Chapter Ten: The Clue

Splashes of water erupted from the deep pool. A green dragon, covered in emerald scales and nearly a hundred zhang in length, surged out from the water, completely obscuring the sky. Its head, the size of a small mountain, held itself proudly, and its eyes, glowing like giant lanterns, flashed with a golden light. Its twin dragon whiskers danced without wind, and billows of white mist puffed from its massive nostrils.

An overbearing and arrogant pressure radiated from the green dragon, suffocating Lei Yan. A wave of uncontrollable fear spread from the depths of Lei Yan's heart. Panting heavily, his entire body shuddered as if seized by spasms. Fear indeed commanded his physique, but for some reason, a hint of excitement was strangely intertwined within that terror. With cold sweat streaming down his face, Lei Yan stared straight ahead at the green dragon, a bizarre smile unknowingly creeping onto the corner of his lips.

"The Azure Dragon Clan. I can't tell whether you're lucky or doomed, brat, encountering two divine beasts in a single day. And one of them is an azure dragon on the verge of stepping into the Immortal Realm. Even at my peak, I wouldn't have a guaranteed chance of victory against an azure dragon about to enter the immortal realms, let alone now... Kid, you're on your own," Qing He transmitted his voice.

"Another divine beast. But this pressure isn't all that impressive," Lei Yan thought to himself. Clearly, this azure dragon was much more powerful than the white tiger, yet Lei Yan sensed that terrifying pressure slowly beginning to wane. At first, Lei Yan thought the azure dragon was withdrawing its pressure, but when he caught the dragon's gaze, he realized the dragon was doing no such thing—or rather, it had never intended to.

"Interesting." Sensing that Lei Yan was gradually resisting the pressure, the azure dragon's gaze grew even more profound as it looked at him. At the same time, without missing a beat, it gently extended its right claw forward, sending a sphere of water flying toward the white tiger.

"Jin Gui, Mu Gui, stop that water ball!" Seeing the water sphere hurtling toward the white tiger, Lei Yan shouted instinctively.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!" With a few flashes of white light, the water ball was instantly shredded by Jin Gui's attack.

"Brat, are you trying to stop me from healing Jin Xiao?" the azure dragon hummed lowly.

"Healing? Jin Xiao? You're saying the white tiger's name is Jin Xiao? You know the white tiger?" Having completely adapted to the azure dragon's majesty by now, Lei Yan asked aloud.

"Ah? You're Uncle Muyan? Wow, Uncle Muyan, you're huge!" The white tiger, who had been wondering why Lei Yan was trying to save him, suddenly snapped to attention upon hearing the azure dragon's voice and leaped up. "Uncle Muyan, you live here? Strange, how come I didn't know? And why did you hit me? It hurts!"

"You ran away without permission, and you still have the nerve to ask why I hit you? I knew the moment you stepped out of the White Tiger Ravine. I merely wanted to see if the person who brought you along had the ability to protect you. Of course, I already have my answer now," Muyan said coldly.

"Protect him?" Lei Yan gave a self-deprecating laugh. "With my level of strength, I'm capable of protecting a white tiger?"

"I only wanted to see if you possessed the mindset to protect the white tiger. As for strength, those five practitioners close to the Mahayana stage are already sufficient. Furthermore, beyond my expectations, that old man on the verge of death turned out to be an immortal. No wonder—no wonder I couldn't see through his cultivation," the azure dragon said with a mix of surprise and doubt.

"Senior, what was that about the Immortal Realm you mentioned earlier?" The mention of an immortal reminded Lei Yan of what the dragon had said previously, prompting him to ask.

"The Immortal Realm? You will naturally find out when you reach the realm of immortals," the azure dragon replied casually.

"Sigh..." Lei Yan let out a helpless sigh.

"Jin Xiao, going out to play is fine, but don't forget your cultivation, you hear?" With those words, the azure dragon extended its right claw once more, sending another sphere of water toward the white tiger.

