Lin Daqiao looked at Li Yan's somewhat dazed expression and continued with a hint of pride, "Little Junior Brother, you'll figure it out after you've been out a few more times. Cultivators from those small sects, small families, or rogue cultivators have a very difficult time surviving. Who knows when they might be quietly wiped out by someone. It's especially tragic for the female cultivators from those small sects. If they're unattractive, it's one thing, but if they have some good looks and lack a strong backer for protection, their final fate is even worse than that of a prostitute in the mortal world. Being taken for dual cultivation and used as a Cultivation Cauldron is a common occurrence. Their end is utterly miserable. In just a few short years, their essence will be drained dry, turning them into old hags with skin like chicken-skin, eventually becoming a cup of yellow earth. So, some female cultivators often take the opportunity to get close to cultivators from large sects. Even becoming a concubine is something they are extremely willing to do. Therefore, the two women you saw just now are of this type."
Hearing this, Li Yan slowly came to his senses. He looked at the two women ahead, whose movements swayed with a provocative grace, and was dumbfounded. He stammered in his voice transmission, "Seventh Senior Brother, you two aren't thinking of taking them back as concubines, or for dual cultivation..."
"Hehe, don't be alarmed, Little Junior Brother. Although the cultivation arts of our Malevolent Spirit Sect are vicious, we don't have such despicable dual cultivation methods. Don't be fooled by Fifth Senior Brother's appearance; some things are not as simple as you think. These two women clearly know we are disciples of the Malevolent Spirit Sect, yet they tried to approach us again and again. Their purpose can only be one of two things: first, they might genuinely want to find a backer. Whether they were deliberately waiting here or it was a chance encounter, it's for the sake of their future survival. Second, they could be spies from our enemies. Perhaps they often scout this place, and once they discover disciples from our sect, they try all sorts of ways to use their looks to get close. After gaining trust, they either probe for intelligence or carry out assassinations. However, although these two women are quite attractive, they dare to come out with only tenth-layer Qi Condensation cultivation and without the company of a master. They are truly bold. The first possibility is more likely."
Li Yan broke out in a cold sweat. "Oh? It's like that? So you're using this opportunity to probe them in return..." He hadn't expected to encounter such a ploy on his first trip out. Just now, he had really thought his two senior brothers were overcome with lust.
"What else did you think? I'm not interested in this type of woman. I need to find someone I truly connect with before I offer up this body of mine. Ai, but speaking of which, if these two really aren't spies, Fifth Senior Brother might not say no to a dewdrop affair. After all, he was a street punk in the mortal world," Lin Daqiao's voice transmission echoed in Li Yan's mind. No matter how he heard it, there was a shifty, sneaky tone to it, especially the first half, which sent a chill down his spine. As for the latter half, for Li Yan, who had often been in military camps and had seen the likes of Liu Chengyong and his band of soldiers, he already knew that soldiers and ruffians were essentially no different, so he was no longer surprised.
However, Li Yan still had to admire the coordination between Wen Xinliang and Lin Daqiao. From beginning to end, the two of them had not shown the slightest flaw, perfectly portraying two degenerate disciples of the Malevolent Spirit Sect. He couldn't help but sigh at how treacherous people's hearts were. Even someone as originally innocent as Lin Daqiao could put on a full act when it came to theatrics. He himself had been deceived into thinking he had misjudged them.
As Li Yan and Lin Daqiao followed at a leisurely pace, the two women in front seemed to have slowed down. Before long, they were walking almost side-by-side with Wen Xinliang. One of the women's eyes were rippling with amorous intent as she began to whisper to Wen Xinliang. As they talked, she seemed to feign annoyance, occasionally stamping her jade-like foot. Even Li Yan, walking behind, could see a pink blush rise on her jade-like neck, making her look truly charming. The other woman kept turning her head to look back, her watery, autumn-wave eyes glancing at Li Yan and the other, her face a mix of coyness and feigned anger.
