Chapter 196: The Qilin Beast City

He and Concubine Yun were neither relatives nor friends. If she hadn't been of some use to him, then to prevent the secret of his departure from the Shattered Star Chaos from being exposed, this woman would have long since joined Qian Kun in the Underworld to continue their pursuit game.

Wang Lin knew deeply that if Duanmu Ji, the Six-Desire Demonic Lord, Meng Tuozi, and Ancient Emperor's Disciples in the Cultivation Devil Sea knew that he had emerged from the Shattered Star Ring, endless trouble would surely follow.

Among these people, there must be some who understood the true situation within the Shattered Star Chaos. Once Wang Lin's matter was exposed, what awaited him would be the endless pursuit of these Disciples. If those Disciples were all below the Nascent Soul Stage, it would be fine, but if there were any Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators, Wang Lin would find it somewhat troublesome to deal with them.

In this way, it would be better to completely silence them, which would save a lot of trouble and greatly guarantee his safety.

This wasn't because Wang Lin was bloodthirsty, but rather forced by survival. He regretted one thing more than once; to be precise, this matter had happened many years ago.

Back in the State of Zhao, when he had just left the Hengyue School, he met his old companion Zhang Hu, killed Zhang Hu's master, and saved Zhang Hu. All of this was clearly seen by the surrounding Mortals.

Zhang Hu's decision at the time was to kill those Mortals, but Wang Lin's simple nature made him unable to bear killing innocents indiscriminately, so he cast a Spell that could make others lose their memories.

Years later, every time he thought of this, his heart ached as if being devoured by ten thousand insects. He mocked his own ignorance more than once and secretly resented his simplicity back then more than once.

He didn't know that Zhang Hu's master had an Imprint of Old Man Jimi's curse on him, which could remotely sense everything before his death.

He thought that the matter must have originated from those Mortals; his momentary soft-heartedness led to the retaliation of Old Man Jimi, Zhang Hu's master, which then triggered the pursuit by Teng Huayuan's great-grandson.

If not for this, how could Wang Lin have caused such a monstrous disaster, offending a Nascent Soul expert while still in the Foundation Establishment Stage, and having his entire Family exterminated by him, with his parents also dying, leaving only two clusters of Soul fire?

And he himself died once!

All of this was a great disaster caused by a momentary soft heart. From the moment he died, the simple side of Wang Lin's character also died. If time could flow backward, he would definitely not have stopped Zhang Hu's decision that day.

No one is born ruthless, no one is born cautious and cunning, and no one is born cold and heartless. All of this is subtly caused by the push of various circumstances in reality.

If given a choice, few would exchange such a price for the evaluation of being "ruthless, audacious, decisive, cold-hearted, yet exceptionally brave, meticulous, resolute, and cunning as a fox."

At this time, Wang Lin had left the State of Zhao. If the time spent in the Outer Realm Battlefield and the Ancient God Land was included, more than four hundred years had actually passed. Four hundred years was enough to completely change a person's Soul from their very nature.

The current him was completely different from the young boy in the Hengyue School in the State of Zhao. Wang Lin sometimes wondered, if his fourth uncle hadn't given him the quota for his child, he would probably have long since turned into a pile of yellow earth by now.

However, his life would certainly not have been as difficult as it was now. The path he would have taken would have been to participate in the imperial examinations and serve the imperial court, and his parents would certainly not have met such an end. After their son achieved fame, they would have been respected by all, sought after by their clansmen, and would have lived a peaceful, prosperous, yet content and proud life.

Wang Lin took a deep breath, putting away the series of emotions that had surged in his heart.

Old Man Jimi, Teng Huayuan, and even Piao Nanzi and some other Cultivators from the State of Zhao, as well as the experts of the Giant Demon Race, and even the Sect Master of the Corpse Yin Sect in the State of Zhao—all these Cultivators were people Wang Lin was determined to kill; not one could escape!

Besides this, Wang Lin also had a hint of doubt about how Teng Huayuan was able to find the location of his Family. He would definitely investigate this, and anyone involved in this matter would be added to his kill list!

Guided by Concubine Yun, on the fourth day, they saw a towering ancient beast in the distance. If Southern Dipper City were compared to it, it would be like the difference between a child who had just learned to walk and a giant.

This Qilin City was almost hundreds of times the size of Southern Dipper City. From a distance, it looked like an ancient desolate beast crouching on the ground, exuding waves of ancient and majestic Qi.

In fact, the entire Qilin City was shaped like a giant Qilin beast made of dark black mountain rocks.

The Qilin beast's eyes contained a lively spirit, making it appear as if it had life. Those who came to Qilin City for the first time all marveled at it.

This Qilin beast lay prostrate on the ground, immense in size. On its body were countless dense scales, and each scale was actually an Immortal Cave.

Inside this Qilin beast was the city's market, where almost all the Materials, Cultivation Techniques, and Magic Treasures of the entire Cultivation Devil Sea were sold.

Around this ancient Qilin beast was a circular mountain range that protected Qilin City. In the east, west, south, and north directions of the mountain range, huge gaps were opened by great Divine Abilities, serving as city gates for entering and exiting Qilin City.

