"Heavenly Glue!" Yuan Ming's eyes brightened when he saw the item through the soul crow inside the jade box.

When he had first arrived in the Eastern Domain, he'd heard a workshop owner mention this rarity, saying that Heavenly Glue was produced at the bottom of the deep sea, only forming under a combination of conditions such as spiritual power, earth veins, temperature, and water pressure. It was extremely scarce, a small piece costing seven or eight hundred spirit stones and often without a market price.

"Elder Bai, please keep this. I, as the master of Xuanhua Temple, bear the legacy of our ancestral masters, and I dare not forget even a single detail. The secret incense-making scripture of our temple can never be sold," Immortal Xuanhua said, shaking his head with firm conviction.

Bai Lin's face darkened, and he said coldly, "Fellow Daoist Xuan Hua, I, Bai, have already made my terms very clear. Do not be ungrateful! At the heart of this matter, you failed to fulfill the commission of one hundred 'Seven-step Immovable' incenses on time, ruining my big deal. This is why we have reached this situation. Even if you face confrontation at Tieyun Temple, you'd have no ground to stand on!"

Immortal Xuanhua's face turned crimson, and he stammered, unable to speak.

"The beast has been startled and is hiding in its lair, refusing to come out. Our only option is to request the secret incense-making scripture from your Xuanhua Temple and ask Blue Lizard Daoist for assistance in hopes of hunting down the beast. If we fail, both you and I are facing a fatal threat. Should you die, the Xuanhua Temple would vanish into smoke and clouds, so what inheritance would there be to speak of?" Bai Lin's eyes were frighteningly cold as he spoke, word by word.

With every word he heard from Bai Lin, Immortal Xuanhua's face lost more color, and by the time Bai Lin finished speaking, sweat beaded on his forehead.

"I'll give you one more day, Fellow Daoist Xuan Hua. I'll return tomorrow and hope you will not disappoint me. Otherwise, do not blame me for being ruthless," Bai Lin said, then stood up, collected the jade box and storage bag, and left.

Immortal Xuanhua's face was drained of all color as he sat down listlessly in the front hall.

Footsteps approached. It was Yuan Ming walking in.

"Fellow Daoist Yuan, what brings you here?" asked Immortal Xuanhua as he stood up.

"Don't blame me, Fellow Daoist Xuan Hua, but I have a secret technique that allows me to listen to distant sounds. I accidentally overheard your conversation just now, and I thought to come and discuss this matter with you," Yuan Ming apologized with a bow.

Immortal Xuanhua was taken aback, but then waved his hand in exhaustion and sat back down.

"Fellow Daoist Xuan Hua, it seems from your conversation that you've found yourself in a pickle because you couldn't hunt down a fierce beast, and that's why you and Senior Bai Lin are in this predicament. What's the whole story? I don't dare claim expertise in many things, but when it comes to hunting fierce beasts, I believe I have some methods and might be able to help," Yuan Ming said as he took a seat next to Immortal Xuanhua.

"You? Hunt a fierce beast?" Immortal Xuanhua looked at Yuan Ming in surprise, clearly disbelieving.

It was no wonder, as incense makers typically spent years toiling away in secluded rooms, leaving material purchases to others and having no connection with battle.

Yuan Ming gave a faint smile and formed a hand gesture.

Suddenly, a chair not far away split in half, the break so smooth it was exceptional. Immortal Xuanhua had no idea how it had happened.

"Unexpectedly, Fellow Daoist Yuan, you possess such skills. But I'm afraid you can't help with this matter," said Immortal Xuanhua, surprised, yet still shaking his head.

"There's no harm in telling me about it," Yuan Ming replied, not giving up.

"Alright then, this matter began a month ago," Immortal Xuanhua sighed and began to recount.

A month prior, Bai Lin had come to him with a big business deal to refine one hundred 'Seven-step Immovable Falling Incense', offering a hefty price but requiring completion within ten days.

Immortal Xuanhua was gathering spirit stones to prepare spirit grass for refining Foundation Establishment Spirit Incense and agreed without hesitation.

With Immortal Xuanhua's incense-making skills, a hundred 'Seven-step Immovable' sticks in ten days was quite doable. But fate was cruel, and on the seventh day, an old ailment in his head flared up. He fainted in the chamber and didn't wake up until two days later, which greatly delayed the incense-making process. In the end, he produced just over eighty 'Seven-step Immovable', failing to meet Bai Lin's deadline.

Bai Lin needed a hundred 'Seven-step Immovable' to hunt a Vortex Beast from the sea, a creature whose strength had nearly reached the third level and had always been sly, hiding in the undercurrents and whirlpools at the bottom of the sea."

Somehow Bai Lin had managed to lure it to the surface and trap it with an array, using a large amount of 'Seven-step Immovable' to daze it and attempt to kill it there.

However, with insufficient incense, the Vortex Beast regained its senses at a critical moment, broke free from the array's confinement, and escaped back to the sea bed. No matter how Bai Lin tempted it, the beast refused to show itself again.

The reason Bai Lin was hunting the Vortex Beast stemmed from a command by a Core Formation Stage cultivator from White Dragon Island who had a terribly volatile temper. If Bai Lin failed to bring back the Vortex Beast's corpse on time, his life would likely be at risk.

Left with no choice, Bai Lin sought help from a formidable Loose Cultivator near Ning City, Blue Lizard Wanderer, whose cultivation had reached Mid-stage Foundation Establishment, and whose technique was adept for underwater activities. He even had a Bottom Water Spirit Beast as his aid, which could contend with the Vortex Beast and possibly draw it out again.