Seeing this gaze sweep towards him, Li Yan was at a loss for what to do. Lin Daqiao, beside him, had already quickened his pace by several steps, as if to seize the initiative. A brilliant smile appeared on his fair face as he went up to meet her. In just a few steps, he reached the group of three ahead, leaving a somewhat dazed Li Yan standing on the spot.
Among the four people ahead, Wen Xinliang didn't even turn his head, lightly teasing the woman who looked like she could drip water. Lin Daqiao had now joined the other woman, completely ignoring Li Yan. He soon seemed immersed in their flirtatious chatter. Li Yan could even see Lin Daqiao's profile; he wore a lewd smile. After a few words, he began to put his arm around the woman's shoulder. The woman seemed to resist yet welcome it, preventing Lin Daqiao's hand from resting on her shoulder, her face as shy as a flower. She lowered her head and walked quickly, while Lin Daqiao chased after her with a laugh.
This scene left Li Yan dumbfounded. He hadn't expected his two senior brothers to have such a worldly, roguish side, moving as smoothly as a fish in water, like a dragon in the river.
Wen Xinliang and the woman ahead seemed to be getting along more and more joyfully. Who knows what Wen Xinliang said, but the woman's delicate body trembled, and then she began to giggle. Her laughter, like the tinkling of silver bells, echoed along the green forest path, drawing sidelong glances from many cultivators. But when they saw that they were Malevolent Spirit Sect disciples, fear appeared on their faces. They quickly moved to the other side of the road and quickened their pace to leave.
Li Yan noticed that many of the cultivators had looks of disgust in their eyes. Although some of these expressions were fleeting, as Li Yan watched carefully from behind, he still spotted one or two. The vast majority, however, were anxious to avoid them. Even when they saw Li Yan walking alone, they all made way.
Although Li Yan's cultivation was low, they looked at Wen Xinliang and the other two ahead; they weren't fools. Even if they weren't traveling together, they were from the same sect. How could they afford to provoke them?
Seeing this, Li Yan could only follow behind, frustrated. For a moment, he didn't know what the purpose of coming to the trading city was. So far, he had only seen it from the sky. Since landing, it seemed the trading city was still some distance away. He didn't know why they had landed here. Was it just to fish?
Li Yan was full of doubts that he couldn't resolve for the time being. He looked at the cultivators occasionally passing by on the road and really wanted to go up and ask them about the trading city. But when those people saw Li Yan turn to look at them, they immediately lowered their heads and hurried away, giving Li Yan no chance to ask.
There were a few who were not afraid of Li Yan's gaze, merely looking back calmly before continuing on their way without a word. These people were all Foundation Establishment cultivators. Li Yan knew that in their eyes, although his status was different, he was still a Qi Condensation cultivator, and it wasn't appropriate for him to rashly approach them for a conversation.
After walking like this for about half a tea's time, Li Yan, who was walking behind, saw the four people in front of him slip and turn into the dense woods beside the path. However, Li Yan clearly saw that the two women seemed reluctant. But after Wen Xinliang whispered something, the two bewitching women lowered their heads in embarrassment. One of them kept wringing the corner of her clothes, her cheeks flushed red. Lin Daqiao, smiling, put his arm around the other woman, who was also blushing, and half-pulled, half-coaxed her along as the group entered the woods.
This scene was witnessed not only by Li Yan but also by several others who were passing by. Some of them had a sleazy look in their eyes, and some even had a lewd smile on their lips. Others showed disgust. However, none of them glanced into the woods; they simply walked straight ahead as if they had seen nothing.
Li Yan, on the other hand, stared blankly at the woods where the figures had disappeared. He rubbed his nose, coughed lightly, and then started walking forward on his own, as if he had come here alone today.
But just as Li Yan had walked no more than a hundred meters, the sound of footsteps came from behind him, getting closer and closer. Li Yan turned his head directly and saw Wen Xinliang and Lin Daqiao walking over with light steps. The two women, however, were not with them.
Li Yan smiled faintly and stopped by the side of the road to wait for them.
