He wasn't too worried about the girl's safety.

As long as he arranged for the Butcher to stay by her side at all times, it would be fine.

If anything happened, Gu Jianlin could directly descend with his mind and release the Ancient Divine Language.

"Hmm."

The Moon Princess turned around and softly said, "I'm going to sleep."

Gu Jianlin watched her graceful, slender figure and suddenly said, "Are you being too kind to me?"

The Moon Princess paused for a moment.

"Don't overthink it. I'm doing it for myself too."

With that, she closed the door and went to bed.

Gu Jianlin sat in silence for a long time, then smiled faintly. After a quick wash-up, he went to bed.

Click.

The light went out, and the night, like flowing water, engulfed the entire room.

After an unknown amount of time, the door to the room opened again.

A girl in a red camisole dress came in carrying a small stool, which she placed by the boy's bedside.

She rested her chin on her palm, quietly staring at the boy's sleeping profile.

Under the cat-faced mask, her red lips curved upward ever so slightly.

·

·

The next morning, when Gu Jianlin woke up again, there was a faint sandalwood fragrance lingering around him.

That was the Moon Princess's scent.

But she was already gone, leaving behind only a breakfast takeout on the dining table.

Gu Jianlin shook his head with a wry smile, freshened up, ate breakfast, and headed downstairs.

The supermarket beneath his apartment building had disappeared at some point, replaced by an antique-looking grocery store.

Gu Jianlin froze for a moment, surprised to find several people in the store today.

Huai Yin was still lounging in the chair at the entrance, dressed in a white martial arts uniform, fanning himself calmly, just like an ordinary old man.

In front of him stood five figures cloaked in black robes, with hoods covering their heads, their attire lightly swaying in the breeze.

"More than two thousand years have passed. You've worked hard."

It was Huai Yin's voice, aged and gentle.

"There is no such thing as hard work. To us, time is meaningless."

One of the black-robed individuals spoke indifferently: "We have merely honored our pact with the Emperor."

Huai Yin smiled. "Even so, gratitude is still warranted. By the way, has the Great Wilderness awakened?"

The black-robed individual replied, "With our strength, awakening it is beyond us."

Huai Yin sighed. "Alright then."

The black-robed figure said, "Regardless of what happens next in the Qilin Immortal Palace, we will appear in time to recover the Holy Corpse. If possible, I hope that Taihua's remains can also be entrusted to us."

Huai Yin grinned slyly. "And what about mine?"

The black-robed individual shook his head and coldly said, "Not accepted."

With that, he turned and left with the others.

Gu Jianlin happened to cross paths with them, pausing slightly in surprise.

Beneath the hoods of the five black-robed figures were faces of almost divine beauty, like sculpted jade, their skin crystal-clear and devoid of any color, exuding a strange allure.

Especially their pale, pupil-less eyes, which were deeply unnerving.

For a moment, the Black Qilin within Gu Jianlin's mind opened a slit of its golden eyes, blazing with majesty.

It seemed to sense something.

The five black-robed figures also glanced at him in mild surprise.

At that moment, Huai Yin's voice rang out from behind, filled with pride: "This is my last disciple. Although he hasn't officially apprenticed yet, it will happen soon. What do you think? Not bad, right?"

Gu Jianlin was momentarily stunned.

The five black-robed figures detected his breathing pattern and snorted coldly.

In the blink of an eye, they vanished beneath the sunlight.

Gu Jianlin stared at their disappearing backs, utterly perplexed.

A short while later, Jing Ci emerged from the grocery store, carrying a glass of liquor early in the morning. He stated plainly, "Those guys are from Lishan. They bear the responsibility of guarding the Human World. Don't overthink it."

Huai Yin closed his eyes again, humming an unknown tune.

Gu Jianlin turned around and hesitantly asked, "Are they Ascenders?"

They didn't seem human to him.

After all, to elicit a response from the Black Qilin, they couldn't possibly be ordinary people.

Jing Ci shook his head.

Huai Yin's smile grew even broader.

"Then are they Ancient Ancestors?"

Gu Jianlin grew even more astonished.

"You'll find out eventually."

Jing Ci replied nonchalantly, "Stop asking so many questions. You've already mastered one Breathing Technique, so next, I'll teach you something else. Once you complete the third lesson, you'll need to decide whether or not to formally become a disciple."

Huai Yin yawned, and a pale Ghost Fire suddenly ignited on his forehead.

His pupils turned pitch black and sinister like those of an Evil Spirit as he raised his right index finger.

A faint flicker of Ghost Fire ignited behind him, shadowy figures appearing and vanishing within it.

A dark cross-shaped flash of light formed at his fingertip, releasing a fleeting ray of black brilliance.

In an instant, his left hand was pierced through, leaving a bloody hole.

Simultaneously, bizarre black spells spread across his left hand like living creatures, causing it to decay and rot entirely.

Gu Jianlin's pupils contracted. "Is this an advanced ability of the Divine Path?"

"No."

Jing Ci smiled and said, "This is a Combined Skill: Ghost Curse Technique, Ghost Transformation, Spirit Body Transformation, and Dark Shock."

Gu Jianlin was stunned. This thing actually had Combined Skills.

Oh, right, no one had ever said that Extraordinary Abilities couldn't be combined.

He had just never thought of using them this way before.

He had assumed that Dark Shock was merely for explosions.

Nor had he considered that the Ghost Curse Technique could be augmented onto other attacks.

And the foundation of it all seemed to be Spirit Body Transformation and Ghost Transformation.

Narrow thinking!

"The strength of the Divine Path depends primarily on Ghost Transformation and Spirit Body Transformation."

Jing Ci said calmly, "This is one of our teacher's unique techniques. Before you study Forbidden Spells, learn this first."

At this moment, Huai Yin shook his left hand and snapped his fingers again.

His decayed left hand instantly returned to its unblemished state.

Gu Jianlin didn't even see the Divine Sacrificial Fire ignite; the old man's wounds had already healed.

"Hmm, looks like all the mosquitoes in Peak City are dead now."

Jing Ci said indifferently, "To heal himself, our teacher has caused quite a bit of collateral damage."

Gu Jianlin remained silent for a second.

"Collateral damage? More like a living Buddha."

He remarked.

·

·

Black Cloud City Base Office Building.

Chen Bojun was woken up early in the morning by a phone call.

Standing before the glass curtain wall and gazing at the surging sea, he said in a heavy tone, "Are you certain? The initial Omega team that entered the Qilin Immortal Palace has all gone missing?"

A deep voice came through the phone: "Only Thunder made it out."

Chen Bojun's pupils contracted sharply. "Ying Changsheng and Mu Qingyou have both gone missing?"

"Yes, Director Chen."

The voice on the phone replied, "We need to start preparing a rescue plan..."

[PS: This book is exclusively available on Qidian Reading App. Support the official release. Off to write the next update—another 5,000 words. No need to wait; it's probably going to be pretty late.]