The Emperor's Domineering Favor, the Evil Consort's Unparalleled Reign

Seeing the powerful cultivator so easily defeated, the pawnshop owner gasped in shock. What was this young man up to? He claimed he was going to cook golden porridge for Jin Yi, yet he was trying to kill her. Could it be that Jin Yi had some deep-seated hatred between him?!

"You...don't you know that killing someone indiscriminately means paying with your life?!" The pawnshop owner was just an ordinary person, old and frail, unable to even defeat a member of the Imperial Guard, so how could he possibly deal with Yi Bicheng, who had so easily killed an Imperial Guard?!

Yi Bicheng turned around, looked at the crowd around him, and spread his hands indifferently. "I didn't kill her for no reason. She was the one who suggested the Golden Porridge. If I had done it, she would have been at my mercy. Now that I have done it, she has given me her life in return. So there's no debt or obligation. How can you say that I killed her at will?! There was negotiation, there were bargaining chips and stakes. She lost, and she has to be able to accept the consequences."

The boss was speechless for a moment. He glanced at the people around him, then at the seven rooms on the second floor, all of which were deathly silent, as if the people inside were so afraid of Yi Bicheng that they dared not even breathe. This was to be expected; they had witnessed the seventh level of the Brocade Robe Divine Cultivator's power. To have such cultivation at her age was truly extraordinary.

But Yi Bicheng is also young, yet his speed and ruthlessness far surpass those of Jin Yi. With such domineering methods, how could anyone dare to show their face and suffer?!

"You..." The pawnshop owner couldn't figure out Yi Bicheng's background and strength. The thugs behind him were all ordinary soul cultivators. Facing Yi Bicheng would be suicidal.

"If the boss has nothing to say, please take the Spirit Gathering Grass and hand it to me. We'll pretend today's events never happened. I'm sure the boss can find someone more suitable than Jin Yi. In that case, I won't act recklessly again," Yi Bicheng said calmly, fanning himself with his fan.

The pawnshop owner remained silent. Yi Bicheng turned his head and whispered an order. Two servants then handed the owner two hundred thousand taels of silver and took down the Spirit Gathering Grass from the platform, handing it to Yi Bicheng.

With Jin Yi dead, the spiritual energy surrounding the Spirit Gathering Grass had long since dissipated, so the servants easily removed it.

Yi Bicheng nodded slightly to the crowd on the second floor and to the stunned people in the hall. "In that case, I will take my leave." After saying that, he opened his fan, leaving only a breathtaking red plum blossom color for everyone to see, and disappeared into the crowd in the blink of an eye.

As Ying Li watched Yi Bicheng disappear into the crowd, she suddenly seemed to remember something, quickly packed her things, hurriedly went downstairs, and ran in the direction Yi Bicheng had left.

After the two left, the people in the hall suddenly panicked.

The man in brocade robes was covered in blood, his eyes wide open in death. A beautiful woman has passed away; whether she felt sorrow or joy remains unknown.

"Cough cough!" Supported by two servants, Yi Bicheng leaned against the corner of a dead-end alley, his face ashen. A master is a master indeed; even though he had successfully ambushed Jin Yi, he had still been injured by the opponent's spiritual energy.

But what do these injuries matter for Ling Yun?!

"Young master, are you alright?! That bitch was really ruthless. If you hadn't made plans earlier, you might be in serious trouble now..." The servant supporting Yi Bicheng's left side looked worried. Seeing his young master's injuries, he felt even more contempt for the woman in brocade. However, since she was already dead, he could do nothing more to vent his hatred.

"It's alright, let's hurry up and we can refine the Spirit Gathering Grass once we get to Yeling City. Next month, Bixia Palace will be holding an enrollment event in Yeling City. I'll participate there, and the limelight should be less intense." With that, Yi Bicheng cheered himself up and stood up to leave.

Unexpectedly, the moment he stood up, he abruptly shook off the two servants who were helping him, turned around, and his voice was cold and unyielding, "Who?! Show yourself!"

After a while, Ying Li walked out of the alley with his hands behind his back. Seeing Yi Bicheng's pale face, he knew that his guess was correct.

Even a genius like Jin Yi, if she made a mistake, couldn't possibly be defeated by Yi Bicheng in a single blow. Upon first meeting Yi Bicheng, his strength was merely at the top level of Soul Cultivation, essentially on par with Dongfang Lin. For him to kill a seventh-stage Divine Cultivator in such a short time, Yi Bicheng must have either subdued a powerful spirit beast or used some forbidden drug to increase his spiritual power tenfold, allowing him to quickly kill Jin Yi while she was off guard.

Clearly, he had no spirit beasts with him.

"You are..." Yi Bicheng initially thought some assassin connected to the Embroidered Uniform Guard had come seeking revenge, but upon closer inspection, he saw that it was a little girl walking towards him. He didn't remember having any interaction with this little girl.

“Ying Li, I’ve been watching you from the second floor.” Ying Li said, glancing at the puzzled servant behind Yi Bicheng, and continued, “Don’t worry, this is my first time in Linshui City. I have no connection with Miss Jinyi, so you don’t need to worry that I will seek revenge on you.”

"Oh, what brings Miss Ying to see me?" Yi Bicheng asked warily. Although she was a young girl, her spiritual power was considerable. If they were to fight, he would likely find it extremely difficult in his current state.

