Nan Yi’s voice echoed through the mountains and forests: “Friends from the Soul Chasing Pavilion, what offense have we committed to warrant such an ambush and lethal attack from you?”
Bao Gu thought to herself: “Soul Chasing Pavilion? Could it be that Nan Yi and the others have mistaken my senior sister for someone from the Soul Chasing Pavilion?”
The Soul Chasing Pavilion is a renowned assassin organization in the ancient city of Xuanyue, ranking second in power.
They are known for taking on any job and killing anyone, as long as the employer can pay the price.
The people of the Soul Chasing Pavilion never steal, rob, or plunder; they only take money to eliminate disasters for others, earning cultivation resources at fair prices.
This has solved many problems for cultivators, giving them an excellent reputation and making them highly respected and feared.
Yu Mi’s voice rang out in the air: “Nan Yi, Xuantian Sect has treated you well, and Elder Chen regards you as his own child, even grooming you as the future sect leader. Why would you collude with the Taiyin Sect and betray your sect?”
Nan Yi’s voice responded again: “Are you Yu Mi? Were you the one who attacked us just now?”
Yu Mi laughed coldly: “Attacked you? Wasn’t it you who gathered a group of people to back you up and send them to their deaths?”
A loud shout came from deep within the forest: “Fire Dragon, with your mid-Golden Core stage strength, aren’t you afraid of getting trapped in the ancient ruins?”
Yu Mi replied arrogantly: “What do I have to fear? I’ve always said that killing one person is no different from killing a thousand.”
Bao Gu, hiding in the trees, frowned uncomfortably at their conversation.
Her senior sister’s words, “killing one person is no different from killing a thousand,” hinted at another meaning: “Having already started killing and provoked the Ning family, my life is in danger. Since I’m going to die anyway, I might as well kill a few more.”
This made her very uneasy.
How could she let anyone bully the people she cared about?
Bao Gu gathered her energy and projected her voice far and wide: “Why don’t you all think about why I’m here and why I dared to bring my senior sister here?”
Nan Yi’s voice came from afar: “You’re just relying on Yu Mi’s mid-Golden Core stage strength! Bao Gu, you might have wiped out the Taiyin Sect people here, but have you considered that carrying so many treasures might make you a target for everyone? Yu Mi must have been brought here by one of your treasures, right? A treasure that can evade the combined detection of various sects must be something like a small world. Haha, you have the leisure to dig up spiritual herb seedlings in the ancient ruins to transplant them into your own private small world, don’t you? Bao Gu, do you take everyone for fools?”
Bao Gu knew very well that their shouting across the distance meant the other side wouldn’t just stand still.
They were likely already gathering people to surround them.
Her senior sister’s display at the entrance of the ancient ruins had intimidated many.
The cultivators who could enter this place were the rising stars of various sects, not ones to be easily suppressed.
Many cultivators who had suppressed their cultivation at the peak of the Foundation Establishment stage could break through to the early Golden Core stage with the abundant spiritual energy here, ready to counterattack.
Knowing that she and her senior sister were here, Nan Yi would certainly not sit idly by and would likely persuade others to join forces against them.
Otherwise, the group that had just gathered wouldn’t have come together for no reason.
Although these cultivators came from various sects with their own agendas, the treasures on her body were indeed tempting, making her a common target.
If several, a dozen, or even dozens of early Golden Core stage cultivators teamed up with a large number of Foundation Establishment stage cultivators to attack, the consequences would be unimaginable!
Bao Gu understood the urgency of the situation but remained calm on the surface.
She loudly replied: “Nan Yi, do you think everyone here is a fool? You colluded with the Taiyin Sect, thinking that the Nameless Heavenly Venerable could capture me in one move and gain benefits. But you didn’t expect that not only did the Nameless Heavenly Venerable fail to subdue me, but he was also severely injured by a Nascent Soul stage attack talisman and died at my master’s hands. Nan Yi, do you want to test the power of a Nascent Soul stage talisman?”
She slowly took out a talisman from her storage bag, waved it in her hand, and pretended to ponder, murmuring: “Where should I throw this talisman?”
She looked around but saw no one, so she shouted: “Hey, come and hit me! This isn’t a Nascent Soul stage talisman, just a peak Nascent Soul stage talisman drawn by my Uncle Fan Tuan, who is just a step away from the Nascent Soul stage!”
As she shouted, she took out all the Nascent Soul stage treasures from her storage and put them on.
She wore four or five jade bracelet-style treasures on each wrist, six necklaces, over a dozen hairpins, and a circle of ornaments around her waist…
In an instant, Bao Gu was covered in treasures, looking like a walking treasure trove!
The surrounding air seemed to freeze!
Bao Gu said: “Actually, my favorite is the set of Nascent Soul stage forbidden artifacts my Little Martial Aunt made for me, but unfortunately, they were all destroyed by the Nameless Heavenly Venerable. Fortunately, the Nameless Heavenly Venerable indirectly died at my hands, so I avenged my set of Nascent Soul stage forbidden artifacts.”
As she finished speaking, she saw Yu Mi suddenly appear beside her, looking at her with a displeased expression.
Yu Mi angrily shouted: “Can’t you wait until they get closer before showing off your junk? I was planning to take a few more heads for practice, but now you’ve scared them off. What if they don’t come up?”
Despite her angry tone, her eyes were full of greed as she stared at Bao Gu.
She understood what Bao Gu was up to, but Bao Gu’s display was also a show of strength!
