CHAPTER 127: 127 LITTLE WHITE FOX SPEAKING TONGUE TWISTERS

Lin Bai didn’t care about his actions being misunderstood.

It would be a fool’s errand not to seize an opportunity.

Controlling such a large piece of the newcomers’ pie, he naturally wanted to find a way to reap some benefits for himself. It was simply a matter of mutual benefit.

He knew too little about this world. For instance, he didn’t know why a sword engraved with a formation could increase true Qi by thirty percent. The Basic Theory of Magical Items mentioned none of these things. The Dan Fang he had figured out himself was still limited to various improved versions based on the Rejuvenating Pill, far from meeting his expectations.

So, even if it meant slacking off, he still had to gather more samples for himself.

Reputation? Who cares!

As it turned out, neither the Spirit Artifact Pavilion nor Medicine King Valley minded stuffing some benefits into his hands to foster a closer relationship. In their eyes, Lin Bai asking for benefits was a friendly gesture. The commotion last night had not been small; they couldn’t hide the fact that Daoist Qingming was killed by the Palm Thunder. Lin Bai, who could kill a Golden Core cultivator with the Palm Thunder, possessed the strength to converse with them as an equal.

Although they didn’t know why Qingming had suddenly attacked, those shrewd and diplomatic sect leaders were happy to see Return to Dragon View suffer and Lin Bai’s background gradually exposed. Compared to Lin Bai taking some benefits from them, they were more averse to dealing with a Lin Bai who was a stranger and on the verge of monopolizing the newcomers in a foundational city.

The Evil Sect’s establishment in Qian City was already a settled matter. If they wanted to balance the relationship between the newcomers and the various sects, Lin Bai, an outsider not belonging to any faction, was an excellent choice—even better than the City Lord of Qian City.

As for the conflict between Lin Bai and Return to Dragon View, what did it have to do with them? At worst, if a real fight broke out between the two sides, they could just mediate a few words. Moreover, Lin Bai’s relationship with the Blood Shadow Sect wasn’t good either. The Righteous faction had Return to Dragon View; the Evil Sect had the Blood Shadow Sect.

Lin Bai’s background and abilities would eventually be probed, bit by bit. The moment they truly understood his background, whether to kill or to keep him—wouldn’t that be their decision?

「...」

"...City Lord, that’s roughly how things are. After Lin Bai left Medicine King Valley’s residence, he went straight back to the Beggar Gang without going to Return to Dragon View."

The scholar from the Supervisory Immortal Office faithfully reported Lin Bai’s whereabouts to the City Lord of Qian City. The City Lord of Qian City was named Guo Yuan, a man in his fifties with graying hair and beard, and distinguished features. His long tenure in a high position had naturally endowed him with an imposing aura of authority.

"Quite an interesting little fellow," Guo Yuan stroked his beard. "The Commandery Princess has sent me a talent indeed!"

"Do you want to summon him for an audience?" the scholar asked.

"No need. Let’s just see how he navigates his dealings with the various sects. It’s not appropriate for me to appear," Guo Yuan said. "Later, send a certificate of appointment to the Beggar Gang, entrusting them to oversee this recruitment fair for the newcomers. Allow them to act at their discretion within Qian City."

"Yes," the scholar responded.

"Also, keep me informed of Return to Dragon View’s movements at all times." Guo Yuan looked at the scholar and pondered for a moment. "If there’s any major action on their side, inform our Storekeeper Lin in advance. The Commandery Princess was right: wherever Lin Bai is, he becomes the center of everyone’s attention. The lives of the city’s common people will be relatively more peaceful. Therefore, he must not come to any harm."

"Yes, City Lord." The scholar cupped his fists in respect to the City Lord and bowed as he withdrew.

「...」

"That whelp! He’s gone too far!" At Return to Dragon View’s encampment, Daoist Qingling slammed his hand on the table in anger.

But he could do nothing. His strength was comparable to Daoist Qingming’s; even if he was stronger, it wasn’t by much. He knew that killing Lin Bai would resolve everything. But he wasn’t confident. If he too were killed by Lin Bai, Return to Dragon View would truly become a laughingstock.