"Hehe, Little Junior Brother, getting impatient?" Wen Xinliang's voice came over. The two of them were extremely fast, reaching Li Yan in an instant.
Hearing this, Li Yan chuckled. "Senior Brothers were so fast, how could I have been the least bit impatient?"
Wen Xinliang and Lin Daqiao, who were approaching with smiles on their faces, simultaneously stumbled. Li Yan could almost see the dark lines dripping from their foreheads. His own eyes narrowed into a smiling slit.
"Little Junior Brother, you may not be old, but you know... quite a bit!" Lin Daqiao said, walking over and enunciating each word. He reached out to pat Li Yan's shoulder but was dodged by Li Yan with a light laugh.
Li Yan looked around. Seeing that the people from before had all walked far away and only a few newcomers were hurrying past, none of whom had noticed the earlier scene and had simply glanced in this direction before moving on, his expression turned serious. He asked via voice transmission, "Did you get it out of them?"
Wen Xinliang continued walking past the two without stopping. Lin Daqiao, having failed to pat Li Yan, glared at him and also walked forward. Li Yan rubbed his nose and could only quicken his pace to follow.
Just as Li Yan caught up, Wen Xinliang's lazy voice sounded in his mind, "Ask what? I killed them directly."
These words made Li Yan's heart clench. He had thought his two senior brothers had taken the women into the woods for a detailed interrogation. After getting the results, they would either capture them and take them back to the sect, or just knock them out. He hadn't expected them to be killed so quickly. But on second thought, it made sense. He had only walked a hundred meters. An interrogation couldn't have been that fast, and those below the Golden Core realm didn't know the Soul-Searching Art . But for two Foundation Establishment cultivators to kill two Qi Condensation disciples was a simple matter of lifting a hand, and they could even do it without making a sound. But to do it like this, weren't they afraid of killing the wrong people?
"Are you sure they were spies from the enemy?" Seeing that Wen Xinliang and the other seemed completely unconcerned, Li Yan couldn't help but ask.
"No, I estimate there's only a fifty percent chance they were spies. I still can't be sure," Wen Xinliang replied nonchalantly.
Although Li Yan had also experienced his share of killing, seeing two people killed so easily without any distinction of right or wrong sent a chill through his heart. These were two beautiful, flower-like lives. Just moments ago, they were standing here, vibrant and alive, and in a flash, they were dead in those woods. To be killed so directly without conclusive evidence still made him feel a bit of pity.
Walking beside him, Lin Daqiao saw the flicker of pity in Li Yan's eyes and also sent a voice transmission, "Little Junior Brother, do you think it was too rash? Hehe, even if it were Eldest Senior Brother and the others here, they would have handled it the same way. Unless it was someone with a soft heart like Fourth Senior Sister, they would have let them go. A fifty percent chance is more than enough. Otherwise, who knows which senior or junior brother will be the unlucky one next time."
"Oh? Then how did you determine the possibility that they were spies from the enemy?" Although Li Yan felt pity, the deed was done, and he was not an indecisive person. Moreover, what Lin Daqiao said made some sense, so he simply focused his attention on the cause of the matter.
"It's very simple. When Fifth Senior Brother was joking with them just now, he only indicated that although we are just a few ordinary disciples of the Malevolent Spirit Sect, we could still protect them for a while. But one of the women said, 'Senior Brother, you are too humble. It's clear at a glance that you three are elite disciples of the sect. We will have to rely on you to protect us in the future.'" Lin Daqiao stopped there.
After hearing Lin Daqiao's words, Li Yan was first taken aback. He didn't think there was anything wrong with what the woman had said. He looked strangely at the two of them as they walked. Wen Xinliang still had that lazy look, sauntering forward. Lin Daqiao winked at him. Seeing that Li Yan still had a look of confusion, he gave a strange smile and sent a voice transmission, "Little... Junior Brother, think about what happened after we met them." In his transmission, he deliberately emphasized the first few words with a strange smile.