Chapter Ninety-Nine: The Master-Servant Pact

At the instant he crossed hands with Lin Xiaobao, Xia Zihao made a decisive judgment. He immediately sensed that Lin Xiaobao’s strength was far from what it appeared to be. Borrowing the recoil from that punch, he somersaulted in midair, streaked away like a bolt of light, and vanished into the distance.

Watching Xia Zihao disappear in a blink, Lin Xiaobao did not hurry to give chase. After all, there was not the slightest grudge between them. He had struck only for self-preservation. More importantly, if he were to truly clash with Xia Zihao, Yun Keke would be unable to withstand the scattered spiritual power at all. In any case, the thing they had mentioned was still in Yun Keke’s possession, and Yun Keke was right here. That was enough.

By now, Yun Keke’s gaze at Lin Xiaobao was filled with fear. As one of a hostile family, she knew Xia Zihao’s strength very well. A cultivation at the first stage of Spirit Path was nothing remarkable in Bloodwind City, but the fact that Lin Xiaobao had sent him flying with a single punch meant his power was far above the first stage of Spirit Path.

What was even more terrifying was how young Lin Xiaobao was. And what made Yun Keke feel even more afraid was that when she had once read his thoughts, she had not discovered that Lin Xiaobao was also a strong cultivator of the Spirit Path realm. Did that mean his purpose here was the same as Xia Zihao’s?

Looking at Lin Xiaobao, Yun Keke quietly activated her mind-reading art once more, but in the next instant she withdrew it, staring hard at him as though she wanted to curse aloud.

“How was it? Was the scene just now any good?”

Since he now knew Yun Keke’s identity, Lin Xiaobao naturally would not let down his guard. His spiritual sense already spread several zhang beyond his body. When he sensed her probing mind-reading technique, he could not block it, but he could redirect his own thoughts.

For instance, just now he had been thinking of the obscene foreign films he had seen on Earth back then.

“Who are you?” Though furious at Lin Xiaobao’s shamelessness, Yun Keke was no ordinary person. She knew there were many problems that needed to be resolved.

“A passerby. A suitably accommodating passerby!” As he spoke, Lin Xiaobao urged his spiritual power into the ground, forcing up a large pit, then buried the corpses of the three men in it.

They might not have shared any deep friendship, but they had traveled together for a time. Lin Xiaobao naturally did not wish to leave their bodies exposed in the wilderness.

Watching his actions, Yun Keke felt, for reasons she could not explain, that her wariness toward him had somehow lessened considerably. “Then it seems my luck is rather good. To issue a casual mercenary quest and still draw two Spirit Path experts to the same road.”

Lin Xiaobao shook his head. “He came with intent; I came without. I am merely curious, though. Wasn’t the Moonshadow Clan supposed to have been wiped out already?”

“You know of the Moonshadow Clan?” Yun Keke’s expression changed drastically at his words.

The Yun family was considered a prominent household in Bloodwind City, yet the secret that the Yun family were descendants of the Moonshadow Clan was unknown to all. Even within the Yun family, only the very core of the core knew of it.

Though outsiders knew the Yun family possessed a technique capable of reading other people’s thoughts, no one would associate it with the Moonshadow Clan. After all, in this world, very few still knew of that special race.

And now Lin Xiaobao had casually exposed her origins. In all the years Yun Keke could remember, this was the first time someone had pointed out her background so directly—and it was said by a youth of roughly her own age. Fear beyond words filled her heart. Though she tried hard to conceal it, her face still looked dreadful.

For once the identity of the Moonshadow Clan became public, doom would surely descend upon the Yun family. When the two elders had told Lin Xiaobao about it, they had not gone into detail, perhaps because they thought it unimportant. But to Yun Keke, one point was of utmost importance.

As a powerful cultivator could force a Moonshadow clansman into a master-servant contract, once such a contract was signed, the clan’s mind-reading art could be used by the master to accomplish many things. Even more horrifying was the fact that the life and death of the bound Moonshadow clansman would be entirely controlled by the master, leaving no freedom whatsoever.

It was easy to imagine that without the protection of great force, once the Yun family’s identity was exposed, countless powerful figures would come knocking within three days at the latest.

“I know a little,” Lin Xiaobao replied, not understanding why Yun Keke was reacting so strongly.

Looking at his expression, Yun Keke could not for the moment guess what he was thinking. She wanted to read his thoughts again, but recalling that humiliating scene from before, she had no choice but to abandon the idea. “Then what are your plans now?”

“Plans?” Lin Xiaobao shrugged. “The hundred gold coins you offered are naturally not enough to hire a master like me as your bodyguard, so of course we go our separate ways.”

To Lin Xiaobao, he had already left the borders of the Kingdom of Ningfeng. There was no need for him to continue escorting Yun Keke at a leisurely pace. If he had not first been curious as to why Xia Zihao had hidden his cultivation, he would have long since walked away after entering Blackwind Mountain.

Yun Keke seemed unable to accept Lin Xiaobao’s way of thinking. In her view, since he knew she was of the Moonshadow Clan, he should naturally force her to sign a master-servant contract. With her present strength, she could not possibly refuse. Yet Lin Xiaobao did not mention it at all.

Hearing that Lin Xiaobao intended to leave alone, Yun Keke grew anxious again. With her own abilities, she had no hope of getting out of Blackwind Mountain. Along the way, whether she encountered beasts or people with evil intent, either could bring her journey to a halt.

“Then what price do you want me to offer?” After hesitating for a moment, Yun Keke had no choice but to seek help from Lin Xiaobao.

But at this moment, Lin Xiaobao’s mind was entirely fixed on the place where the Spiritwise Vine had appeared. There might be a spirit mine there. Though Yun Keke was indeed a beauty, compared with a spirit mine, Lin Xiaobao was still capable of attaining the state of seeing desire as emptiness. “No matter what price you offer, I still won’t agree!”

With that, his figure flashed and vanished without a trace. Though traveling through Blackwind Mountain at night carried some danger, Lin Xiaobao was bold and unafraid, and did not care.

Deep in the night, in the hush of darkness, a gentle evening breeze stirred the trees. The rustle of leaves, mingled with the intermittent howls of beasts, lent the night sky an added sense of dread.

Yun Keke wrapped her arms tightly around herself and looked up at the waning moon overhead, helplessness flooding her entire body. Would she still be able to see tomorrow’s moon?

Just then, Lin Xiaobao, who had only just left, suddenly appeared before her.

“If I take you out of Blackwind Mountain, will you agree to any condition?”

In the quiet wait, she had once imagined that Lin Xiaobao might suddenly reappear. But after hearing his first words upon his return, Yun Keke felt as though she had fallen into an endless abyss.

For the sake of the entire Yun family, she had to bring that thing back. Perhaps Lin Xiaobao’s demands would not be too harsh. With a faint glimmer of hope, Yun Keke asked, “What condition do you want?”

“A master-servant contract!”

Lin Xiaobao was very direct. This was also the reason he had turned back after leaving—only after hearing the two elders’ warning did he return.