"Does that mean Uncle Muyan is agreeing to let me go out and play?" mumbled the white tiger, completely enveloped within the water sphere.

"Kid, Jin Xiao is the last of the White Tiger Clan. You must protect him well. If any harm comes to him, I will never let you off," the azure dragon threatened sternly.

"I'll do my best," Lei Yan said with a shrug.

"What kind of attitude is that?" The azure dragon's expression shifted. "Not just your best—you must give it your all. No, your strength is still too weak. Even with those fellows near the Mahayana stage around, I'm still uneasy. If I weren't about to undergo my heavenly tribulation, I would certainly follow along to supervise you. Now, this is the only way. Wait a moment." With that, the dragon's massive form plunged back into the deep pool.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh..."

More than a dozen jade slips suddenly shot out from the water, drifting toward Lei Yan and coming to a halt right beside him.

"Here are some cultivation techniques from various cultivation sects, including a few specialized spells. You might find them useful. In any case, raise your strength as quickly as possible. Alright, once Jin Xiao recovers, the two of you may leave." The azure dragon's voice echoed directly in Lei Yan's mind.

Glancing at the dozen jade slips floating around him, Lei Yan made a summoning motion with his right hand, storing them all inside his demonic artifact.

"White Tiger, how much longer until you recover?" Lei Yan asked, looking at the white tiger suspended inside the water sphere.

"Probably around dawn," came the muffled voice from within the water sphere.

"Damn it, how long are we going to be dragged down by this?" Lei Yan cursed with some anxiety. He walked over to a dry spot, lit a bonfire, and then sat down cross-legged, retrieving a jade slip from his demonic artifact to begin reading.

"The Supreme Truth Manual." As soon as Lei Yan's psychic ability probed the jade slip, he discovered that it contained the cultivation techniques of the Supreme Truth Sect, which left him utterly astonished.

He then proceeded to take out all the remaining jade slips and flipped through them one by one.

"As expected, these are the cultivation manuals of major sects." Among the more than a dozen jade slips, thirteen recorded the cultivation methods of the four major sects, ranging from elementary to advanced levels. The remaining four, surprisingly, recorded bizarre and unique spells—such as the Soul-Search Technique Lei Yan was currently perusing.

"Soul-Search Technique: The forcible extraction of memories from the depths of the soul. This is a coercive search that relies entirely on a contest of soul strength. If the caster's soul is insufficiently strong, the moment it is executed, a severe backlash is guaranteed. The consequence of this backlash could be death, or being reduced to an idiot."

After reading the description, a chill ran through Lei Yan's heart. "This kind of spell is simply too heaven-defying, forcibly rummaging through someone else's memories." However, since Lei Yan had no concept of what soul strength actually was, he had no choice but to put it away for the time being.

Night—an entire night—was spent by Lei Yan reading the contents of the jade slips. Using psychic perception made his reading speed extraordinarily fast. In just a single night, he had thoroughly digested the contents of over a dozen jade slips.

The sky began to pale with the first light of dawn. Lei Yan raised his head to look at the white tiger suspended inside the water sphere. At this moment, not a single trace of injury remained on its body, not even a scar. Most infuriatingly of all, the white tiger had actually fallen asleep inside the water sphere.

Jin Gui and Mu Gui, who had not been recalled from the Five Elements Pagoda all night, stood rigidly to the side like wooden statues. Lei Yan commanded, "Destroy that water sphere."

A few flashes of cold light later, the tiger crashed heavily onto the ground. Yet the fellow didn't even wake up, continuing to sleep soundly.

"Jin Gui, Mu Gui, you may return," Lei Yan ordered.

Walking in a circle around the white tiger, Lei Yan smiled and muttered, "Time to eat." His voice was as soft as the buzzing of a mosquito's wings.