Bao Gu lowered her head guiltily and said: “I’m only at the ninth level of Qi Refining, I’m afraid of getting hit!”
Yu Mi snorted: “Pathetic!”
Her eyes couldn’t help but glance at Bao Gu, wishing she could take all the treasures for herself.
She knew that Bao Gu had received many good things from the various peaks of Xuantian Sect after delivering monkey wine and the “loot” from the Taiyin Sect, but she didn’t expect there to be so many.
It made her want to rob Bao Gu.
Although these Nascent Soul stage treasures weren’t of the highest grade, their level was still above Golden Core stage treasures.
Among the cultivators in the ancient ruins, who didn’t have a background or connections?
Everyone could produce a few Nascent Soul stage treasures, but no one else in the cultivation world could match Bao Gu’s display of dozens of Nascent Soul stage treasures.
Yu Mi repeatedly rubbed her forehead in exasperation.
She knew that if the dozens of cultivators surrounding them attacked together, Bao Gu’s treasures wouldn’t last long.
But Bao Gu’s display, combined with her earlier hint that she had a Nascent Soul stage attack talisman, was very intimidating.
Even the Nameless Ancestor of the Taiyin Sect had been severely injured and died at Bao Gu’s hands.
If this group of Golden Core stage cultivators rushed in and got wiped out by a Nascent Soul stage talisman, it would be a disgrace.
Yu Mi knew that Bao Gu only had one Nascent Soul stage talisman, which had already been used on the Nameless Heavenly Venerable, but others didn’t know that!
Even Nan Yi didn’t know if Bao Gu had another Nascent Soul stage talisman.
After all, Bao Gu had returned to Xuantian Sect before coming to the ancient ruins.
With her status as a wealthy benefactor, it would be easy for her to get another Nascent Soul stage talisman.
No one dared to bet their life on whether Bao Gu had another Nascent Soul stage attack talisman.
If they won the bet, they would have to share Bao Gu’s treasures with everyone else.
If they lost, they would lose their life.
Life is precious, and everyone cherished their own.
Bao Gu and Yu Mi stood there for a while, but no one made a move.
The little celestial fox emerged from its hiding place in the bushes, leaping onto a tree and perching on a branch next to Bao Gu.
Bao Gu chuckled and said: “Everyone, I actually hate fighting and killing the most. Harmony brings wealth, and fighting and killing only cause loss and damage. I’m a businessperson, and I love making deals with people!”
As she spoke, she took out a bamboo tube of Supreme Monkey Wine and said: “Now, let’s make a deal. Whoever can capture Nan Yi alive and bring him to me will get this bamboo tube of Supreme Monkey Wine! I think everyone knows the value of Supreme Monkey Wine, so I won’t elaborate. If you bring me Nan Yi’s head, you’ll get half a bamboo tube of Supreme Monkey Wine!”
She then shouted: “Nan Yi, look how valuable your life is! If I hired someone from the Soul Chasing Pavilion to take you out, a single cup of Supreme Monkey Wine would be enough, right?”
Nan Yi’s voice floated from afar: “Bao Gu, killing you would yield far more than a few bamboo tubes of Supreme Monkey Wine.”
Bao Gu laughed: “Yes, killing me would yield more than a few bamboo tubes of Supreme Monkey Wine, but I have a body full of treasures and my senior sister to protect me. We’ve also blocked the entrance to the ancient ruins. If my senior sister doesn’t remove the formation at the entrance, no one can leave, and everyone will be trapped here! What about you? Do you have that? Chasing you won’t risk getting hit by a Nascent Soul stage talisman; chasing you won’t have a mid-Golden Core stage cultivator picking off heads around you; chasing you only requires taking you down to get a bamboo tube of Supreme Monkey Wine to curry favor with the highest authority in their sect, gaining higher cultivation status and resources. If they negotiate with me, they might even open up a highly profitable business deal, skyrocketing their status in the sect!”
Bao Gu laughed and cursed: “Nan Yi, if you die one day, it won’t be because I put a bounty on you, but because of your own stupidity. Do you think I was digging slowly at the entrance for nothing? I was waiting for you to walk into my trap, and you did just that!”
Nan Yi was unmoved by Bao Gu’s bounty threat.
He sighed and said: “Bao Gu, the only thing I didn’t expect was that Yu Mi would know the assassination techniques of the Soul Chasing Pavilion. However, if you really spent money to hire the Soul Chasing Pavilion to protect you or to hunt me down, I would indeed fear you a bit. Here, a bamboo tube of Supreme Monkey Wine isn’t enough to buy my life.”
Bao Gu’s heart skipped a beat.
She thought: “Does Nan Yi have another way to deal with me?”
She quickly considered that the Taiyin Sect, determined to deal with her in the ancient ruins, would have prepared for her powerful weapons.
She said: “Nan Yi, I don’t understand why you would betray Xuantian Sect, which has groomed you as the future sect leader. Your soul lamp is still in Xuantian Sect. After betraying Xuantian Sect, where can you escape to?”
Nan Yi snorted: “What’s so great about being the leader of a declining Xuantian Sect?”
Bao Gu asked: “What about your master? Are you abandoning him too?”
Nan Yi fell silent for a moment before saying: “He has indeed treated me well.”
Bao Gu said: “You think you have a better future in the Taiyin Sect, so you betrayed Xuantian Sect? If you can betray Xuantian Sect today, you can betray Taiyin Sect tomorrow. How can Taiyin Sect truly trust you?”