"I'd like to exchange those two Spirit Gathering Grasses you have. I wonder if Young Master Yi is interested?" With that, Ying Li took out the Devouring Spirit Python's inner core from her bosom and placed it in her palm. The golden spiritual light reflected in Yi Bicheng's eyes, and the other party was taken aback. Seeing that Ying Li's serious eyes didn't seem to be joking, he took out the Spirit Gathering Grass from his bosom and asked doubtfully, "Although Spirit Gathering Grass is precious, the pure inner core in your hand is extremely rare. Are you sure Miss Ying isn't joking?"

Ying Li shook his head and said, "Young Master Yi, we met by chance, and it would be empty talk to say we're completely unguarded. I want the Spirit Gathering Grass because a family member is seriously ill and urgently needs high-grade spiritual medicine to nourish them. As for you, Young Master, you've been focused on winning and are seriously injured, but you're just weak and tired. This is the inner core of the Devouring Spirit Python that I obtained a few days ago. It's rich in spiritual energy, and I think your body can handle it. I believe that by slowly refining the inner core, you'll be able to recover to your peak level within half a month, and perhaps even achieve a breakthrough. How do you feel, Young Master?"

"I just killed someone, and you still believe me?" Yi Bicheng was surprised by Ying Li's frankness.

Ying Li's eyes flickered slightly, and a calm smile appeared on his face. As if he knew that Yi Bicheng would ask about this, he replied, "I have known about the dirty secrets of the pawnshop since I was a child. The people in it must have dozens of lives on their hands. Young master's personal revenge is none of my business."

Yi Bicheng's expression changed drastically. Such a young girl with such vision and perspective must be no ordinary person.

After a while, seeing Ying Li's sincere expression, his suspicions lessened. However, considering that the other party possessed an extremely rare Devouring Python's inner core, which had been highly refined by a specialist, making it undeniably precious, he tentatively asked, "Miss Ying, why don't you refine the inner core to cure your family's illness?"

"Grandpa's body is extremely weak. Apart from the Spirit Gathering Pill, a gentle and nourishing spiritual medicine, I really can't think of any more effective method. Moreover, to tell you the truth, young master, the refining of the inner core is prone to errors. The younger generation can handle it, but if Grandpa were to refine it alone, there's no guarantee that something might go wrong. Please understand my concerns. Although the inner core is precious, for me, Grandpa's life is more important than anything else!" Ying Li spoke earnestly, his right hand unconsciously clenching when he thought of his grandfather.

Yi Bicheng's expression changed slightly. After pondering for a while, he finally said, "Alright, I'll trade with you. I've unknowingly gained such a great advantage. It seems that God has been kind to me, Yi."

Ying Li smiled sweetly, quickly wrapped the inner core in a brocade pouch, and handed it to Yi Bicheng. Yi Bicheng was stunned. He hadn't expected Ying Li to be so straightforward, handing over the inner core so readily. If he hadn't given it to her, wouldn't Ying Li have been at a huge loss?!

"Young Master Yi, you said you'd pay without delay or debt. I trust your character. Besides..." Ying Li stuck out his tongue, glanced behind him, and said, "I estimate that the shopkeeper will realize what's going on in half an hour. If you don't pay me, I'll naturally fight you. When they arrive, you won't be able to leave. Why would I be afraid you'll renege on your debt?!"

Yi Bicheng gave a wry smile. Sure enough, from the moment Ying Li appeared at the alley entrance, he should have known that Ying Li was not a simple woman. With such a clever and cunning nature, no one could really take advantage of her.

He shook his head, wrapped up the Spirit Gathering Grass in his hand, and handed it to Ying Li. Seeing that Ying Li happily accepted it, he asked, "Your name is Ying Li? What is your relationship with the Ying family of Ye Lingcheng?"

Ying Li's expression changed slightly, but he did not answer. "I should go now. Thank you, Young Master Yi. We'll meet again someday."

After saying that, Ying Li disappeared into the alleyway with the two Spirit Gathering Grasses in his arms. Yi Bicheng was momentarily dazed. He looked down at the golden inner core in his hand, then at the empty alleyway, as if everything just now was a dream. He had only used a mountain of gold to buy a pure inner core, and nothing more.

But he eventually had to return to reality, and he eventually had to chase after her, who was drifting further and further away—Wei Shi Lingyun.

"Young master, let's hurry up and leave. That girl is right. If we wait any longer, and the pawnshop owner realizes what's going on, he won't let us off the hook after we killed such a top-notch expert!"

"Yes, young master, the best course of action now is to flee."

Yi Bicheng glanced at the two servants following behind him, snapped out of his daze, carefully put away the Devouring Python's inner core, placed it in his pocket, his face turned cold, and he stomped the ground, shooting off towards the alley entrance. "Let's go!"

The two servants were no less impressive; their bodies were imbued with spiritual energy, and they shot off in the direction Yi Bicheng had gone.

As darkness fell and the moon hid behind the clouds, the city of Linshui suddenly erupted in chaos. The pawnshop owner led a dozen or so powerful cultivators to search all around Linshui. Streams of spiritual energy shot out, and Ying Li, watching the colorful sea of ​​spiritual energy, hugged the Spirit Gathering Grass in his arms and fell into a deep sleep.

Once she has refined the elixir, and when the Bixia Palace opens its registration hall next month, she will win, and her grandfather will be well.

The moon was high in the sky. A bewitching man sat before Ying Li's bed, his gaze fixed intently on the sleeping woman. He frowned slightly, recalling the man who had rescued her on the Spirit Cultivation Mountain. Who was this powerful figure, with such a unique appearance? Should he tell Ying Li about him?

He shook his head, then tucked the blanket around Ying Li, before transforming into a beam of pale blue spiritual light and falling asleep once more within the bone ring.