The white tiger bolted upright as if jolted by electricity. "Time to eat? Where? Where?" Looking around, he found Lei Yan glaring at him, and chuckled sheepishly, "Where's the food? Where is it?"

"Reach the next town before daybreak, and you can eat your fill of whatever you want. I must warn you beforehand, the food in the towns tastes much better than anything I cook," Lei Yan said.

"What? There's food that tastes even better than yours? I've decided—we're heading to the next town at maximum speed!" Saliva streamed freely from the corners of the white tiger's mouth.

"Senior, farewell." Lei Yan offered a slight bow toward the deep pool, then spun around and hurried in the direction of Jingzhou.

The southeastern border of Qingzhou directly bordered Jingzhou. Man and tiger streaked across the landscape like two bolts of light toward Jingzhou. Along the way, the white tiger chattered incessantly about the green dragon and its own past, which let Lei Yan know that the white tiger had already lived for nearly a thousand years. It was truly hard to imagine that a creature whose only pursuit was eating was actually a monster nearly a millennium old.

Fengjiang Town was a town subordinate to Jingzhou, covering an immense area, filled with pavilions, terraces, and towering buildings.

As dawn broke, the white tiger, having transformed into human form, followed Lei Yan into Fengjiang Town. Paved with blue bricks and lined with antique brick-and-tile houses, various banners and signs hung high in front of the residences, creating a refreshing and tranquil atmosphere. Passersby unconsciously slowed their steps, as if afraid of disturbing the pristine peace of the early morning.

"Lei Yan, we're here, we're here! Let's go eat, eat our fill!" the white tiger chattered continuously beside Lei Yan.

Lei Yan smiled and led the white tiger toward a restaurant. The morning restaurant was somewhat chilly, with only two or three patrons dining alone on snacks inside the vast hall. The innkeeper sat drowsily behind the counter, while the waiter leaned against it with squinted eyes, half asleep.

Lei Yan and the white tiger strode into the restaurant. Perhaps their heavy footsteps finally awakened the dozing waiter, who immediately hurried over and greeted them, "Welcome, honored guests, please come in."

"We have private rooms on the second floor. Would the two honored guests prefer upstairs?" The waiter sized up Lei Yan and the white tiger's lavish attire and immediately recommended it.

Lei Yan nodded and followed the waiter up to the second floor.

The private room on the second floor had windows facing the bustling street outside. Lei Yan opened the window, letting a cool breeze sweep in and instantly invigorating his spirit. Meanwhile, the white tiger had already impatiently seated itself around the round table inside the room.

"Waiter, bring up all your finest wines and dishes," Lei Yan instructed.

"Right, the more the better, and make it quick!" the white tiger chimed in eagerly.

"Coming right up!" The waiter was practically shooed out the door by the white tiger. As he stepped out, he muttered under his breath, "This fellow, is he really in that much of a rush?"

In the blink of an eye, a table full of banquets was served. The white tiger stood on no ceremony whatsoever, practically burying its face in the plates and shoveling the food into its mouth. Lei Yan watched the white tiger's eating habits with a smile, though he himself had no appetite at the moment. Having failed to find Qingling, his heart remained in a state of constant turmoil. Slowly rising, he walked over to the window.

Outside the window was a festive shop that specialized in wedding paraphernalia, radiating an air of celebration. Gazing at the shop, the sorrow buried deep within Lei Yan's heart was stirred. He felt a dull ache in his chest, and his vision grew slightly blurry as he murmured under his breath, "Ling'er, where on earth have you gone?"

"Sigh..." A moment later, Lei Yan let out a soft sigh. Inadvertently, his gaze caught sight of a woman carrying a small herbal basket, and his heart leapt as his psychic power instantly swept outward. "That's right, this is Ling'er's herbal basket!" Lei Yan remembered that during that martial competition, Qingling had worn this exact herbal basket hanging from her clothing, and tied to it was a blue strip of cloth embroidered with the character 'Ling'.