Daoist Qingling also knew that Daoist Priest Qingfeng and his young disciple had left during the night, but he hadn’t stopped them. Dragon Breath was right: Daoist Qingming had been killed, and someone should go to the main Return to Dragon View sect for help, but it shouldn’t be him. If he left, Return to Dragon View’s presence in Qian City would be completely compromised. With Daoist Priest Qingfeng returning, the blame would naturally fall on him. After all, he was the one who had leaked the information about the Spiritual World Gap; this way, his own culpability would be significantly reduced.

Alas! What on earth was all this? It would have been fine if you, Qingfeng, had just stayed put in Jiamucheng after losing the Spiritual World Gap. Why did you have to come to Qian City to stir up trouble and drag me down with you? Utterly despicable!

「...」

Leaving aside the intrigues among the sects, the disciples of the Beggar Gang were quite active. Some of them focused on practicing their martial arts to maintain the Beggar Gang’s combat strength, while the rest scattered to recruit basic disciples for the Beggar Gang, find workers to repair buildings, and search for venues to hold the "Fragments Exhibition." They were all as busy as bees.

「...」

With Tong Cha’s Wind-breaking Sword as an opening, Lin Bai obtained a Core of Mysterious Iron from the Spirit Artifact Pavilion and a few bottles of Pill Medicine from Medicine King Valley, including Constitution Building Elixirs, Little Replenishing Elixirs, and Qi and Blood Elixirs.

Lin Bai had originally wanted a few spiritual grasses to try and figure out a new Dan Fang. However, the people from Medicine King Valley were there to recruit students and had no plans for alchemy, so naturally, they had no spiritual grasses. Cao Ruan did promise to bring him some medicinal herbs the next time he came to Qian City, provided, of course, that Lin Bai could give Medicine King Valley an advantage in the current selection of newcomers.

Regarding Lin Bai figuring out a Dan Fang on his own, Cao Ruan didn’t say much, even offering a few words of encouragement. He didn’t take the pills Lin Bai refined seriously at all. Without even a Spiritual Field or medicinal herbs, Lin Bai was merely following an unorthodox path, hardly worth mentioning.

「...」

After leaving Medicine King Valley, Lin Bai tried using the Wind-breaking Sword with Six Color Frost. However, he only managed to slash out a simple stream of sword energy. There was no multicolored effect, nor did it travel ten meters. It was like a common attack, showing no sign of the thirty percent augmentation.

The truth was, without proper sword techniques, the Wind-breaking Sword couldn’t exert much power in his hands.

His martial arts techniques are still too scarce.

Lin Bai sighed quietly. His enemies had already advanced to the Golden Core stage. If it weren’t for the morning, the damage his current martial arts could inflict on a Golden Core cultivator was indeed limited. But what enemy would be foolish enough to attack him only in the morning, every time?

He couldn’t always rely on the Palm Thunder to solve problems. After all, the Palm Thunder’s wind-up time was too long. It might be manageable against a single enemy, but what if he was ganged up on?

He still needs to find ways to increase his strength...

As for the several bottles of Pill Medicine he got from Medicine King Valley, the Constitution Building Elixir was for improving one’s physical constitution, which was basically useless to him. After all, his physical constitution had already reached its peak while doing missions for the Peerless Divine Doctor System; further improvement would make little difference. The Qi and Blood Elixir was used for recovering from severe injuries, usually taken in conjunction with the Rejuvenating Pill. It was a supplement to the Rejuvenating Pill and, for Lin Bai, equally useless, as it couldn’t even be used in combat.

The only one useful to Lin Bai was the Little Replenishing Elixir, which was genuinely life-saving. According to Cao Ruan, when one was on the verge of death from severe injuries, a dose of the Little Replenishing Elixir could rapidly stimulate qi and blood, restoring fifty percent of one’s physical strength and abilities within a short time, with no side effects.

In contrast, there was also the Major Rejuvenation Elixir, which was said to instantly bring a dying person back to full vigor, restoring seventy percent of their power.

Compared to Lin Bai’s so-called Exciting Rejuvenation Pill, these were genuine elixirs. If you took an Exciting Rejuvenation Pill when you were on the brink of death, instead of regaining your energy, you’d probably drop dead on the spot.