Yet, that Blue Lizard made a demand: he would only move if he received Xuanhua Temple's incense-making secret scripture; otherwise, he would not lift a finger, leading to Bai Lin's aggressive visit.

"Fellow Daoist Xuan Hua, do you suffer from a brain disease?" Yuan Ming inquired after hearing the story.

"Yes, it's an old problem. I become prone to attacks when I'm agitated or emotionally upset. I've been medicating to suppress it for years and had not suffered for a long time. But recently, for some unknown reason, my thoughts have become restlessly active. Coupled with the relentless work on incense-making, it triggered the recurrence of my old problem," Immortal Xuanhua explained with a sigh.

Yuan Ming opened his mouth to speak, then hesitated, his eyes flashing with a hint of apology.

Immortal Xuanhua's thoughts had been restless lately, perhaps due to the influence of the consciousness after possession.

"What do you plan to do, Fellow Daoist Xuan Hua? Are you really going to give up your temple's secret scriptures?" Yuan Ming asked again.

"Even if I die, I will never hand over the sect's secret scriptures to others!" Immortal Xuanhua's eyes were filled with determination.

"If that's the case, we only have one choice, which is to hunt down the Vortex Beast. Do you know where its lair is, Fellow Daoist Xuan Hua?" Yuan Ming paused, then continued to ask.

"I heard Bai Lin mention it once, it's near Coral Island, about a hundred miles to the southwest. Do you really intend to hunt this beast? I appreciate your kindness, but with how powerful the Vortex Beast is, even a group of Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivators might not win against it, let alone us Qi Refinement Stage Cultivators. I should ask Tieyun Temple to handle this. At worst, we'll spend a hefty amount of Spirit Stones. I don't believe that we can't resolve this issue," Immortal Xuanhua said, shaking his head.

"It's certainly not possible by myself alone, but I have several rather formidable companions. If they take action, there should be a fair chance of success," Yuan Ming replied.

"Do you truly have confidence, Fellow Daoist Yuan?" Immortal Xuanhua's face showed a hint of hope upon hearing this.

Although he said he would pay Tieyun Temple to intervene, he actually had no assurance at all. Given that he was at fault in this matter and lacked close friends within Tieyun Temple, it was highly unlikely that they would back him up over some Spirit Stones and get into conflict with the elders of White Dragon Island.

"There's no certainty of success, but there's still a 50 to 60 percent chance," Yuan Ming thought for a moment before answering.

"If Fellow Daoist Yuan really can hunt down the Vortex Beast, then you will be a benefactor to Xuanhua Temple. In the future, whatever you ask for, I will not turn you down!" Immortal Xuanhua bowed deeply, making a solemn promise.

"Fellow Daoist Xuan Hua, you are too kind. If I retrieve that Vortex Beast's corpse, I should be able to exchange it for Heavenly Glue from someone on White Dragon Island. If you can make more than two Foundation Establishment Spirit Incense sticks, I hope you'll share one with me," Yuan Ming returned the bow and said.

Whether it was to express his apology or in pursuit of refining Foundation Establishment Incense, he was determined to hunt down this Vortex Beast.

To others this creature might be a tricky adversary, but Yuan Ming had many methods, especially since he had the body of the Heavenly Snake Master integrated with the White Ape Skin. As long as he wasn't directly fighting a Core Formation Stage cultivator, he feared nothing.

Moreover, going by the conversation between Immortal Xuanhua and Bai Lin earlier, the hardest part in hunting this beast was luring it out from the bottom of the sea. On that matter, he happened to have a unique secret technique.

Naturally, Immortal Xuanhua agreed without hesitation.

"From what you say, that Vortex Beast is cunning. I might not be able to return tomorrow. If the cultivators from White Dragon Island come again, please find a way to stall them for a few days, Fellow Daoist Xuan Hua." Yuan Ming said.

"No problem, leave this trivial matter to me," Immortal Xuanhua replied.

Yuan Ming nodded, stood up, and walked outside, with Immortal Xuanhua personally seeing him off.

Yuan Ming did not leave through the front door he had entered earlier but asked Immortal Xuanhua to lead him out through a back door.

His soul crow had detected that Bai Lin had sent someone to guard the main entrance. For now, Yuan Ming preferred not to have contact with anyone from White Dragon Island to avoid trouble.

The two of them passed through the courtyard behind the main hall, and a loft appeared in front of them, where they could see several spirit tablets enshrined with candles burning brightly and incense diffusing in all directions.

"That area is the ancestral hall where we venerate the past masters of this temple," Immortal Xuanhua explained, noticing Yuan Ming's gaze.

Yuan Ming looked at a large incense burner within the ancestral hall, filled with incense ashes, and his eyes immediately lit up.

The quantity of incense ashes he had seen in the main hall was too little, but he hadn't expected to find even more in this place.

Without asking for permission, Yuan Ming continued walking and soon left Xuanhua Temple through the back door.

Half a quarter of an hour later, a blurred figure that was hard to see with the naked eye slipped into the ancestral hall of Xuanhua Temple and approached the incense burner.

The figure took out a rather large jade vessel and took nearly half of the incense ashes from the burner before quickly leaving.

A disciple of Xuanhua Temple arrived with a broom and suddenly paused.

He thought he had seen a shadow flicker by, but when he looked carefully again, he saw nothing. Shaking his head and muttering to himself, he didn't take it seriously and started cleaning the ancestral hall.

After leaving Xuanhua Temple, that shadowy figure quickly came to a deserted alley nearby. Lifting off a gray cloak, Yuan Ming revealed his true identity.

Looking at the jade vessel in his hands, he showed a pleased expression.

With so much incense ash, he would have enough to last him a significantly long time.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.