167: Chapter 168 Cultivation Technique Advancement

"Lin Ye, are you crazy?" Captain Zhang couldn't help but say at this moment.

After spending the past few days together, he had quite a favorable impression of Lin Ye.

He really didn't want such a promising young man to throw his life away here.

Lin Ye smiled without explaining, instead turning to look at Old Man Shen beside him. "Elder Shen, you should leave as well."

Old Man Shen frowned and was about to refuse without a second thought, but Lin Ye spoke up and interrupted him.

What a joke. He chose to stay here because he had the trump card of logging off to save his life, but Old Man Shen didn't.

However, he also knew that if he didn't provide a suitable reason, with Old Man Shen's temperament, he would absolutely refuse to leave.

Thus, Lin Ye said with a serious expression, "Elder Shen, listen to me."

"If I don't make it out alive, I'll have to trouble you to help take care of my family on the outside."

"Nonsense! Take care of your own family. You leave, I'll stay." Old Man Shen rejected the idea without a second thought.

Seeing this, Lin Ye felt somewhat helpless. This old man's temper was truly stubborn.

Left with no choice, Lin Ye had to lean close to Old Man Shen's ear and use Mental Energy transmission to say a few words to him.

After listening, Old Man Shen's facial expression was quite a sight. He opened his mouth to say something, but in the end, the words never came out.

In truth, what Lin Ye had just said was very simple: "Elder Shen, trust me. I have a reason why I must stay, and I won't joke with my own life."

Old Man Shen naturally understood the meaning behind Lin Ye's words—he had a life-saving trump card.

He just stared into Lin Ye's eyes, trying to find a trace of hesitation or pretense in them.

But he found nothing.

Those eyes were clear and calm, radiating a sense of sincerity and confidence.

Although he didn't know what kind of trump card Lin Ye possessed that could save his life in this situation...

He knew that Lin Ye was definitely not someone who would throw his life away.

From the first day he met Lin Ye, he knew this young man was incredibly cautious in his actions.

Old Man Shen fell silent for a long time.

Finally, he sighed, reached out, and patted Lin Ye's shoulder. "Alright, I can leave, but you better remember this, kid—come back alive!"

"I will."

Lin Ye nodded, his gaze resolute.

Seeing this, Captain Yang and the others did not try to persuade him further.

In their view, since Lin Ye wanted to stay behind and seek his own death, they might as well let him be.

The The Woodcutter did not interject from beginning to end, merely looking at Lin Ye with a somewhat complex gaze.

Seeing that the others had made their decision, he finally spoke up, "Follow me."

After saying that, he turned and walked toward the village entrance, and the others immediately followed.

Lin Ye stood at the doorway, a smile always on his face as he watched the retreating figures of Old Man Shen and the others fade into the distance.

Old Man Shen looked back with every few steps, while Lin Ye responded with his gaze.

Only when the figures of the five people had completely vanished in the direction of the village entrance did Lin Ye withdraw his gaze.

He walked over to a corner of the village on his own and began to circulate the Mind Ape Visualization Method.

Regardless of how much truth there was in the The Woodcutter's words, what he needed to do was seize the time to grow stronger.

...

About the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the The Woodcutter returned.

Lin Ye opened his eyes.

The other man's complexion was slightly worse than before, and several cracks had appeared on his body.

It seemed that sending them away had indeed consumed a significant amount of his power.

"You are very special," the The Woodcutter said as he walked up to Lin Ye, his tone carrying a profound meaning.

Lin Ye did not respond.

The The Woodcutter didn't mind either, continuing on his own.

"Can you tell me why you didn't leave?"

Lin Ye fell silent for a moment, then smiled. "Like I said, I want to advance and retreat together with the Commandant."

This was a pretext, and both of them knew it full well, but they tacitly chose not to expose it.

The The Woodcutter took a deep look at Lin Ye, an indescribable look flashing through his muddy eyes.

"Then, look out for yourself."

After saying that, he was about to turn and leave.

"Wait," Lin Ye called out to him.

The The Woodcutter paused but did not turn around.

"Why are you helping us?"

"You are a member of the Taiping Sect, and we are from the Demon Suppression Division. Logically speaking, we should be enemies."

The The Woodcutter fell silent for a moment, then let out a soft chuckle.

The chuckle was very soft, so soft it was almost inaudible.

"Enemies?"

"In a place like this, does the struggle between members of the same race still matter?"

He said no more and walked away, his figure quickly vanishing into the depths of the alley.

Lin Ye stared at the disappearing figure, his eyes flickering with uncertainty.

In fact, the main reason he chose to stay was, of course, not some high-sounding phrase like "advancing and retreating together."

His thoughts were very simple: the flow of time here was ten times faster than in the outside world. Cultivating here for one day was equivalent to cultivating for ten days outside.

How could he easily give up such a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity?

In any case, since he could log off, his safety was guaranteed.

Of course, he had another purpose.

He wanted to see what this The Woodcutter was really up to.

Instinct told him that this person who claimed to be from the Taiping Sect was far less simple than he appeared on the surface.

...

Days went by, one after another.

Lin Ye's daily life was also very simple. During the day, he would Cultivate the Mind Ape Visualization Method, and at night, he would lead that greyish-white figure in circles around the village. Once the Qi in his body was almost depleted, he would directly log off.

This high-intensity chase might have been a nightmare for ordinary people, but for Lin Ye, it had instead become a highly efficient method of cultivation.

The proficiency of his Basic Qinggong was soaring at a speed visible to the naked eye, and his utilization of Wind Breathing was also becoming increasingly natural and adept.

Meanwhile, during this period, the changes in the village were also becoming more and more obvious.

The strength of the "villagers" who appeared during the day grew day by day, and eighth-grade Realm Demons had already begun to gradually appear.

This was perhaps related to the awakening of the so-called anomaly; these villagers were merely a part of its remnant thoughts.

On the other hand, the greyish-white figure that appeared at night showed no changes, as if it had already escaped the control of the anomaly.

On this night, Lin Ye, as usual, led the greyish-white figure on a stroll.

This figure had practically become his "exclusive" sparring partner.

However, after such a long period of chasing, the greyish-white figure's mastery over teleportation seemed to have also grown much stronger.

Not only was the frequency of its teleportation significantly higher than a few days ago, but the distance of a single teleportation had also become further, nearly blocking his path several times.

However, relying on the coordination of Basic Qinggong and Wind Breathing, he managed to narrowly escape each time.

As for the The Woodcutter's house, perhaps knowing that it could not extract Lifespan from Lin Ye, it never appeared again after that day, even during the daytime.

After leading the greyish-white figure around for more than an hour, feeling that the innate qi in his body was almost depleted, Lin Ye was about to log off and rest when a crisp System notification suddenly rang in his mind:

"Ding! Your Basic Qinggong Realm has reached its upper limit. Please choose an advancement direction."