「...」

After his rounds, Lin Bai had a preliminary understanding of the five major sects. If he considered them hypothetical enemies, apart from Hundred Flower Valley, which seemed relatively weak, the others would not be easy to deal with.

Lin Bai shook his head, clearing the complex thoughts from his mind. He reached out and patted the Little White Fox on his shoulder. "Xiao Bai, can I trust you?"

"Of course." The Little White Fox pricked up her ears. "Master, from the moment you saved me yesterday, I swore that I would never betray you. I would even die for you."

"No need for you to die," Lin Bai chuckled. "How about I teach you tongue twisters instead?"

"What’s a tongue twister?" the Little White Fox asked in confusion.

"It’s for practicing articulation." Feeding time arrived. Lin Bai took out a Belly-Filling Pill and offered it to the Little White Fox’s mouth, earning some goodwill points.

"Is it related to Spoken Law Follows?" the Little White Fox asked, making a contented sound as she rubbed her small belly.

"No, it has nothing to do with Spoken Law Follows. It’s related to my Palm Thunder," Lin Bai said in a voice only the two of them could hear. "You’ve been by my side for so long, you must have noticed that anyone who recites the correct spell can trigger my Palm Thunder..."

"That son of a... MMPH!" The Little White Fox opened her mouth, about to utter the incantation, but Lin Bai clamped his hand over her mouth halfway through, causing her to make muffled sounds.

"No swearing," Lin Bai said, pulling her off his shoulder and releasing her mouth. He habitually stroked her fur. "There’s no one around. If you chant the spell now, you’ll be the only one to suffer."

"..." The Little Fox paused, then asked timidly, "But what does that have to with tongue twisters?"

"That’s for another spell, one that can kill a Golden Core cultivator," Lin Bai smiled. "Not a single word can be mispronounced, so you need to have clear articulation and speak quickly."

"Yesterday, Daoist Qingming... he..." The Little White Fox’s eyes widened.

"Yes, he was killed by a Palm Thunder activated by that spell," Lin Bai nodded with a smile.

"Master, will you tell me the spell?" The Little White Fox’s voice trembled with a mixture of excitement and the feeling of being trusted.

"Not yet. First, practice your articulation. Once you can speak clearly without making mistakes, I’ll tell you the real spell," Lin Bai said.

So far, the level of affinity he had built with Little White Fox was already in the triple digits. In this world, there was likely no one more trustworthy than the Little Fox.

One person reciting the Palm Thunder spell might be a bit slow. But with an extra mouth, the Palm Thunder could be fired consecutively, perhaps even used for sneak attacks. Who would suspect a cute Little Fox? If he could multitask in the future, using ventriloquism to recite tongue twisters, he might even be able to achieve a triple-shot. Then he wouldn’t even fear group fights... The Little Fox was rather weak, but telling her the spell meant his pet could indirectly participate in battle.

The Little White Fox looked up at Lin Bai and promised earnestly, "Master, rest assured, I will absolutely not reveal the spell to a third person."

"It wouldn’t matter even if you did. Anyone who dares recite the spell in front of me would be the unlucky one," Lin Bai chuckled. "I’m only telling you not to tell others to avoid accidental injuries. The same goes for you; even if you know the spell, don’t recite it casually. Otherwise, the Palm Thunder will fall on your head. Even a Golden Core cultivator can’t withstand it. If it hits you, you’ll be turned to ash."

"Master, I won’t!" The Little White Fox shivered in fright. "I’ll only recite it when Master tells me to..."

"Let’s start with the tongue twisters!" Lin Bai glanced at the sky; the sun had already risen. He stroked the Little White Fox’s fur. "You practice for a day. Tomorrow morning, we’ll go outside the city, and I’ll teach you the real spell."

"Mm-hm!" The Little White Fox nodded excitedly.

"Red lorry, yellow lorry, red lorry, yellow lorry," Lin Bai recited as they walked.

"Red lorry, yellow lorry, red lorry, yellow lorry," the Little White Fox mumbled, then recited it accurately.