"The earliest origin of Qilin City is unknown. Legend has it that this city already existed long before the Cultivation Devil Sea's waters turned into mist," Concubine Yun quickly explained when she saw Wang Lin's gaze fixed on Qilin City in the distance.

Wang Lin merely glanced at the city, then stared intently at the huge Qilin within the mountain range's city gate.

He patted his Storage Pouch with his right hand, and a Jade Slip immediately appeared. This Jade Slip was given to him by Li Muwan upon their departure, and it recorded all the Spell formations of the Demon-Slaying School's protective Azure Dragon.

After examining it, Wang Lin found that this Qilin beast had a remarkably similar effect to the Demon-Slaying School's Azure Dragon!

After a long while, he withdrew his gaze, relaxed his body forward, and floated out lightly, heading towards the mountain range surrounding Qilin City. Concubine Yun quickly followed, riding her sword light.

Outside the eastern city gate of the mountain range stood two rows of Cultivators dressed in green brocade robes. Wang Lin's gaze swept over them; each of these Cultivators possessed a cultivation of the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage.

Their eyes were sharp, scanning the passersby indifferently. All those entering and exiting produced a Qilin-shaped jade pendant, and only after it was inspected could they pass.

Among these entrants, there were a few Core Formation Stage Cultivators, but the brocade-robed Cultivators maintained their cold demeanor, showing no hint of respect. Conversely, those Core Formation Cultivators also didn't seem to mind much.

This strange scene immediately piqued Wang Lin's interest.

"These Cultivators are all guards under the Qilin City Lord's Mansion. Within Qilin City, apart from the City Lord's Mansion, there are no other large Schools. Here, the City Lord's Mansion manages everything in the city. Any School from outside the city that wishes to enter Qilin City must abide by the series of regulations it has set," Concubine Yun quickly whispered from the side.

Wang Lin nodded. After a brief analysis in his mind, he understood the reason for this. It must be that the City Lord's Mansion was too powerful, and as the saying goes, 'a dog barks fiercely when relying on its master's power.' Thus, even the Foundation Establishment Stage guards at the gate wore a layer of tiger skin, causing even Core Formation Stage Cultivators to lower their stance.

Before long, it was Wang Lin and Concubine Yun's turn. Concubine Yun took out her jade pendant, paid a certain amount of Spirit Stones, and then led Wang Lin into Qilin City.

As they passed through the city gate, Wang Lin's Divine Sense swept over a convex platform on both sides of the gate. He could sense that there were two Late Core Formation Stage Cultivators there.

Those two Core Formation Cultivators did not detect his Divine Sense probe at all.

Wang Lin's expression was calm. Following Concubine Yun, he passed through the city gate and slowly arrived beneath the enormous Qilin beast. Up close, this Qilin was even more majestic, like a colossal mountain standing before them, involuntarily giving rise to a sense of insignificance.

"This is Qilin City, one of the ten major cities in the Cultivation Devil Sea. The first time I saw this Qilin beast up close, I was quite shocked. According to legend, before the Cultivation Devil Sea turned into mist, such colossal Qilins indeed existed. It's truly hard to imagine that such Divine Beasts exist in this world," Concubine Yun said with emotion from the side.

However, this feeling was lacking for Wang Lin. Compared to the Ancient God Tu Si, this city was truly nothing. With the Ancient God's Legacy memories, Wang Lin merely found this Qilin beast to be passable.

In fact, even without mentioning Tu Si, the ten-thousand-zhang Flood Dragon in the Ancient God Land's passage was already comparable to this Qilin beast.

After a glance, Wang Lin withdrew his gaze and said indifferently, "Take me to your dwelling!"

Concubine Yun quickly nodded, riding her sword light, she immediately flew up from the ground and stopped on one of the scales on the Qilin beast's back. Just one scale was about ten-odd zhang in size.

Standing on that scale, Concubine Yun took out her jade pendant and cast a spiritual light onto it. Immediately, a ray of green light flashed from within the jade pendant, and at the same time, the scale instantly rippled like water, slowly becoming transparent.

Concubine Yun looked back at Wang Lin, then her body sank down. Wang Lin's eyes flickered. He crouched down and touched the ground, and a cool sensation immediately came from his hand. He pondered for a moment, then his body suddenly moved, and he sank down.

The Immortal Cave was not large, containing three stone chambers. After Wang Lin entered, Concubine Yun immediately handed over the jade pendant, then waited nervously for Wang Lin's instructions.

Wang Lin took the jade pendant and swept it with his Divine Sense, finding a Spell formation within, which was clearly the key to controlling this Immortal Cave. After examining it for a moment, he looked up at Concubine Yun and said calmly, "You may come and go as you please, but if you reveal that I came out of the Shattered Star Chaos, then do not blame me for being merciless. However, you can rest assured, I will not stay in the Cultivation Devil Sea for too long. When I leave, I will naturally lift the Restriction for you."

With that, Wang Lin waved his right hand, casting another Restriction and imprinting it on her forehead, between her brows.

—

Er Gen's home lost internet and power, so he asked me to post this on his behalf. Please forgive any errors.