequences are something you will not be able to bear."
Qin Ze smiled faintly, his expression completely composed.
He understood Lei Longhu well; though the man appeared to be a rough brute, he was actually quite perceptive deep down.
Besides, this matter concerned Lei Ling'er's life, so no matter what, he had to see it through.
Qin Ze said, "Rest assured, I'm not going anywhere. I'll wait right here for you in the City Lord's Mansion."
The two sat opposite each other, sipping tea.
Lei Longhu's gaze drifted toward Qin Ze from time to time.
The boy spoke neither humbly nor arrogantly, maintaining a calm demeanor that was more composed than even the powerhouses of the Bahuang Domain.
Yet when checking his cultivation, there was simply nothing there.
Who on earth was he? Why did someone so young possess such a disposition?
Doubt lingered in Lei Longhu's mind, but he felt a measure of goodwill toward Qin Ze nonetheless.
Before long, Mo Tianwen finally brought back the medicinal pills.
Qin Ze placed the items into a prepared pouch, then said, "Listen carefully: for the next few days, the Eldest Miss will be at Ten-Mile Slope outside the city, searching for a wolf-type fierce beast suitable to be her bound beast."
"If you want to find her, go to Ten-Mile Slope. But you'd better be stealthy so she doesn't notice you."
Ten-Mile Slope?
Lei Longhu and Mo Tianwen exchanged a bewildered look.
Qin Ze continued, "Also, in three days, she will encounter a Red-Eyed Heavenly Wolf. If she cannot defeat it by then, she will die in the beast's jaws."
These words made Lei Longhu's heart skip a beat.
A Red-Eyed Heavenly Wolf—that was a Tier 3 fierce beast!
How could such a powerful beast exist around Yuelong City?
Mo Tianwen raged, "Qin Ze, stop talking nonsense! Where would a Red-Eyed Heavenly Wolf come from near Yuelong City?"
"And how could you possibly know that the Eldest Miss will be attacked by one?"
Lei Longhu remained silent, as if deep in thought.
Unflustered, Qin Ze replied calmly, "Believe it or not, suit yourselves. But I'll tell you this: I am gambling my life on it."
"If you fail to find Lei Ling'er, I will surely die at your hands."
"However, if you don't go right now, Lei Ling'er will certainly die before I do."
Lei Longhu's expression grew increasingly solemn.
Qin Ze was right. If what he said was true, Lei Ling'er had only three days left to live.
No matter what, he dared not gamble with his daughter's life.
What if a Red-Eyed Heavenly Wolf really was at Ten-Mile Slope?
"Quickly, go to Ten-Mile Slope!" Lei Longhu led his men and hurriedly rushed out.
Left behind in the room, Mo Tianwen looked rather awkward.
Glaring at Qin Ze, he said unhappily, "Qin Ze, you'd better not be spouting nonsense, or the consequences will be unimaginable."
If the Exalted Lord flew into a rage, Qin Ze would undoubtedly die, and the City Lord's Mansion would be implicated as well.
Qin Ze smiled faintly. "Have you ever considered what will happen to me if what I said turns out to be true?"
"This..."
Mo Tianwen's arrogance instantly deflated.
If Qin Ze's words proved correct, the boy would be the benefactor of the Domain Lord.
How could a mere lord of a small city ever compare to him?
At this thought, cold sweat broke out on Mo Tianwen's back as he felt a deep sense of helplessness.
Was the youth before him really that same kid from before? Why did he feel as though the boy's unfathomable depth far surpassed his own?
With a slight smile, Qin Ze stood up.
"Alright, find me a guest room. I need to cultivate."
"Oh, and I rather like this tea. Pack up five catties of it for me to take back later."
Mo Tianwen's mouth twitched repeatedly.
That Heaven Spirit Tea cost eight hundred taels per catty; even he grudged drinking it himself.
Who on earth was the blind idiot who had actually brewed it for this little bastard?
***
Qin Ze entered the guest chamber in the City Lord's Mansion, sat cross-legged on the bed, and took out the Earth Spirit Pills, placing them in his palm.
"Soul-Devouring Heavenly Art, Devouring Divine Ability, open..."
With a thought, a black vortex materialized in the palm of his hand.
As the Devouring Divine Ability manifested, a burst of black dragon Qi erupted from his palm, wrapping around the medicinal pills.
The energy flowed back into Qin Ze's palm, carrying with it the pure heaven and earth spiritual energy contained within the Earth Spirit Pills.
In the next instant, the five Earth Spirit Pills in Qin Ze's palm turned into waste residue.
As the spiritual energy entered his body, Qin Ze hurriedly circulated his breath to refine it.
An hour later, energy surged wildly within Qin Ze's body.
A wave of power burst forth from his Dantian, flowing through his entire limbs and bones.
He finally made a breakthrough, becoming a martial cultivator at the First Level of Earth Spirit Realm.
Going from having no cultivation at all to the First Level of Earth Spirit Realm had taken only an hour and five Earth Spirit Pills.
The Devouring Divine Ability was truly miraculous.
Normally, refining a single Earth Spirit Pill took three to four days.
Yet now, he had devoured five at once and completely refined them within an hour.
Such cultivation efficiency was simply unimaginable.
Even though Qin Ze had once been a Ten-Star Great Emperor, he felt a surge of excitement, eager to see just how fast he could reach the peak in this lifetime.
He picked up more Earth Spirit Pills and devoured them once again...
***
Four days later.
The aura around Qin Ze erupted as his cultivation broke through once more.
In four days, all one hundred Earth Spirit Pills had been completely used up.
At this moment, Qin Ze's cultivation had reached the Fifth Level of Earth Spirit Realm.
Furthermore, the Supreme Undying Mantra had also advanced to the fourth stage.
Though his cultivation was merely at the Fifth Level of Earth Spirit Realm, with the blessing of the Supreme Undying Mantra, he could easily contend against martial cultivators in the Mid-to-Late Heaven Spirit Realm.
Qin Hao of the Qin Family was only at the First Level of Heaven Spirit Realm.
Even the stronger Qin Wuyang was merely at the Eighth Level of Heaven Spirit Realm.
If he cultivated for another five days, dealing with them would be a breeze.
*Bang...*
At that exact moment, the door was kicked open violently.
Mo Tianwen appeared at Qin Ze's doorway, looking menacing and aggressive.