“When did you arrive?” the shadowy figure asked, clutching his knife tightly as he looked at Ye Bufan.
“It’s not a good idea to take the skin of this Blazing Horned Rhinoceros without any effort, you know,” Ye Bufan said.
“When did you discover me?” The shadowy figure remained vigilant. He couldn’t see through Ye Bufan, and it was obvious that Ye Bufan’s strength far surpassed his own.
Ye Bufan looked at him and smiled, “I was originally going to leave, but then I remembered that the Blazing Horned Rhinoceros is valuable from head to toe, so I wanted to take some of it back. Oh, right, I forgot to tell you, its skin isn’t the most valuable part; its eyes are.”
“You! Don’t come any closer!” the shadowy figure shouted at Ye Bufan.
Ye Bufan paid no mind. He vanished from his spot and reappeared next to the shadowy figure in the next second.
“Ah!” Seeing this, the shadowy figure swung his blade at Ye Bufan.
Ye Bufan calmly caught the blade with his hand and said, “Mid-stage Qi Refining, not bad. I didn’t expect to meet another cultivator.”
“Whoosh—” With a slight exertion of force, Ye Bufan sent the blade flying into the air. A gust of wind from his palm blew off the shadowy figure’s hood.
“Hmm?”
Ye Bufan was surprised to find that beneath the dark hood was a girl. However, the right half of her face was covered in burn scars, and there was a voice modulator around her neck.
“You! What are you looking at!” The girl became very angry when she saw Ye Bufan staring at her. She swung a punch at him.
But before her fist could reach Ye Bufan, it was pushed back by Ye Bufan’s protective aura.
“You’re bullying me, all of you bully me.” The girl, in her anger, finally squatted on the ground and burst into tears. Her crying echoed throughout the cave entrance, sounding rather eerie.
Ye Bufan was completely bewildered by this, unsure how to comfort her.
“Your wound…” Ye Bufan was about to offer words of comfort when he was interrupted.
“What about my wound? You men are all the same. You flock to anyone attractive and can’t walk away, but when you see someone like me, you resort to verbal mockery.” The girl looked up and cursed at Ye Bufan.
“No, I meant, your wound… I think I can heal it,” Ye Bufan said.
The girl was stunned for a moment before cursing at Ye Bufan again, “You! You! You’re just saying nice things because you see me crying, right?”
“What I said is true,” Ye Bufan replied.
The girl abruptly wiped her tears with her hand, stood up, and looked at Ye Bufan, asking, “You… are you telling the truth?”
Ye Bufan nodded his head heavily. The girl sobbed and told Ye Bufan that the only thing she could think of at the moment was a pill called the Marrow Cleansing Pill that she had heard appeared in Jin Fang a few days ago. She also told Ye Bufan that she had heard the Marrow Cleansing Pill could expel impurities from the body, repair scars, and help cultivators train better.
The girl told Ye Bufan that her surname was Huangfu, and her name was Huangfu Yujia. After hearing about the Marrow Cleansing Pill, she wanted to become a member of Jin Fang. However, Jin Fang’s conditions were too harsh, and she didn’t have that much money. Therefore, she had tried various methods to raise one billion within a short period so she could participate in the auction.
“The Marrow Cleansing Pill does have such effects, but I doubt it will be of much use for your facial condition,” Ye Bufan analyzed after glancing at the scars on the girl’s face.
Huangfu Yujia looked at Ye Bufan in surprise and frowned slightly. Just as she was about to speak, Ye Bufan preempted her.
“Don’t worry, I was the one who provided that Marrow Cleansing Pill. If you don’t believe me, I can give you one to try,” Ye Bufan said. “As for treating your facial wounds, that will require a different approach.”
Huangfu Yujia looked at Ye Bufan, unsure whether to believe him or not.
“My name is Ye Bufan, and my disciple is the renowned divine physician Zhu Zizhen,” Ye Bufan quickly introduced himself.
“Zhu Zizhen? You? His master?” Huangfu Yujia looked at Ye Bufan, “Are you trying to trick me?”
“Why would I trick you? What’s in it for me?” Ye Bufan became agitated upon hearing this. “Besides, as someone in the Foundation Establishment stage, how could I possibly deceive you, a Qi Refining stage cultivator?”
Upon hearing Ye Bufan’s cultivation level, Huangfu Yujia fell silent. She had expected Ye Bufan to be stronger than her, but she hadn’t anticipated such a vast difference. She had initially thought Ye Bufan might be at the peak of Qi Refining, but he was actually a Foundation Establishment master. She knew that even her family’s ancestor was only in the Foundation Establishment stage.
“You don’t believe me?” Ye Bufan looked at Huangfu Yujia and immediately released his spiritual power. Huangfu Yujia was greatly alarmed, feeling as if she were completely transparent in front of Ye Bufan, who could see her clearly.
“I believe you, I believe you,” Huangfu Yujia said.
“Help me take out the eyes of the Blazing Horned Rhinoceros, and then you can come with me to my place, and I’ll treat your face,” Ye Bufan said.
“Really?” Huangfu Yujia’s eyes lit up.
Ye Bufan nodded. Primarily, he saw that Huangfu Yujia seemed to be quite skilled at dissecting demonic beasts, something he had never done before. He could use her as a free labor.
Huangfu Yujia picked up her knife and began dissecting in front of Ye Bufan. Soon, the eyes of the Blazing Horned Rhinoceros were removed.
“Let’s go.” Ye Bufan took Huangfu Yujia and they sped back to Fragrant Mountain Villa.
“This is where you live?” As soon as she entered the villa, Huangfu Yujia’s eyes widened. She discovered that Ye Bufan’s villa had extremely dense spiritual energy, making it very suitable for cultivation.
“The spiritual energy here is so dense. Could there be a spirit vein underneath? No, my grandfather once said that all the spirit veins on Earth have been depleted. Could you be a formation master?” Huangfu Yujia asked.
“What is a formation master?” Ye Bufan asked.
“A master who crafts formations?” Huangfu Yujia said, “I heard from my grandfather that formation masters are almost lost to this world.”
“Isn’t crafting formations basic skill for every cultivator?” Ye Bufan looked at Huangfu Yujia in confusion. “Wait! If you say so, then are there also alchemists for alchemy?”
Huangfu Yujia nodded, stating that these were legendary cultivator professions.
Ye Bufan was stunned for a few seconds before he quickly understood. Lin Xiaoyao came from another cultivation world, and Ye Bufan had been trained according to the standards of that world and Lin Xiaoyao’s own requirements. Therefore, in Ye Bufan’s understanding, cultivators were supposed to know how to craft formations and perform alchemy, which led to a cognitive bias.
“You keep mentioning your grandfather. Judging by your words, you must come from a cultivation family, right?” Ye Bufan analyzed.