"Not bad! Let’s try another one." Lin Bai smiled. "She sells seashells by the seashore..."

"She sells... shells... shore..."

「...」

Teasing the Little Fox with tongue twisters all the way, Lin Bai returned to the Beggar Sect Branch. He tossed the Wind-breaking Sword to the Artifact Refining Master to study, then found a few ordinary native Beggar Gang disciples to assist him and began crafting weapons for his shop.

The fourth batch of beta testers had just entered the game yesterday. It would take time to clear the path between the Novice Village and Qian City, and preparations for the "Fragments Exhibition" also needed to be made in advance. With Beggar Gang disciples assisting, Lin Bai didn’t need to personally handle these matters. Focusing on completing System tasks to increase his strength was the correct path.

Having the Little Fox recite tongue twisters was an indirect way of increasing his strength. Of course, the most effective method to improve his strength currently was the Card System. But that was also the most offensive method. Doing it covertly was fine, but once it became public, it could easily make him a public enemy. After all, no one wanted to be defeated and then turned into a puppet in a card. He could only do this once he was powerful enough.

Lin Bai wished he could do it too. Wouldn’t it be great to throw out a handful of cards in a fight and have his summoned beasts battle for him!

「...」

Lin Bai didn’t use the Core of Mysterious Iron, instead using ordinary Iron Ingots to make weapons. He was trying to complete a task; wasting good materials wasn’t worth it.

Who knew when the God of Craftsmen System would ask him to craft high-level weapons.

Amidst the Little White Fox’s babbling of "Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers," Lin Bai’s weapon shop quickly had ten newly forged weapons on display—all exquisitely designed kitchen knives.

Basically, as soon as each one was forged and put on the shelf, it was snatched up by a Beggar Gang disciple. The Beggar Gang disciples were all wealthy; who wouldn’t be happy to support their benefactor?

Therefore, the moment the kitchen knives were successfully crafted, Lin Bai’s God of Craftsmen System task was completed. He received the Blacksmith’s Anvil, increasing his artifact refining success rate to thirty percent.

"A successful craftsman survives not by quantity, but by distinctiveness and quality. Put your mark on the weapons you forge and sell ten of them at three times the market price. Reward: Blacksmith’s Bellows (Artifact refining success rate increased by 10%)."

「...」

Looking at the new task, Lin Bai fell silent. If this continued, all his time would be wasted on making kitchen knives. He couldn’t let that happen.

So, he decisively called back the few players who had just bought the kitchen knives. "Give me back the kitchen knives you just bought."

"Storekeeper Lin, if you’re short on money, just take it from the gang. Stop kidding us!" Crazy Man hesitated, unwilling to hand over his kitchen knife. "I just got this kitchen knife; it hasn’t even warmed in my hand yet! I want to use it for at least a couple of days before thinking about upgrading it!"

"Upgrading is voluntary. I just forgot to engrave a mark on the kitchen knives," Lin Bai said with a straight face. "I’ll engrave the mark and give them back to you!"

"Storekeeper Lin, can we get an upgrade then?" Bitter Melon Vine asked. "I’m not afraid if it breaks; I can pay."

"Upgrading depends on my mood. Today, I’m only engraving marks," Lin Bai glanced at him and said. "Those who don’t let me engrave marks today will permanently lose their weapon upgrade eligibility."

Before his voice had even faded, CLINK, CLANK. Ten kitchen knives landed in front of Lin Bai.

Lin Bai picked up an engraving tool, carved a flamboyant, calligraphic character "Bai" onto the handle of one, and handed it back to Crazy Man. "Three hundred coins, please," he said expressionlessly.

"..." Crazy Man stared at Lin Bai in astonishment, paused for a moment, then obediently took out three hundred coins and got his kitchen knife back. He sent a private message to his companions: "Alright, it’s nothing serious. Storekeeper Lin is just having one of his usual episodes, helping the System recycle coins. Let’s all just play along!"

No joy, no sorrow! Lin Bai’s system registered no emotional feedback from them. Thanks to his constant "training," the Beggar Gang disciples’ emotional thresholds had become increasingly high. It now took something exceptionally stimulating to stir their emotions.